Zane Robertson.
Kenya is well-known as the home of the world's best middle and distance runners. Elite athletes have long wondered what makes the country such a dominant force in some of the glamour distances in athletics.
Kiwi twins Jake and Zane Robertson wanted to find out for themselves and haven't looked back. "Kenya is now my home," said Jake matter-of-factly. "I have lived there for years and I will continue to live there as long as I'm an athlete."
He explained what a typical day is like in Kenya and why the African nation has produced an unending line of distance world champions.
What inspired your move to Kenya?
I want to be the best and here I knew I was going to learn what I can do to become the best. I'm still learning and I'm still on the rise.
What have been some of the key lessons you have learned there to improve your running?
We max our hard sessions, still with control, and our recovery days are easy as can be. Rest is most important for an athlete.
Explain what a typical day is like for you guys in Kenya?
We rise before the sunrise at 5 to 6am and bounce out the door for our first training session - normally an easy jog before a track session later in the morning or a long run on other days. Then it's back to the house for a quick cold shower out of a bucket. Then to have breakfast we cook tea or coffee with bread. After that we go back to bed and rest till 9 or 10am when we get up for our second session being a hard track session, gym or a long core workout. We then will meet up with friends and have lunch followed by more rest, just hanging out watching movies or if we're really tired then back to bed before our final training of the day at 4 to 5pm, an easy jog. Then we come back home to cook dinner.
How many kilometres do you run in a week?
We figure we tend to run more on how the body is feeling. We are so relaxed about our training and not uptight to hit figures every week. I think that comes through in the relaxed running form we have. If you have a relaxed mind, the body follows.
What do you do for work?
I'm a fulltime athlete here. We believe that you can't work at the same time as training at the highest level. It requires a lot of your energy to train at this altitude [2400m above sea level] and after training it's sometimes even hard to stand.
Kenya is well known for producing long distance runners. What is the standard like?
Kenya has a high standard because there are so many athletes trying to make it as a professional athlete. At a weekend athletics meet they have about 10 to 15 heats of the 1500m race all with 20-25 starters and how hard is it to make the final the following day? Very hard. So many athletes fail. For every one that makes it to the top level there is more than a 100 that don't. This competitive nature keeps the real athletes' mind striving to be better.
What do you miss most about home?
I miss my family in New Zealand. I have created my life here so I don't miss anything else. My girlfriend [Magdalene Masai] is from here and most of the food I eat in New Zealand, I can eat here so no problem with that. I am very happy in the life I live as an athlete.
How much harder is it running in the Kenya conditions?
The hard thing about training in Kenya is the altitude. In Iten, where I live, it's 2400m above sea level and that limits the oxygen uptake so your body gets used to working with less air. When I come down to sea level to race the oxygen uptake is much better. It's a benefit, however, I don't feel. I still have to run hard but the benefit is there in the lungs and blood. As for the terrain here, I have the softest red dirt roads, forest with pine trails, the track is a dirt track but there is a new tartan track being built by a famous athlete, Lornah Kiplagat, so soon Iten will have everything a distance runner needs.
What advice do you offer to other young up and coming middle distance runners in NZ?
I encourage young upcoming athletes to believe in themselves no matter what anybody says. Think about how you're going to get to the top, make a pathway to follow so you don't fall off and once you've made the move see it through. Have faith, know what you can do in the future and work hard towards that goal.