‘You have all you need’: Tadu Nare tells SA athletes to work harder

Ethiopian athlete Tadu Nare has warned South Africa’s top road runners that they won’t reclaim control of local races unless they work harder to chase down foreign visitors.

Nare has developed into a world-class athlete in recent years, spending much of her time racing in South Africa.

After winning the lucrative Spar Grand Prix women’s 10km series last year, she earned her second win of this season’s campaign in Durban on Sunday.

Nare crossed the line in 31:26, with compatriot Selam Gebre taking second position in 31:37.

Glenrose Xaba was the top South African finisher, and while she shattered her personal best by clocking 31:55, she was unable to stick with the East African contingent.

With the facilities available to local athletes, in comparison to the lack of resources for athletes in her home country, Nare said SA runners had no excuse. And she insisted they needed to put their heads down and grind it out in training if they wanted to be more competitive.

“South Africa has great facilities. We don’t even have places to train in Ethiopia,” Nare said, speaking through an interpreter.

“South African athletes have all the things they need to perform at their best, and they can run faster times, but they must work hard with their coaches.”

Closing the gap

In response, however, local star Irvette van Zyl insisted South Africans were making progress and closing the gap.

“I think Glenrose is already challenging them well enough,” said Van Zyl, who finished ninth on Sunday in her first race of the year, after recovering from injury.

“She is going from strength to strength with every race and I think the Ethiopian streak will come to an end soon.

“It’s great to see Glenrose and the other SA ladies improving their times and making progress. So I don’t think much needs to be done. It’s already happening.”

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Xaba’s coach, Violet Semenya, also believed it was only a matter of time before local athletes would be able to beat top-flight visitors from other African countries.

“We can see Glenrose is becoming more confident and believing in herself, so she is getting there,” Semenya said.

“Soon enough the party will be finished for the Ethiopians.”