"I never thought so many children would come" - Mabhida celebrates successful kids holiday training camp in Howick

In an effort to provide local children with a productive outlet during the school holidays, athletics coach Xolani Mabhida established a training camp in the Howick township of Siphumelele, KwaZulu-Natal Province. The camp, designed for children between the ages of 6 and 13 years old, drew significant interest with approximately 30 youngsters taking part during the winter vacation. Mabhida, whose coaching credentials include guiding three-time Comrades Marathon champion Bongmusa Mthembu and Sibusiso Kubheka, was pleasantly surprised by the attendance.

"I never thought so many children would end up joining this camp," he told #TheTopRunner. “The idea came to me after I saw some local youngsters doing things alone in the area where I usually conduct my training sessions. I thought to myself, let me invest in them and empower them at a very young age," explains Mabhida, who also guided Mthembu to the 2019 Two Oceans Marathon crown.

Mabhida putting the kids through their paces. Photo Credit: Xolani Mabhida.

"I think it’s good for kids to learn the basics at this age because they will grow with it. Athletics development is about laying a solid foundation which will allow serves the athlete to have a long career. It is one of the reasons I chose to work with the kids. So far so good. We have quite a few taking part in our sessions which “attracts more to join us.” 

Mabhida, who has previously served as the athletics coach at Michaelhouse, provides free training sessions to children, taking into account that most of them come from underprivileged families. He is thankful for the support of individuals like Maxed Elite athlete manager Martin Ngwenya and Phantane Athletics Club founder Mdu Khumalo, who provide the children with necessary items such as kit and food.

Mabhida grooming future champions. Photo Credit: Xolani Mabhida.

"I don't charge these kids a cent to help them. This is based on the passion I have for the sport. It would be unfair of me to expect money from these kids especially given that I know their background. I communicated with their parents and they gave me their blessing to work with their children. But there are couple of people like Martin, Mdu who have assisted me a lot to get this project off the ground. My mom also allowed us to use the house for kids to stay. So the community has come together in order for these kids to succeed and have a better future.” 

The success of this project has inspired Mabhida, who also hosts an annual summer training camp in December, to keep going even after the schools have reopened.

"I'm going to keep training these kids going forward. I'm not going to stop and I know more numbers are expected after holidays. I'm hoping more people can see the benefits of these camps and come forward to help more children. I think if more people come together with the goal of seeing more children have a better future then we will produce more top runners. It a matter of supporting a project like this with resources,” he concluded.