Record-breaking Wildschutt sets his sights on Paris Olympics

Distance runner Adriaan Wildschutt says he has his sights firmly set on this year’s Olympic Games after opening his season in explosive fashion on Friday night.

Competing at a meeting held at Boston University, Wildschutt charged to an impressive victory in 12:56.76, shattering his own South African 5 000m short track (indoor) record.

The 25-year-old athlete made history by becoming the first SA athlete to dip under 13 minutes over the 5 000m distance on any surface.

In the process, he shattered his own national short track mark of 13:09.30 which he set in Boston in February last year.

Olympic preparation

Wildschutt, who had already qualified for the 5 000m event at the Olympics, felt his latest result was a big step forward towards the Paris Games in August.

“My big focus is the Olympics, so everything in-between is just getting ready for that,” he said in an interview with FloTrack.

“I’m not going to be racing a lot, so each race when I come in I will try to be as ready as possible and get fast times.”