• By Adolf Kaure

Namibia’s two-time Olympian, Phillip Seidler said that he aspires to establish his own academy to develop elite athletes in Erongo region.   Speaking to Confidente this week, the open water sensation popularly known as the ‘human shark’, stated that starting the academy would enable him to plough back into his community. 

“We dream of starting a TeamFlippy Sports Academy. It would help kids train in swimming and running, teach them discipline, as well as give them a chance to grow into great athletes. We want to support the next generation [of athletes],” Seidler explained.  “We truly believe that future champions can come from the Erongo Region.

The talent is already here, we just need to support it and give it more opportunities to shine,” he added.  He recently hosted his first running event in Swakopmund under his sports and events management company, with the support of Radio Electronic and Deopharma.

According to Seidler, the aim of the event was to promote healthy living and provide a platform for upcoming athletes to compete. 
“Namibia has so much talent, and we want to help grow it through fun and active events,” he said.

The running event drew over 140 runners from Swakopmund, Walvis Bay and Windhoek to compete in the 2km, 5km fun walks as well as the 10km and 21km running categories. “It was our first time, we also saw where we can improve. For the next run, the Deopharma and Radio electronics Lagoon Dream Run on 14 June, we want to start earlier and add more t-shirts for the participants. We also want to have more volunteers helping.”

 “This is just the beginning for TeamFlippy. Let us keep building a healthy and active Namibia together.” The other two events of the TeamFlippy Coastal Run Tour will include The Dune 7 Run at Walvis Bay on 12 July as well as the Salt Rush Run at Swakopmund on 9 August.

Seidler represented Namibia at the 2020 Tokyo and 2024 Paris Olympic Games, taking part in the men’s 10km open water marathon swimming event. He has also won an unprecedented 11 Pupkewitz Jetty Mile titles, setting the record (18:33) in 2019.