ATHLETICS MANAGER AND WORLD CLASS COACH CUAN WALKER OF SOUTH AFRICA GIVES PERFECT DEFINITION OF HOW TO SUCCED IN THE SPORT

 Mr Pace Show Question and Answer

Presenter: Collen Makaza 

Guest: Cuan Walker

Date: 31 May 2021

Time: 1800hr to 2030hr 

Venue: Chitungwiza Harare Zimbabwe 

Contacts: +263 733 741 960 /+263 776769684

Email: mrpacemakaza@gmail.com

Good evening to you all 

Welcome to our show and as we promised, our Guest non other than Mr Cuan Walker 

Please Sir cornfirm your presence 🤚

I am here thank you for having me!

*1.Q- Welcome Mr Walker can u tell us about yourself, when and where were you born?*

I was born in Durban South Africa on 29 May 1985. It was 2 days before the 1985 Comrades Marathon and my dad was a runner and also ran that year. My birth notice in the newspaper said "another little road runner is born"

My dad ran that Comrades 2 days after I was born and the nurses were so surprised he came so early to the hospital after finishing to see me

*2Q- Where did you attend your primary, secondary schooling and in which years?*

Yoh, I went to so many schools because my parents kept on moving. But I started primary school in 1990 in pinetown and I finished my matric certificate at ethekwini College at the end of 2003

*3.Q- Tell us how was performance in athletics during your primary and secondary levels?*

To tell the truth I was not good in school 🤣 I was a slow runner but I loved the sport. When I was doing my last year of school that's when I started to train with Gwen van lingen who started Mr Price club. I did speedwork for the first time and then I started to win some races in the junior category but only when the other fast juniors were not there! My mistake I made was I ran Comrades too early, when I was 19 years old so I had many problems after that

*Meaning that comrades affected you by injured or what exactly?*

Yes it did. My body was not strong enough to run that far. The 2nd time I ran in 2007 when I was 21 I landed up in the hospital with kidney failure and I kept getting injured it 

damaged my body

*Ooh sorry Sir*

*4.Q- Do you still remember teacher or coach who identified your talent in athletics and how it started in athletics*

It's one of those lessons in life! My advice is don't run ultra at a young age!

You are Correct ✅

I never had a coach or someone who helped me to be better until I started to run with Gwen. She made me a better runner

*5.Q- What inspires you to be an athlete?*

For me now because I don't run like I used to back in the day, it's all the amazing athletes that I had the pleasure of working with before that do well in their careers and get good results. That inspires me now. Because I know how tough this sport is and the battles that athletes face. We don't get paid good money like soccer and ruby players get so everyone who gets results with such difficulty is very inspiring

*6.Q- Can you give us the names of your training partners and how did they contribute for you performance in sport?*

Definitely Gwen was my favourite and best training partner because she always motivated me

Then when I stayed in Kenya for 3 months I got to train together with many world champions and olympians. It was an honour to run 10km with Kipchoge and do runs with the Robertson twin brothers who both have 2:08 and 59min for half marathon. I must also add that when I say I trained with them I mean their warm up jogs and very very easy runs at 5 min per km 🤣

Of late I can say other training partners who mean alot to me include my brothers Lovemore chabata and Shepherd Chitake. They are always willing to run slow with me to motivate me to go out and train and we come a long way back

I know also if Martin Ngwenya was living in Durban and not so far away we would be very good training partners to movitvate each other 🤣

*7.Q- What motivated you to take running as part of your life?*

The sport was always part of my life. My dad was a runner and since a small boy I was obsessed with the sport. When it came to running I could read the results or watch a race and all the information would stay in my head forever. I could remember results, times, athletes names and spelling, even the shoes that they were running with from many years ago I can tell you what shoe they used in the race! It's always been in my life and always will be

*8.Q- Name your first running club and how many clubs did you ran for during your days?*

My first ever running club I joined when I was 12 years old was called Mr Price Savages athletics club. Then in 1998 I joined Mr Price and I stayed a member from 1998 until 2000. At Comrades 2001 I joined Liberty Nike and ran for them until I went back to Mr Price in 2003 to begin working for them. I stayed with Mr Price until 2017 and then ran for Tom Tom in Comrades 2017. From 2018 I joined Nedbank running club

👌👌👌

*9.Q- Do you ever compete or won medals in any S.A national champs?*

No I once ran Sa Half Marathon Champs but not for the province I ran it as an individual

*10.Q- Do you ever represents S. Africa at all Africa games or World Championships?*

No I did not 😊 I was not that fast as an athlete! But many athletes that I was managing and also an athlete that I was coaching did compete in World championship

*When did you start managing athletes and coaching?*

For coaching it was from 2012 but I didn't take coaching seriously as a full time thing. Many athletes always asked advice and from when I went to Kenya many times and spoke with athletes and coaches, I wrote down alot of methods. From that whenever I suggested things to athletes or to change what they were doing they always came back with very positive feedback.

