Van Dyk expects close marathon finish
South African Paralympic legend Ernst van Dyk has predicted a razor-close finish in the T54 marathon in Rio de Janeiro.
|||South African Paralympic legend Ernst van Dyk has predicted a razor-close finish in the T54 marathon in Rio de Janeiro.
Van Dyk will also compete in the cycling time trial and cycling road race in Brazil and while he is considered a serious medal threat in all three events, the 43-year-old is primarily known for his exploits in the marathon.
The Paarl resident has won the Boston Marathon 10 times, the New York City Marathon twice, and also claimed five silver and two bronze medals in those same world-renowned races.
However, Van Dyk says the Paralympics marathon course, the same one used during the Olympics, may not be well suited to him.
“It’s tough because the course is totally flat, with multiple laps. There are no real opportunities for us in the wheelchair division to break away,” Van Dyk says.
“There are no hills or down hills to attack guys or open a gap, so we’re probably going to be about 15 or 20 guys coming down the finishing straight. That makes it really tough to predict because it’s going to be very tactical, with a little bit of luck involved, and we’ll have to see how it goes.”
Van Dyk did not compete in the marathon at the 2012 London Games, but claimed a silver medal in the cycling road race.
At the 2008 Beijing Games he won gold in the same event and bronze in the marathon.
“I feel I have a really good shot in the cycling races, because that is where we’ve focused a lot,” he added.
“In the time trial I’ve medalled at the World Championships over the last three years. In the road race I’ve medalled at two out of three World Championships and won the gold in 2014. So I think in the cycling I have good prospects, but then again this is the Paralympics and a lot of the athletes have thrown everything they can in training in the last couple of months to get ready, improve and be at their best.”
The Rio de Janeiro Games will be Van Dyk’s seventh consecutive appearance at the Paralympics.
He’s also competed in swimming events and holds silver medals in the 1 500 metres and 800m, and bronze in the 400m and 5 000m.
Another highly-decorated paralympian who returns to the biggest stage in adapted sports is discus and javelin competitor and team flag-bearer, Zanele Situ.
Situ will make her fifth appearance at the Paralympics this year and will look to add to the javelin gold and discus silver she won in Sydney and discus silver claimed in Athens, after finishing outside of the medals in London.
“I’m happy about my chances because I’ve trained very well. I had a huge shoulder injury in 2011 so I wasn’t that well (before the London Games), but now I think I am really prepared,” she says.
“This will also be the first Paralympics where I have been based in Stellenbosch with a proper coach. I’ve definitely improved a lot.” - The Star