Durban - Organisers of the Comrades Marathon have assured runners and supporters that this year’s “Ultimate Human Race” will live up to expectations.
Sunday will see the 95th running of the race. It will be the 47th Down Run, starting at the Pietermaritzburg City Hall and finishing 12 hours later at Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium.
This will be the first race since it was cancelled in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Comrades Marathon Association chairperson Mqondisi Ngcobo said they have worked hard to maintain the marathon’s world-class standard from previous years and assured there was a good line-up of runners.
“We will have a little over 15 000 starters on the day, we had initially capped it at 15 000 because of the Covid-19 restrictions, but when the restrictions were removed, we also increased the entries.
“We allowed up to 20 000, however we were not able to reach that number,” he said.
Ngcobo said Covid-19 had had a negative impact on the number of entries, as there were fewer than in previous years – in 2020 there were 25 000 entries.
He said there were more than 1 000 international runner entries, 500 from the African continent, and out of the provinces, Gauteng had the most local entries.
“We are happy with the numbers even though they are lower than previous years, but with the economic punch affecting a lot of people, we see why (some) regular runners didn’t apply.”
He added that along the 89.885km route there would be 43 refreshment stations.
Ngcobo said due to roadworks along the N3 around Cato Ridge, the first site where supporters would be allowed to stand would be in Camperdown.
He added the race would be 299m shorter because of the roadworks.
He added that the distance being a few metres shorter would not have a negative impact on the status of this prestigious race.
Ngcobo advised participants to plan their travel well in advance.
“Runners need to get to the start venue at 2am, because we will start at 5.30am on the dot, so everyone should be aware of the roads that are closed so they don’t delay.”
Ngcobo said for the supporters who would be at the finishing venue at Moses Mabhida Stadium, ample, safe parking would be available.
“From 10am, we start welcoming our dignitaries and await our top 10 runners.”
From Thursday the annual Comrades Expo will open to runners, supporters and visitors at Durban’s Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre. This is Africa’s largest running-related expo, and over the years has attracted more than 110 exhibitors and more than 50 000 visitors.
“It’s an integral part of Comrades race week and serves as one of the official registration points for the Ultimate Human Race, with thousands of athletes converging on the Durban ICC to collect their race packs, goody bags, shop for running apparel and merchandise, get advice from the official Comrades coach, share information, and finalise registration ahead of race day.”