Managing athletes I started in 2003 when I was doing my last year of school when Gwen asked me to join her at Mr Price and make a strong local team. I think at the end of 2004 or sometime during 2004, I was the first person to sign a contract with Zimbabwean athletes. The first Zim runners who got a contract were Collen Makaza and Paul Mhizha. People used to laugh saying haha you joined Mr Price but after a few months they were begging Makaza and Mhizha to speak for them 🤣 after that many more athletes came. My first big signings was October 2003, I signed Fusi Nhlapo who won Comrades that year and Walter Nkosi and Joseph ikaneng all Comrades gold medalists. Liberty Nike hated me after that as they all ran for them. From there many more athletes joined and the team got more stronger on local races compared to before when they only had athletes from Russia

*Heard that you once stayed with elder Matandiro in Capetown*

Yes me and Elijah Mutandiro lived together in Cape Town. That was in 2000 and 2001

*You had same manager or?*

No we were living together with a former elite runner called Donovan Wright

*11.Q- At what age did you start professional running in your career as an athlete?*

I was never a professional athlete I was just a athlete who enjoyed the sport 😊 and managing athletes

*12.Q- Who was your best coach and manager in your career as an athlete?*

For coach I can say it was Gwen

*How was your relationship with Coach Gwen?*

She was more than a coach or friend to me. She was like a mom to me. She did so much for me in my life and even to this day we still speak every week

👆👆

*13.Q- What is your best shoe brand as an athlete?*

I would say that there is no best shoe brand for an athlete because not every shoe will be best for everyone 😊 Every brand has their strengths and weaknesses. My advice if you are not sponsored is to try different shoes until you find something that suits you best

*14.Q- What was your best meals before and after the race?*

Before the race two slices of toast with peanut butter or jam and after I like sphagetti

*15.Q- What's your best times in the following distance from: 5000m 10km, 21km, 42km, 

56km and 89km comrades marathon?*

For 10km my best was 36:21 (2004), for half marathon 1:18 in 2005 and marathon was 2:58 at postnet marathon in 2005. 89km it was 8:56 but I was injured when I ran that Comrades and was in hospital straight after the race. I was never an elite runner just someone who enjoyed the sport

*16.Q- What is your best and worst race in your career as an athlete?*

Comrades is my best race! I love that race so much. My worst race I ever ran was the old reebok half marathon in bedforview. I had a stomach cramp from 2km all the way to the finish but I didn't want to stop

*17. Can you name your best road race of all time and why?*

Comrades is my best race as an athlete and also a supporter. There is something very special about that race. It's more than a race it's like a life experience

*18.Q- When did you start race commentary on SABC and how did you join team?*

In 2007 they asked me to come in for a 10 minute interview during Soweto Marathon as I was a team manager that time to talk about the athletes in the race. Then from February 2008 Sa marathon I was a full time commentator until this current day

*19.Q- Can you name some of the big names in athletics as an Legend you helped, work with or you Coached?

There are too many athletes to mention! I worked and managed so many great athletes that it would not be fair to only name a few. I've worked with many Olympians, Comrades and two Oceans winners and record holders, national champions and many big Marathon runners and also international athletes. Every athlete that I have worked with I respect

Name only 3 from each country 

 Kenya, Lesotho, S.A and Zimbabwe

Shadrack Kemboi, from Lesotho tebho sello, mabhutile lebopo, lebenya nkoka, from Zim Makaza, Marko mambo, Fokoroni and Sa Fusi nhlapo, David Gatebe Ludwick mamabolo, but like I said there are so many that I can't just name a few. There have been so many heroes and champions

*What are the challenges did you face in your career as an athlete?*

For me as a runner it was injuries. They have always been the biggest challenge

*20.Q- How did you manage to keep focused and fit during these lockdowns caused by covid 19?*

It was very tough. I was jogging underground in the parking lot. But for me it could not have been as bad for all of the elite athletes who depends on the sport and prize money to survive.

