If Jatniel’s Divan Klein never believed he could achieve greatness, the recently concluded track and field season may have convinced the athlete of his power, resilience, and strength.
Klein was never active in sports as a primary school learner. However, a conversation with his dad and one inter-house event, which subsequently enticed coach Richard O’Donoghue to invite him to his training group, exposed the 16-year-old’s talent that lay hidden for years.
“I wasn’t active in primary school. But my dad convinced me to try running for my school because it’s fun. I participated in the inter-house games in Grade Eight. It became serious the following year. Coach Richard saw my potential and invited me to his training group,” he said.
The middle-distance runner’s talent and a never-die attitude Klein was laid bare at a schools’ track and field meeting at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) Athletics Stadium earlier this year when Kline tripped moments into his race.
He was able to pick himself up from the last position and grind the lead pack in the race to finish in third place.
What’s impressive about Klein’s performance was that after getting up, he realised one of his shoes had slipped out at the heel. Undeterred and way off the pace, he sensibly put it back on, and his mission afterwards was to catch the guy in front of him.
He ran his competition down one by one and, ultimately, earned a well-deserved podium place.
“I fell, and usually, I would get up and start running again. But when I looked down, my shoe was out. I was like, ‘Eish, now I have to put it back and run again’.
“I then remembered a quote that says, ‘The pain of regret is worse than the pain of doing it’. I stood up, even though it was burning, ran and finished.
“The goal was to catch the guy in front of me. I tapped my head because my coach always says it’s all mental,” said Klein.
Explaining his joy when he crossed the finish line after his ordeal, the Hoerskool Hans Moore Grade 10 learner felt nothing but pride.
“I felt good about myself because I would’ve trained for nothing if I had given up. After finishing, I was proud of myself.”
Klein finished the track and field season with PBs of 04:28 and 10:30 in the 1 500m and 3 000m, respectively. He will carry the form into the cross-country season, where he will “continue to grind and give it his best”.
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