Running “used to suck” for South African long distance runner Ashley Smith. Now, at 26, he hopes to make it to the 2024 Olympic Games. He spoke to Emma Solomon about his journey to the running track.
Ashley Smith, Stellenbosch University alumni, has set his sights on the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. “I need to make the necessary sacrifices to give myself the best possible shot at moving forward and pursuing the olympic qualifying standard,” states Smith. PHOTO: Emma Solomon
While in the process of completing his history honours at Stellenbosch University in 2022, Ashley Smith, a South African long-distance runner, competed at the African Championships, in Mauritius.
On the same day as his race, Smith completed a 24-hour exam online.
“I ended up getting smoked by some of the best runners in the world. I didn’t sleep for three or four days, because I was so pissed at myself,” says Smith.
His competitors were full-time athletes and Olympic medalists. “Some of the best in the world, and I was just a Maties student who wrote his exams before the race,” Smith states. “But that’s just the competitor in me, and that competitor is the reason I’m still in this sport after all these years.”
‘That’s when the running bug kinda bit’
Smith’s running career started when he was around 5-years-old.
“There is a picture of me on the track way back. So, I’m assuming that’s when it all started,” says Smith. Despite his spotty memories of childhood running competitions, Smith does recall that it “used to suck”.
“Running was always there, but I never liked it,” he says.
When Smith was 18, he received an opportunity to study in the United States of America, with the help of a scholarship awarded for his running. Opportunities began to emerge. “That’s when the running bug kinda bit me,” says Smith.
Smith grew up in Mitchells Plain, which he describes as one of the most dangerous places in South Africa. Mitchells Plain has the most active police station in South Africa for drug-related crime, according to the South African Police Service 2022 annual crime statistics.
“I really enjoyed my childhood, but if I must get to the point: What is normal to me may not be normal to you,” says Smith. “I’ve been lucky to not get caught up in what is happening [in Mitchells Plain].”
When Smith was 13, he was sent to boarding school at the Western Cape Sports School in Kuils River. Despite the school being 20 minutes aways from his home, Smith recalls only going home four or five times a year.
Moving away from home played a significant role in shaping Smith. “The fact that I got sent off to boarding school for my best interest kinda saved me,” he says. “It saved me from becoming just another statistic.”
“I am where I am because of opportunities. Most people in my community haven’t had the same,” says Smith. As more opportunities presented themselves, Smith’s dedication to running grew.
“Even though I didn’t like it at first, I can see now that it’s a good thing that I continued. I don’t know where I’d be if I didn’t run,” Smith says.
“I don’t like losing and I am hard on myself”, says Ashley Smith, a South African long-distance runner. Dedication and sacrifice are the qualities which will be his biggest asset in getting to the 2024 Olympics in Paris, states Smith. PHOTO: Emma Solomon
Making the sacrifices
It is not talent that Smith sees as a requirement for success, but rather sacrifice. “I don’t think I have a lot of talent. I think I only won my first race in grade 10,” says Smith. “I feel like the hard work, the sacrifice and the discipline helped me get all these opportunities.”
Smith trains between two and three times a week, both in the gym and on the track. On weekends, he trains once a day – if he is not competing in a race.
“Even though I am not the most talented one on the track, the competitor in me has helped me make all the necessary sacrifices in training everyday,” he says.
Smith believes he has one essential asset. “Hard work plays a big role. Yeah, there may be some form of talent but year after year the stacking up, the sacrifice and the discipline [is what counts],” says Smith.
Smith’s biggest inspirations are his father, and his coach, Duane Fortuin.
“I can count on my fingers how many times I have reprimanded Ashley,” says Fortuin, who has been Smith’s coach since 2013.
“He is a very hard worker,” says Fortuin. “I am very proud of him, and he deserves everything on this journey.”
Olympic dreams
As a competitive long-distance runner, “obviously […] we are not here for participation”, Smith states. Although he had the opportunity to pursue a masters degree this year, Smith’s running career is taking the lead.
“I have to take this year and next year to give myself the best possible shot at going to the 2024 Olympics. I can always go back to studying,” says Smith.
To qualify for the Olympic Games, Smith explains that he will have to run in the National Championships and achieve an olympic standard qualifying time during the course of the season.
The Olympic qualification period opens at the beginning of June and ends next year at the end of May. Despite the possibility of qualifying early in the season, Smith explains that there is no guarantee of his spot at the 2024 Olympics.
“I hope the work that I have done over the last eight or nine months will manifest from April onwards,” says Smith. “Hopefully we can get a few national records when the important competition races start.”
Olympic status does not seem too far out of Smith’s reach. Last year Smith won his debut 21km race at the OUTsurance Gun Run, beating two Olympians in the process. Smith does not typically compete in the 21km event, but participated as training for his shorter distance events.
He considers his versatility in distance running an advantage. “I can run anywhere from 1500 meters to 21km,” says Smith.
Ashley Smith is passionate about more than just running, and wants to pursue teaching. “Somehow, somewhere, I want to give back,” says Smith. PHOTO: Emma Solomon
Teaching a new generation
When he has crossed his final finish line, Smith wants to return to Mitchells Plain as a teacher.
“There is a school around the corner from my house [in Mitchells Plain]. I want to teach there,” says Smith. “It’s my area and my community.”
“I am where I am because [I had good] opportunities, so hopefully when I do end up teaching, I can use the relationships I’ve built on and off the track to give those kids the opportunities that I had,” he says. “I don’t want to teach anywhere else but here.”
But for now, Smith’s time and energy is purely focused on his running career.
“Running. I’m just running,” states Smith.