JOBURG – South Africa’s Running Queen, Sonja Laxton, will be setting yet another record on Sunday October 13 when she takes part in her 80th Spar Challenge race at the Wanderers Club.
Setting records is nothing new to Sonja – she’s been setting them for more than 45 years and one of her greatest achievements was to become the first athlete, male or female, to be awarded national colours in all three branches of athletics; track, road and cross-country.
Sonja started running at high school in Port Elizabeth at the age of 13, and continued at the University of the Witwatersrand, where she achieved a master’s degree in biochemistry. She won her first senior national title in 1971 when she broke the national 1 500m record, and in the same year, she won her first cross-country title.
In all, Sonja collected 70 national titles, on the track, on the road and in cross-country. She set 28 senior national records over the 1 500m, 3 000m and 10 000m on the track, and over the half and full marathon distances on the road. She also set numerous SA age group and provincial records.
Although Sonja now runs as a Grandmaster, she still finishes well up in the field, way ahead of many runners half her age. “I just love running,” she says. “I really miss it when I can’t do it. It’s such a wonderful thing to do – if you travel, and you run, you get to see so much more if you go for a run in a strange city than you would from a car. And all you need for running is a pair of running shoes. You can buy all sorts of other things, but really it is a very cheap sport.”
She added, “Women’s races are a lot of fun. The winner has the satisfaction of being the first across the finishing line, instead of coming after a bunch of men, and there is always a very good vibe at the Spar races. They really are something to look forward to. I plan my year’s training around the Spar races. “I think Spar has done a lot to get women involved in running. Women who might have been a bit wary of running in a mixed race feel more comfortable about running in a women only race.”
She is also excited about the new venue and course for the Johannesburg race, which is her signature route. “I do most of my training in this area, and I think all the runners will enjoy the new 10km route. “It is not as challenging as the previous route. There are a few longish uphill drags, but generally it is quite a gentle route, and I think the layman runner will appreciate it. You run past some beautiful gardens as well as the Killarney golf course and there are lots of trees. The jacarandas may be out by then, which makes it all even prettier.”
