Nyamande second best in 2017 Comrades Marathon
HATIWANDE Nyamande finished second in the 2017 Comrades Marathon in the up run route from Durban to Pietermaritzburg yesterday morning.
South African Bongumusa Mthembu clinched the 92nd edition of the country’s most famous race in a time of five hours 35 minutes and 31 seconds.
Nyamande (38) finished the course in five hours 38 minutes and 48 seconds to better his 2015 record of 5:48:19 by almost 10 minutes and pocketed R210 000.
Nyamande and Mthembu ran neck to neck in a chasing bus group that also had three time Comrades winner Stephen Muzhingi soon after the Drummond halfway mark.
Nyamande and Mthembu were to break away from that bus towards the three quarter mark before the winner broke away from the Zimbabwean at the ascent to the Umlaas Road peak.
It then became more of Nyamande jealously safeguarding his position from the chasing pack of last year’s winner Gift Kelehe and Ludwick Mamabolo than catching up with the tearaway Mthembu, who was cheered by his hometown crowd. For his efforts, Mthembu took home R420 000. Prodigal Khumalo ensured that there were two Zimbabweans in the top 10 by securing eighth place in five hours 47 minutes and 11 seconds.
There’s also a possibility that Nyamande didn’t have adequate recovery time from the Two Oceans Marathon held in Cape Town 56 days ago.
Medically, an athlete requires at least 60 days to attain full fitness after an ultra marathon, meaning fatigue could have taken its toll on Stephen Muzhingi, who faded away after the halfway mark.
In the women’s category, American Camille Herron claimed victory in a time of six hours 27 minutes and 35 seconds, with no Zimbabwean women athlete finishing in the Top 10. - @NoelMunzabwa