Felekisi Comrades runner aims to finish faster
Daniel Adonis wishes to see more familiar faces run the Comrades.
SECURITY officer and marathon runner, Daniel Adonis, said as he prepares to participate in the Comrades Marathon this Sunday, June 11, his wish is to inspire people and make them realise that everyone can take part, as long as they prepare adequately.
Adonis, 42, who is from Felekisi, works for the Community Crime Prevention Organisation Amanzimtoti (CCPO). He is a member of the Hollywood Athletic Club and he ran his first Comrades in 2009 in what was supposed to be a once-off entry. The best time he has ever clocked is 7 hours and 11 minutes.
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“This year I aim to hit the finish line in less than seven hours. I feel I can do it because I have conditioned myself mentally and physically,” he said.
As a young man, Adonis said he was a soccer player and the sport helped him stay fit. It was only after he hung up his soccer boots that the competitive running bug bit him.
“I had always jogged to keep fit but after my soccer-playing days ended, I jogged more often. It was then that a fellow runner asked why I didn’t run the Comrades as I had a good pace and my running technique was great,” said Adonis.
Although he had grown up watching the Comrades on TV, he had never imagined himself taking part in it. He joined an athletics club and worked towards his first race. Adonis participated in every Comrades between 2009 and 2018. He sat out the 2019 race because of an injury, while the 2020 and 2021 races were cancelled because of Covid-19. When the ban was lifted in 2022, he took part.
“Running the Comrades takes a lot out of you. One needs to have the correct training, the right diet, the right state of mind, and the necessary vitamin and mineral supplements. You can train and have the correct running equipment but if you don’t take the required supplements, you will hit a slump along the way,” said Adonis.
He wishes more of his colleagues would take up running as it would be nice having some familiar people running alongside him in competitions.
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