Adriaan Wildschutt aims for record-breaking 10K at Absa RUN YOUR CITY Gqeberha

ADRIAAN WILDSCHUTT wants to set the Absa RUN YOUR CITY GQEBERHA 10K alight yet again like he did last year, but this time the America-based athlete from Ceres in the Western Cape needs some help.

“It wasn’t ideal running alone for most of the race last year,” Wildschutt says of his stellar solo effort which saw him setting a new South African record of 27:28 having led from the 3km mark.

His time has since been improved by Maxime Chaumeton who ran a 26:55 in Romania and Wildschutt is now looking to become the first athlete to clock a sub-27 minute 10km on African soil. The fastest verified 10km time on the continent belongs to Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei who ran a 27:16 at the Absa RUN YOUR CITY DURBAN 10K back in 2018.

Wildschutt is returning to the Windy City for the popular series opener on March 1, intent on having yet another record-breaking season like the previous campaign in which he bettered four national records.

“It would mean a lot to run sub-27:00 on SA soil. It would probably be one of my very highest achievements. It would certainly mean the world to me,” says the 27-year-old.

But for that to happen Widlschutt is going to need a serious push from the field unlike last year when he obliterated the opposition early on and ended up having to dig deep on his own.

 “I want to emphasise how tall an order that is on this course, and I’d need competition. It wasn’t ideal running alone for most of the race last year. To even come close to sub-27, I need perfect weather (which is out of our control), as well as competitors who can push me all the way to the finish line. Pacers will also be extremely important and hopefully can pace even longer than 5km.”

No doubt the race organizers, Stillwater Sports, will ensure there are some quality pacers and the competition is top notch.

That done, there is every possibility the race will witness yet another amazing run by the Capetonian who will be in high spirits following an impressive showing at the World Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee, Florida where he produced the best performance by a South African senior athlete in the 10km.

Wildschutt finished in 13th place to improve on the 15th position attained by both Shadrack Hoff (1996) and Stephen Mokoka (2011), clearly placing himself in line for legendary status after also setting the national half marathon record of 59:13 at the Valencia Half Marathon late last year.

Wildschutt’s belief that he can achieve his goal is upped by his ability to inspire local up-and-coming top runners, as well as the vocal support he always enjoys when racing on home soil.

“It’s always such a pleasure and honour to run in South Africa. I understand that there are quite a few athletes I indirectly influence, and it’s great talking to them about the world of running and all facets of life.”