Teboho Sello, 43, has only one ambition, to win the historic Comrades Ultra marathon which runs between coastal cities of Durban and Pietermaritzburg in the KwaZulu Natal province in South Africa on Sunday August 28.
sports
Aug. 27, 2022
LENA
2 min read
Sello aims to win Comrades Ultra Marathon
Raring to go: Teboho Sello ready for the Comrade Ultra Marathon
Story highlights
Sello is running his sixth attempt to win the 90 kilometre race
Sello says he lacks financial support to help him prepare himself
Speaking in an exclusive interview on Wednesday, Sello who runs under the Maxed Elite Athletics Club, said could his wish come true this coming weekend (Sunday August 28)and he wins the elusive Comrades Ultra Marathon, he would only try to defend it twice before he hanged his running shoes.
He said he had only managed to finish amongst the top 10 three times and below this bracket twice, meaning that this time will be his sixth time trying to win this 90 kilometre race.
''I am definitely considering to retire to focus on training upcoming athletes to help them to realize their potential and even surpass my achievements in athletics,'' he said.
However, he said there were many challenges he had experienced during preparations for this year's edition of the Comrades marathon.
Sello said some of the challenges included lack of financial support from local businesses, saying he needed physiotherapist, transport to go to training, escort and indoor training, more especially to prepare for the down run, which he said was more challenging than the up run.
He also lamented lack of stiff competition caused by lack of races due to the impact of novel coronavirus that caused a lot of fear which led to suspension of athletics in a bid to combat the spread of the virus.
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A picture of previous Comrade Marathon in full swing
The veteran runner also believe that he will be closely monitoring how his body will react after the 60 kilometre mark of the 90 distance, if it will allow him to finish the race or not.
Nonetheless, Sello said he would be running alongside teammate Matlou Majoro whom he described as an experienced distance runner who had featured more than 10 times at the Comrades marathon.
President of Federation of Athletics Lesotho (FALE), Mr. Tséliso Pheta said no local runners had approached his office for assistance as yet but believed that they might be waiting for the last minute.
He said no local athlete could run in another country without having been given a permit by the Federation.
The Comrades Marathon remains one of the few South Africa races which have been eluding local athletes for a long time, unlike the likes of Soweto marathon, Cape Town City Marathon as well as the Two Ocean marathon which have been dominated by local runners in the past.
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