Namibian athletes head to Durban International Marathon
Nedbank Running Club athletes Rainhold Tomas and Simon Paulus are set to compete against the best athletes in the continent when they challenge for the Olympic qualification this weekend at the Durban International Marathon.The marathon, which is organised by the Phantane Athletics Clubs, takes place on Sunday and sees athletes competing in the 42 km and 10 km races. This year’s event incorporates the 2024 Athletics South Africa (ASA) National 42.2 km Championships and will be used as an official Comrades and Two Oceans qualifiers.
Tomas, Namibia’s long-distance runner who in the past represented the country at the Olympics and Commonwealth Games, has set his sights on once again donning the national colours on a global stage.
The runner who competes under the Namibia Correctional Service when in the country and under Nedbank Running Club when competing in South Africa recently ran a time of 1:05:59 while competing at the Kazungula Bridge Half Marathon, where he finished in fifth position in Kazungula, Botswana.
The long-distance runner who has a personal best time of 02:02:21 which he ran in Siena, Italy in 2021 says he has prepared well and is looking forward to representing his country well as well at the Durban International Marathon.
Aiming for the Olympics
“So far training is going well, and I am looking forward to the competition. I know it’s not going to be an easy event, but I am going to give it my best to run an Olympic qualifying time,” he said.
Tomas said he is currently injury-free, and his goal is to qualify for the Olympic Games once again.
The Paris 2024 Olympics will see 1 810 athletes from across the world competing for honours. This will consist of 905 women and 905 men. For individual events, there will be a maximum of three athletes per National Olympic Committee (NOC) eligible to qualify, with a maximum of two teams per NOC per team event and one relay team per NOC for relay events.
If any of the Namibian male runners are to realise their dream of representing the country at this global event, they will have to clock a time of at least 02:08:10 on Sunday at the Durban International Marathon, which is the minimum qualifying standard for male athletes, while the women will need to run a minimum of 02:26:50.
Simon Paulus who will be making his debut as a marathon runner this weekend said he has been hard at work and can’t wait to compete in his first marathon. “I have been training for three months for this marathon, and I feel ready to compete in my first marathon. Probably I will run an Olympics qualifying time so I can represent my country at the Olympics,” he said.
Paulus who has a personal best time of 1:02:51, in a half-marathon which he clocked while competing at the Nelson Mandela Bay Half Marathon, Gqeberha, South Africa in 2022 added that he is going to try and challenge himself.
“I usually compete in short-distance track events and then the half-marathon, but my coach told me to change and try out the full marathon which I believe I can do and hope to do with a better personal best,” Paulus said.
Apart from Paulus, and Tomas Team Namibia for the Durban International Marathon consists of Jeremia Shaliaxwe and Paulus Iyambo. The team depart for Durban today.