Sometimes coaches view running as the ideal way to bring about change for the better in an individual runner’s life.  Often this dedication leads to new champions coming to the fore.

Siyaya Khoza (Nedbank Soweto Development Club) is an example of a coach who is prepared to walk the extra mile for an athlete. He is proving it with the way he is helping the 18-year old Kutlwisiso Sidinile to start fulfilling his dreams.

He hails from Bekkersdal in Westonaria and used to live with his mother who is currently unemployed. She makes a living through volunteering work she does with her community. He was in Grade 11 when he joined Nedbank Running Club.

When Khoza became aware of Sidinile’s running talents he started to coach him. At first he did so telephonically but he soon realized that there was so much more he could do. That led to Khoza asking the mother's permission for Sidinile to move in with him.

Asked why he is prepared to go out of his way to help the youngster Khoza immediately replied: “He is very humble and is prepared to put in the long and hard hours in order to succeed without ever complaining. What also excited me about Kutlwisiso is his confidence in his own ability. It is an important quality for any athlete to have. In order to succeed you need to be slightly ‘cocky’.”

Khoza cannot help to get excited when he starts about how much Sidinile has improved as a runner. During the Gauteng Schools Meeting at Germiston he improved his personal best time in the 1 500m by 11 seconds when he ran 3:58.  Last year he won an individual bronze medal and Team Prize Gold at the South African Cross Country Championships.

This led to him receiving a brand new pair of running shoes from the Nedbank Running Club.

“Our goal for now for him is to run 3:50 or close to it in the 1 500m and to get him to race to a podium finish at the national junior championships,” said Khoza.

Sidinile truly believes his love for running and the support he receives from Nedbank Running Club will enable him to become one of the greatest athletes in the country. He is inspired by the like of Sibusiso Nzima, a Nedbank Running Club elite athlete who hails from the same area as him, and Steven Mokoka an Olympian. He sometimes sees them at training sessions and is confident that he can emulate them.
“We currently train in our own self-measured compromised gravel field in Rietvallei Ext 2n3 fields. He has since enrolled in the school I work at. He is as serious about his studies as he is about running.”

Nedbank Running Club is currently paying his rent and groceries and is providing him with all the running kit he needs as well as entry fees for races and transport to and from races.