TESTING TIMES AHEAD
All eyes on homeboys at Comrades
KwaZulu-Natal is the focus of running over the next few days as thousands of runners, their families and supporters converge on the province for the 2019 Comrades Marathon.
Every province, city, town and many from the most rural areas make up the “caravan” of running enthusiasts.
The Eastern Cape has 872 of the actual participants.
Durban, in particular, will be abuzz, and the media presence opens up South Africa to the athletics world as they report upon an ultra-marathon like no other, with a strong international component.
No less than 84 countries are represented on the 87km run between the coastal playground which is Durban and the provincial capital city of Pietermaritzburg.
The Eastern Cape’s male contingent is perhaps not as competitive as it has been in the days when Gordon Shaw twice finished second, or Tammy Bilibana won a gold medal, but they are no less focused on pursuing their own goals.
A flip through the start list indicates that a good number of silver medals should find their way home.
Bulelani Mgubo, Lulamile Danile and Thabo Nduzulwana are three names that offer immediate recognition from as diverse regions as King William’s Town’s BRAC, Cheetahs of Mthatha and Lusikisiki.
Others to take seriously are Nedbank’s Xolisile Sinkintana, Zingisile Marikeni, Nkosinathi Nzingo, Welcome Tishini and Patrick Gqotile.
Some runners will have overraced in the buildup to Sunday, while others may have overtrained and under-raced.
Getting the Comrades balance spot-on is a fine line and will determine fortunes.
With these aspects in mind it, will interest local enthusiasts to follow the fortunes of the likes of Real Gijimas, Oxford Striders, Old Mutual, Queenstown Harriers and, in the women’s event, Easy Equities Born 2 Run.
With the many new clubs popping up there is always the chance of a newbie coming through and surprising the more obvious contenders.
There are 6,171 novices who will take off from the Durban City Hall at 5.30am on Sunday, and it is expected 24% of the Eastern Cape field will fall into this category.
Judged solely upon their seeding, it may be worth following the names of Themba Mbukushe, Thandolethu Nobotana, Zukisani Mfiki, Thando Mabusela, Mdu Menze and definitely in the masters category Mzoli Mpalala, who is on his seventh Comrades journey.
Lwandile Ngobe, Nkosana Mpolweni, Peter Chiwaya, Mndeni Zulu, Phumlani Mponana and Zuko Matsheke are all experienced or up-and-coming ultra-runners in both the open and age categories.
In a team environment the best of the local combinations should come from Real Gijimas, Cheetahs and Old Mutual.
Caryn Lategan and her sister Lauren Ranger are the fastest qualifiers, and are talented athletes in the local women’s field, though the latter is a novice, while Brenda Graham has a similar seeding to them.
Bonnie Currin, on a third Comrades, is the pick of the local veteran runners, and she will balance the Easy Equities Born 2 Run team challenge of the aforementioned sisters, along with one of Jessica Blundell, Lesley Blair, Candice Serfontein, Janet Kieck and master runner, Maureen Muhlenberg.
The Comrades 2019 climax is at Scottsville Racecourse on Sunday, with the final cutoff of 12 hours at 5.30pm.
Caryn Lategan and Lauren Ranger are fastest qualifiers