'My plans are still on track' - Gelant targets SA 21km Champs on the road to World Champs

Despite failing to defending his title, Elroy Gelant remains upbeat about his performance at the Absa RUN YOUR CITY DURBAN 10K on 13 July, saying it was an important stepping stone towards a good showing at the World Championships. Just ten weeks after running 2:05:36 to break the 26-year-old SA Marathon Record, 38-year-old Gelant clocked 27:58 to take fifth position in a fast race won by Kabelo Mulaudzi and where six mean broke 28 minutes for the first time in South African history.

"It was a little bit difficult to be honest. It wasn't easy. I had to fight," he told #TheTopRunner after claiming his second consecutive sub 28 minute clocking at the Absa DURBAN 10K. "From kilometre 8, I could feel that I was going into the red zone compared to last year where at kilometre 8, I was still in gear five and I could move to gear six in the last kilometre. Maybe I have been underestimating the impact of the 2:05. To be honest it's still there. So I'd say 50/50 in terms of this outcome. But it's still a blessing because I'm pleased to run a sub 28. Although a podium finish would have been great, I'm satisfied."

Gelant on his way to a third career sub 28 10km clocking. He believes his performance at the Absa RUN YOUR CITY DURBAN 10K was an important milestone on his journey toward World Championships success. Photo Credit: Anthony Grote.

Coached by Jean Verster at the Potch Track Club, the Boxer Athletic Club top runner is able to reflect on last week's performance in Durban in the context of his ultimate goal. His fourth place finish at the Hamburg Marathon on Freedom Day, not only saw him eclipse the long-standing mark set by former Tokyo Marathon champion Gert Thys, it also earned him a spot to represent the nation at the premier athletics-only competition in the world which takes place in Japan from 13-21 September, where his objective is to secure a top ten finish.

To ready himself for the energy sapping weather conditions expected in the Japanese capital during the northern hemisphere's early autumn, Gelant will run the Athletics South Africa (ASA) Half Marathon Championships which have been incorporated into the Foskor F21 Half Marathon. Scheduled for Saturday 26 July in the Limpopo mining town of Phalaborwa, the race starts at mid-day and is notoriously hot. The defending SA Half Marathon champion believes that this is the perfect simulation for what he can expect to face in Tokyo.

Gelant celebrates victory at the 2024 Nelson Mandela Bay Half Marathon which doubled as the national 21km championships. It was a second national title in four weeks and his first NMB Half Marathon race since 2014. Photo Credit: Richard Pearce Photography.

"For me the bigger goal is the World Championships and my plans are still on track. I've got full focus on the marathon. Because of the conditions that we will get in Tokyo - the humidity and the heat - we decided to do the South African Championships in Phalaborwa. It's actually more about taking in the conditions and less about being competitive and going out there to win the SA title. I want it to be tough. I'm looking forward to the whole challenge which will guide me in terms of my preparations for the World Championships."

And after experiencing the conditions in The Land of The Rising Sun when he limped to a 2:16:43 finish at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, the three-time Olympian who took eleventh position in last year's Paris Olympic Marathon, is making sure that he has all his bases covered this time around. 

"Immediately when I stopped in Tokyo, I started crying. I think it was because of the trauma of the conditions. But at least I've got some experience about what to expect. I'm actually gonna use it in a positive way this time around. Because I just missed out on a top ten finish at the Olympics, I've actually been thinking that these conditions will be difficult for everyone. So I wanna it in a sportive way to see if I can slip into that top five at the World Championships."