Johannes 'felt very safe' from coronavirus
Namibia's marathon specialist Helalia Johannes says she felt safe when she was in Japan despite the coronavirus which has been spreading globally.
Johannes participated in the Kagawa Marugame half-marathon, setting a national record earlier this month.
With the Olympics set for July, fears of the virus, which was first reported in China, remain high after cases were also confirmed in Japan.
Johannes is however confident that the system the Japanese use to detect the virus at airports is intact.
“These countries are very advanced and their airports are technologically built.
“Yes, I know the people have been panicking about the outbreak but I felt very safe when I was there.
“We went through all kinds of screening, even though you could sense the fear of many people who are passing through the airports,” she said.
The athlete, who is set to compete at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the marathon discipline, said she is ready and in the best shape.
She added that she hopes she will be able to produce one of the greatest performances of all time at the games. “In a marathon race, one does not go in with a strategy but it all depends on how your competitors start the race.
“It is more of a mind game and you can never predict your opponents before the start of the race.
“The biggest thing in a marathon is keeping yourself well hydrated and in touch with the leading runners,” she said.
The Namibian is one of the country's medal hopefuls at the Olympics, given that she clocked 2:34:15 to finish third in a tough race at the world athletics championships last year.
“The secret behind my success is I never give up, even when I was not winning races.
“I remember at the last Olympics, I had just came from maternity leave and still really tried my best during that race.
“My advice to other athletes is that they must never give up on chasing their dreams, even when things appear to be tough.”
As things stand, Namibia has only booked four spots for the world's biggest sporting spectacle.
The country is currently in a race against time to earn more spots at the Olympics.
Only marathon queen Johannes, rower Maike Diekmann, cyclist Vera Adrian (who landed a place because of her world ranking) and a male cyclist still to be confirmed have booked their places for the games thus far.
There are however still competitions taking place outside the country for athletes aspiring to qualify.
Jesse Jackson Kauraisa
Johannes participated in the Kagawa Marugame half-marathon, setting a national record earlier this month.
With the Olympics set for July, fears of the virus, which was first reported in China, remain high after cases were also confirmed in Japan.
Johannes is however confident that the system the Japanese use to detect the virus at airports is intact.
“These countries are very advanced and their airports are technologically built.
“Yes, I know the people have been panicking about the outbreak but I felt very safe when I was there.
“We went through all kinds of screening, even though you could sense the fear of many people who are passing through the airports,” she said.
The athlete, who is set to compete at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the marathon discipline, said she is ready and in the best shape.
She added that she hopes she will be able to produce one of the greatest performances of all time at the games. “In a marathon race, one does not go in with a strategy but it all depends on how your competitors start the race.
“It is more of a mind game and you can never predict your opponents before the start of the race.
“The biggest thing in a marathon is keeping yourself well hydrated and in touch with the leading runners,” she said.
The Namibian is one of the country's medal hopefuls at the Olympics, given that she clocked 2:34:15 to finish third in a tough race at the world athletics championships last year.
“The secret behind my success is I never give up, even when I was not winning races.
“I remember at the last Olympics, I had just came from maternity leave and still really tried my best during that race.
“My advice to other athletes is that they must never give up on chasing their dreams, even when things appear to be tough.”
As things stand, Namibia has only booked four spots for the world's biggest sporting spectacle.
The country is currently in a race against time to earn more spots at the Olympics.
Only marathon queen Johannes, rower Maike Diekmann, cyclist Vera Adrian (who landed a place because of her world ranking) and a male cyclist still to be confirmed have booked their places for the games thus far.
There are however still competitions taking place outside the country for athletes aspiring to qualify.
Jesse Jackson Kauraisa
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