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Ellina Mhlanga-Senior Sports Reporter 

THE National Athletics Association of Zimbabwe are fancying their chances of qualifying more athletes for next year’s World Championships with some of the earmarked long-distance runners currently in camp in Harare preparing for upcoming qualifying races. 

Moses Tarakinyu, Wellington Varevi, Tendai Zimuto and Tatenda Hove are in camp. They will be joined by Elijah Mabhunu when he returns from the Southern Africa Regional Police Chiefs Cooperation Organisation (SARPCCO) Games in Tanzania. 

The national association are targeting the Cape Town Marathon to be held on October 15 and 16 in South Africa. 

Head of the national event coaches team for middle and long-distance runners, Benson Chauke, confirmed of the five runners they have called-up, four will be chasing qualification for 10 000m. 

It is now possible to qualify for 10 000m in a road race.

“From the team that I have it’s only Tatenda Hove who will be doing the marathon. We have four that will run 10km – Varevi, Zimuto, Tarakinyu and Mabhunu.

“We had called in Blessing Waison to join camp from Cadence Athletics Club so that he runs the marathon together with Tatenda Hove. 

“But after consultation with his coach, we agreed that for us to be able to come up with a better performance, he will continue working with his coach and complete the programme they had already started for the remaining short period for this particular race.

“And then consider him for the next camp that we will start earlier as we build up to the next competition if he would not have achieved what he is desired to achieve by then. I am confident that he is in good hands with his coach. 

“We, however, commented on one or two things that they can add,” said Chauke. 

The qualifying time for men’s marathon is 2 hours 9 minutes 40 seconds and 2 hours 28 minutes for women. 

For 10 000m it’s 27 minutes 10 seconds for men and 30 minutes 40 seconds for women. 

Some of the 10km athletes competed in the Durban International Marathon in May and they posted times ranging from 28 minutes to 29 minutes.

“Only Elijah didn’t run in Durban but the others ran. So we are going to build on that…If we can improve on our personal best then we will be very clear that we are on the right path and right route to be able to achieve what we desire to achieve.

“We are like maybe four or five weeks before (the race), so we are focusing on literally everything. We are working on speed, their mental toughness. We are looking at their race tactics and their paces.

“So we will schedule a time trial later. Maybe after two weeks, we do time trial for a shorter distance to measure what we have been doing and to see if they have adapted to the split that we want to see happening so that we can probably try and predict the range of our outcome. 

“And if there is anything that needs to be changed, we do it in time,” said Chauke. 

Chauke said with Isaac Mpofu already qualified, they are hoping to have at least two more athletes making the grade so that they field a full complement of three athletes in men’s marathon. 

However, more still needs to be done in the women’s section.   

NAAZ president, Tendayi Tagara, said if they get female athletes with times closer to the qualifying standards they will be considered for the next camp since the purpose is to push athletes meet the set standards.