By Thathe Msimango
Comrades Marathon multiple gold medalist Prodigal Khumalo continues to give back to the athletics community by making running shoe donations to underprivileged athletes.
A renowned coach and owner of the famed athletics development academy ORCAS in Inanda outside Durban, Khumalo collects shoes during his training run in December.
He relies on sponsors to assist potential athletes at the start of the new season.
Over 1,200 pairs of running shoes have been distributed in the initiative, which he started in 2015.
“Every January, we hand over shoes to the athletes who can’t afford to buy them. The pairs are either new or second-hand from different athletes. We aim to assist mostly township and rural area athletes,” said Khumalo, who coaches Comrades Marathon gold medalist Nkosikhona Mhlakwana.
“Each year, we hand over a minimum of 150 shoes to the athletes in need. At the end of the day, we must not forget that sport can shape a person to be better in life. So a little contribution can mean a lot in someone’s life.”
The 40-year-old Khumalo, who comes from Zimbabwe, has had a fruitful athletics career spanning over 20 years.
He told Scrolla.Africa that he was inspired by his background to start the initiative.
“The time I started my running career, I was running barefoot. But that didn’t stop me from achieving good times,” he said.
“I didn’t want athletes to go the same path as I did. Sometimes the athlete happens to have a talent but doesn’t have shoes. So I’m willing to close the gap so that athletes feel equal when lining up in the races.”
Besides using his training run to collect shoes, Khumalo said different partners collect for the drive.
“Riverside Harries is the club that collects on our behalf and they send to us every December. We also use the Durban Runner, a running shoe shop, for people to drop the shoes.”
In the past, the initiative has been supported by Hollywoodbets and Mr Price Sport.
Khumalo has big ambitions for the drive, hoping to partner with major races to collect running shoes for the athletes that need them.
