Comrades newbie Kusche hopes to improve to podium finish

Despite being one of the up-run dark horses in the men’s race in the Comrades Marathon on Sunday, George Kusche insists his focus is on running his own race and not thinking about his competitors.

After making his debut last year in the down-run and finishing 12th, Kusche will line up on Sunday, eager to improve his position and target a podium finish.

He said he took a lot of lessons from the previous edition of the race, revealing that he didn’t train well enough because his nutritional supplements only came in towards the end of his training, and said he will be better on Sunday.

“Nutrition is a big part − training with your supplements to be ready on race day so it is not a shock to the system. It’s a big lesson for me,” Kusche told Sowetan.

“My focus is on executing my race plan, and I’m not too worried about anyone else.” − George Kusche

As he prepares for the race, Kusche said he won’t be thinking about his competitors on the day but about his race plan.

“I don’t think it helps to think of myself as a favourite or not − what I need to do is to show up ready and fresh and execute my race plan,” he said.

“It’s a tough race, so I’m competing against myself as much as I’m competing with everyone else. So, I don’t want to think about whether I’m a favourite or not. I want to think about executing my plan as well as possible.

“I will do my best [to get into the podium finish]. It’s a very strong field. There is no need to think about any individual.

“I’m sure there will be many prepared athletes, but as I said, my focus is on executing my race plan, and I’m not too worried about anyone else.”

The 27-year-old feels he has prepared well for the race after finishing third in the Two Oceans half-marathon in April and winning the Wally Hayward 21km in May.

“I had a good race at Two Oceans. I was not sharp for the half-marathon because I was still doing Comrades-type training, but it was a good training run because it was hilly. I think it was good for my legs to run on those hilly ups and downs, and even though it was shorter, it was still good.

“I also did the Wally Hayward in May. It was also a training run, and I managed to win it. Then, apart from that, I was doing my own training.”

Sowetan