This archive report was first published on 18 May 2020.
May 18, 2020, marked a significant day for Harambee Stars skipper Victor Wanyama as he embarked on an unconventional fitness regime to prepare for his Major League Soccer campaign.
Wanyama, who had just joined the United States top-flight, signing for Thierry Henry’s Montreal Impact, had played one match, a Champions League tie, before the coronavirus pandemic caused a stoppage to world sports.
Despite the little bump in his first ride in the MLS train, Wanyama is keeping himself ready for a restart in the league that had only gone into the new campaign by two matches.
At the top of his stay-at-home training regime is running through 46 flights of stairs at his Montreal apartment daily as additional training.
“I stay at an apartment in the City with 50 floors and I live on the 46th floor. So every day, as part of my extra training, I go down to the ground floor and run up to the 46th floor to my doorstep. It is tough, but I have to do it to remain fit so that when everything goes back to normal I will be ready to go on,” Wanyama told Capital Sport from Montreal.
He added that the coaches at the club have given them daily routines and they train together twice a day via video-conferencing app Zoom.
“The club has provided for us some bikes and gym equipment to complement what we are already doing. We also have several gym sessions and all this is still in isolation. Training alone is not easy but as professional players, we need to work hard,” stated the midfielder.
Wanyama made his debut for Montreal on March 11, barely a week after joining the side and provided an assist as they lost to Olimpia 2-1 in a Champions League tie.
On working with Arsenal and Barcelona legend Henry as his head coach, Wanyama can’t wait to get started and drink from the well of knowledge that is the former France national team captain and world cup winner.
“He reached out to me before I signed and the conversation we had was enough to convince me to trust in the project. He has very good experience and has achieved a lot in England and Spain as well as with France. His influence will be very important to the team and I am looking forward to learning from him,” Wanyama notes.
