Coach Jacques and Stellenbosch – building a positive distance running legacy

Stellenbosch has a well-deserved reputation of being home to some of the biggest names in distance running in South Africa. Chances of bumping into some of the country’s running legends on a stroll through the town are good – former greats such as Johan Fourie, Elana van Zyl, Johan Cronje, Zola Budd and Johan Landsman to name but a few.

But top coaches also abound, as the wine capital of South Africa has it all for athletes and coaches alike – athletic tracks, indoor facilities, quiet roads, and some of the most varied and scenic running trails imaginable.

Coach Jacques van Rensburg with four of his most talented athletes, Melt van Schoor Von Molendorff, Christopher Steyn, Philani ‘PK’ Sengce and Deon-Lee Hendricks. Photo – Stephen Granger

One of the most successful is former Protea track and cross-country athlete, Jacques van Rensburg, who has attracted an impressive group of track, cross country, road and trail athletes into his camp.

Van Rensburg emerged in the 1980s as a young athlete to excel at the highest level, and a new generation of young and talented athletes are beginning to fulfil their potential under his guidance and mentorship.

Jacques van Rensburg warming up with Elana van Zyl in Amorebieta, Spain, in preparation for the 1993 World Cross Country Championships. Photo – Stephen Granger

Deon-Lee Hendricks, Philani “PK” Sengce, Melt van Schoor Von Molendorff and Christopher Steyn are among those who have shown consistent improvement in recent years and stand on the cusp of achieving their full potential.

All speak highly of the difference Van Rensburg has made both to their enjoyment of and success in the sport and while each is on a separate and specific journey in their athletics careers, they clearly enjoy bonding and training as a group under Van Rensburg’s direction.

One of South Africa’s top distance athletes in the 1980s and 1990s, Van Rensburg has been able to draw on his experience as an athlete to provide a foundation for his natural flair as a coach and mentor of his athletes. Van Rensburg ran his first dream mile at the age of 19 and still holds 2 national junior track records (the mile in 3:58,15 and 2000m in 5:07,31).

Jacques van Rensburg, centre in back row, with Patrick Kaotane, Jean Verster, Meshack Dandane, Whaddon Nieuwoudt, Simon Morolong and Meshack Mogotsi of the South African men’s team at the World Cross Country Championships in Spain in 1993. Photo – Stephen Granger

Van Rensburg studied Exercise Physiology on a sporting scholarship at the University of Nebraska, where he received All-American colours for both track and cross-country. He represented and captained South African teams to world cross country championships and won numerous road and track races.

Van Rensburg achieved high honours as an athlete, but his coaching ability and achievements could well surpass his personal medals, records and titles. He is clearly passionate about coaching and also about Stellenbosch as a ‘global hotspot’ for distance running training.

Coach Jacques puts his charges through their paces in a hill session near Coetzenberg Stadium at Stellenbosch. Photo – Stephen Granger

“We have a great group of athletes here at Stellenbosch and it’s a privilege being able to be able to guide and support them,” Van Rensburg admits. “Stellenbosch has so much to offer to anyone looking to improve their performance in distance running. It would be great to develop packages to give runners from all over the world opportunities to enjoy all that Stellenbosch has to offer.”

Van Rensburg pays tribute to three coaches who played pivotal roles in his own career, acknowledging their inputs which now form part of the foundation of his own coaching prowess.

“Oom Leon Botha from Bloemfontein took me to a sub 4 min mile as a teenager,” Van Rensburg recalls, “while Pieter Labuschagne coached me to most of my fastest track times (13:35,35 for 5000m and 7:47,77 for 3000 m ) and to the national cross country title.

Pieter Labuschagne – coach of Zola Budd and Elana van Zyl – took Jacques van Rensburg to his fastest track times. Photo – Stephen Granger

“But the most important coach of my life was my dad, Thinus van Rensburg, who got me up in the mornings before school and taught me about the freedom that comes from running.”

Van Rensburg recognises the importance of understanding each athlete’s unique physiology and the need to provide the correct training interventions to maximise their potential as athletes.

