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HOWICK — Just before Chad Ho lined up for his post-swim interview, he asked Matthew Meyer what had happened to him in the last 400m.
Meyer was out of breath, showing how much he had put into trying to dethrone his training partner. His best was clearly not good enough.
Ho steamed to his seventh consecutive Midmar Mile title in 17 minutes, but for much of the race, it seemed Meyer was going to upset the applecart. With the dam presenting its best conditions after the early-morning wind had died down, Meyer was the pacemaker, with everyone in his slipstream.
That asked questions of Ho’s resilience as Meyer, from Clifton College in Durban, led at every hotspot.
That earned him R4,800 for beating Ho to the 400m mark (R800), the halfway mark (R1,600) and the 1,200m mark (R2,400).
But the key was a strong finish by Ho in what is said to be the straightest mile of the race. Meyer recorded eight minutes and 40 seconds at the halfway mark, requiring Ho to push hard. His experience paid off as Meyer faded in the last 200m.
With Ho two wins from becoming the open-water equivalent of Bruce Fordyce, Meyer will be a threat to his dynasty. Meyer finished in 17:03 while third-placed Michael McGlynn was 15 seconds adrift.
With the title in the bag, Ho’s crosshairs now move to qualifying for the Olympics.
"Everything has gone to plan, especially today with my speed improving. There is a bit of high swimming mileage coming up but now it’s time for me to put my head down and try to qualify for the Olympics.
"There’s a qualifier in Portugal in June but there’s the small matter of the SA champs before that," Ho said.to the qualifying times," Meyer said.
In a significant shift in the women’s race, Michelle Weber became the first South African since Melissa Corfe in 2003 to win the women’s race.
With her finishing time of 19:10, she held off a stiff challenge from Briton Holly Hibbott, who was two seconds behind her.
Charlise Oberholzer was third with 19:17 in a race where Weber and Hibbott traded the lead at the hotspots.
Weber took the lead at the 400m mark while Hibbott led at halfway.
They were equal at the 1,200m mark before Weber sneaked home just before the slipway.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Ho’s seventh heaven at Midmar leaves Meyer spent
HOWICK — Just before Chad Ho lined up for his post-swim interview, he asked Matthew Meyer what had happened to him in the last 400m.
Meyer was out of breath, showing how much he had put into trying to dethrone his training partner. His best was clearly not good enough.
Ho steamed to his seventh consecutive Midmar Mile title in 17 minutes, but for much of the race, it seemed Meyer was going to upset the applecart. With the dam presenting its best conditions after the early-morning wind had died down, Meyer was the pacemaker, with everyone in his slipstream.
That asked questions of Ho’s resilience as Meyer, from Clifton College in Durban, led at every hotspot.
That earned him R4,800 for beating Ho to the 400m mark (R800), the halfway mark (R1,600) and the 1,200m mark (R2,400).
But the key was a strong finish by Ho in what is said to be the straightest mile of the race. Meyer recorded eight minutes and 40 seconds at the halfway mark, requiring Ho to push hard. His experience paid off as Meyer faded in the last 200m.
With Ho two wins from becoming the open-water equivalent of Bruce Fordyce, Meyer will be a threat to his dynasty. Meyer finished in 17:03 while third-placed Michael McGlynn was 15 seconds adrift.
With the title in the bag, Ho’s crosshairs now move to qualifying for the Olympics.
"Everything has gone to plan, especially today with my speed improving. There is a bit of high swimming mileage coming up but now it’s time for me to put my head down and try to qualify for the Olympics.
"There’s a qualifier in Portugal in June but there’s the small matter of the SA champs before that," Ho said.to the qualifying times," Meyer said.
In a significant shift in the women’s race, Michelle Weber became the first South African since Melissa Corfe in 2003 to win the women’s race.
With her finishing time of 19:10, she held off a stiff challenge from Briton Holly Hibbott, who was two seconds behind her.
Charlise Oberholzer was third with 19:17 in a race where Weber and Hibbott traded the lead at the hotspots.
Weber took the lead at the 400m mark while Hibbott led at halfway.
They were equal at the 1,200m mark before Weber sneaked home just before the slipway.
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Published by Arena Holdings and distributed with the Financial Mail on the last Thursday of every month except December and January.