*21.Q- What do you the think should be done to improve athletics in S. Africa?*

There needs to be less races on the calendar and the races should have bigger prize money. Also better development structures

*22.Q- What's your future plans in sport?*

I want to get back properly in my running but I will never be as quick as I was before. I just want to be consistent again and enjoy running. I want to continue to commentate and my dream is to commentate on one of the big international marathons. I have also taken a bigger interest in my running photography that I have been doing so I am hoping that it can grow bigger as well

I don't manage athletes anymore

*Yooo😌 why Boss?*

I handed over the baton to my friend Martin 😊 I was doing it for many years and now I'm focusing my daily job on building a career different to athletics. I will always be with the sport of running but my management days are not there anymore!

👌👏👏👏

*23.Q- What do you think about age cheating and drug use in sport?*

They are both very bad. Age cheating has always been there and taken away so much medals and sponsorship from people who were not cheating with their age.

Drugs in the sport is not good at all. Unfortunately where there is money there will always be an element of evil. Cheating by age or drugs is the same, you are cheating and denying others of their hard work. I wish there was a way to take away all drug use and age cheating but unfortunately there is not. I believe if you are caught with a drug for example like EPO which you have to inject, you should be banned for life from the sport

*24.Q- Your words to the upcoming athletes and Coaches?*

Don't take drugs, don't cheat on your age, don't take shortcuts. Don't expect to be a champion overnight. It takes long to reach an elite level. The biggest thing is to plan for a race and have a goal, both as an athlete and a coach. Don't try to break a record in a 10km if you are also running Comrades. You can't be an all rounder from 10km to Comrades. Find an event that you are comfortable with and get your best results. Look at the worlds best and see how they do it. There is a reason why Eliud Kipchoge and the other worlds best marathon runners including Stephen Mokoka only run 2 marathons per year. It's because it takes 4 months to prepare for a marathon and more than a month to recover properly to be able to perform at your best. In South Africa we have people racing marathon every weekend. You can find someone who can race 6 marathons and many ultra marathons in one year. The body cannot perform at its best in that way. There is a reason why there are not many people in men who can win both two Oceans and Comrades in the same year. It's because the body cannot recover and you cannot peak for both. I say that for men because the ladies race is not as many competitors as men. In the ladies race you can see 2 or maximum of 3 who can win but in the men's race you can have more than 10 who can win. An example is muzhingi. He won 3 Comrades in a row and then he won two Oceans and failed at Comrades. Bongmusa won 3 Comrades and then he won two Oceans and then failed at Comrades to win finishing 2nd. If both of them did not race two Oceans then the result could have been very different. There is a reason why runners like fusi Nhlapo and Andrew Kelehe got 10 Comrades gold in a row always in top 10. The found that Comrades suited their bodies the best. They could not win a fast marathon but on Comrades they could sustain a pace for 90km. Every year they just focus on Comrades as their main race. You would never find them running fast in other races

*25.Q- In brief tell us about your family and their support to your profession as sports person?*

My dad was my biggest supporter in running because he is the one who was a runner as well. He passed away in 2008. Now I was blessed in 2019 becoming a father. I have a son called Ethan and I am not sure if he will also love running or be interested in the sport but we will see! I won't push him for sport. He must have a passion for what he likes. I am an uncle and my sister has two boys. The oldest nephew of mine is called Cade and he looks just like me when I was younger and loves running so much. When he was 10 years old he celebrated by running his 100th park run

Any questions next 5minutes

Sho bra Q

Yes champ how are you

Nice interview

Thank you 🙏🏻

Michael - How do handle and juggle your busy schedule.

Like 2 races this past weekend

You just have to accept that the sport can take lots of time of the schedule! Last week I did Nedbank 50km, this past weekend I took photos of Caster Semenya and then rush to the airport to fly to Cape Town to do the marathon on the weekend. I just got used to it now 😊

We give thanks to our guest Mr Cuan Walker for sacrificing his time and telling us his great story in sport. We thank you all for your contributions to make this interview a success. Lastly we thank the Mr Pace team for bringing us such an exciting interview.

See you next time

*FINITO*