“What keeps me awake at nights is the possibility of missing an athlete’s true potential because we’ve provided the wrong programme,” Van Rensburg admits. “Bruce Fordyce had 70% slow twitch muscle fibre.  If a coach had tried to make him into a track sprinter, we might never have heard of his name!

“That’s the most difficult thing for me as a coach – the possibility of wasting the guy’s training effort because we’ve provided the wrong training programme. If we could test each athlete for fast or slow twitch fibres that would help a lot.

“PK (Sengce) is very efficient when he runs and he doesn’t have that bouncing style typical of track athletes. We can see he will be best over longer distances.  But Deon-Lee (Hendricks) is harder to assess – he appears to have an even balance between slow and fast twitch fibres. Should we keep him running shorter distances, or throw him into a marathon?

Stellenboschberg at 1176m, towers over the Wine Capital of South Africa , its slopes providing perfect training trails for distance athletes. Photo – Stephen Granger

“Christopher (Steyn) is one of the best middle distance junior athletes. He is young and we can still gamble on choosing distances between 800 – 3000m.  This year he has moved from the 3000m and is concentrating on the 800m / 1500m combination, as tests show he has more fast-twitch fibre.”

Coaches are always trying to create new and innovative training sessions to maximise their athletes’ potential and Van Rensburg is no different.  “We’ve developed a session on the mountain slopes in Jonkershoek, which is making a big difference,” he explained.

“It involves hill sprinting repeats following a long warm-up climb.  It’s a beast but is already showing positive results and giving the guys other options to pursue in their athletics’ careers.

“It’s becoming tough to make South African teams on the road and in cross country, but trail running is opening opportunities for athletes to race for South Africa if they have the skill sets to compete on mountain trails and testing gradients. In particular, I think PK can excel on trails and we’re going to test him on a few races in the near future.”

Van Rensburg’s charges are proud to be part of his coaching group. Outside of his presence, they spoke honestly of the difference he has made to their lives. 

Philani Sengce after his 2nd place behind his training partner Deon-Lee Hendricks in last year’s UCT Memorial 10km. Photo – Stephen Granger

“He’s so special,” reflected Eastern Cape-born and schooled Philani Sengce. “He listens to us and understands when we feel pain.  He won’t force us to do a session but helps us understand why we should.

“Sometimes he gives me a softer session than I’d been planning. ‘PK – it takes time, we are building something’ he would say to me.”

Kayamandi-based Deon-Lee Hendricks echoes his training partner’s sentiments. “Every coach is special in their way, but my coach is unique. He’s a father figure for all of us – the sort of coach I can call late at night about anything.

Deon-Lee Hendricks and Jacques van Rensburg at the opening of the film Langafstand, on the life of Hendricks, at the KykNET Silwerskerm Festival at Theatre on the Bay. Photo – courtesy Jacques van Rensburg

“He is not sort of person to lightly promise you the world,” Hendricks stressed. “My coach has been with me from the start and his promises have been kept. Every year I’m getting faster. He’s not just my coach, he’s my father as well.”

Melt Van Schoor Von Molendorff began to excel as an athlete at Menlo Park High School in Pretoria and is currently enjoying the benefits of an athletics scholarship at Biola University in California, USA, which commenced earlier this year.

“I joined coach Jacques in 2021,” he related on a vacation visit home. “The thing that stood out for me was his passion for the sport. And also that he cares about you and invests time into you. He understands my emotions.

“I wish I could take coach Jacques to the USA to be my coach there! But I still connect with him through texting. I also have a coach at Biola University and they do talk to each other about my programme. But Coach Jacques is something special!”

Paul Roos Gymnasium are justifiably proud of their star track pupil, Christopher Steyn, who has been awarded his school’s ‘blue tie’ honours for athletics. Steyn is clear that a large part of his success is due to Van Rensburg’s guidance. “I’ve been with Coach Jacques for five or six years – he was my first school coach.

“He’s quite good at motivating and says stuff like ‘next year is medal year’!  If I didn’t have a home to go to, I’d go to him. When I feel down, I call ‘coach’ to talk to him.”