Brothers-in-arms get their motors running

● Come rain or shine, or neck surgery or pandemic, it seems nothing can stop Kovalan Moodley from running the Comrades Marathon.

He and his twin, Komalan, have started the ultramarathon together on more than 30 occasions, but next Sunday they will line up in different cities to take part in the Race The Comrades Legends virtual race.

So far more than 16,000 runners have entered the event, which offers five distances from 5km to 90km. The 60-year-old Moodleys are among the more than 1,000 to have signed up for the ultramarathon.

Kovalan has run 37 consecutive Comrades since 1983, including the 2017 edition, six months or so after surgery on his neck. “Doctors told me I won’t be able to run for two years. But with the grace of God and determination and the support of my wife Laura, I did it.

“When I started training I couldn’t walk. I started from scratch,” said Kovalan, who once finished second in the Washie 100-miler and has made podiums in multiday races, sometimes covering in excess of 1,000km.

He’s won 13 Comrades silvers, but finishing the 2017 race was special. “That was the highlight of my career.”

Kovalan, who will run a 2km loop near his home in Lenasia, evaded two young muggers while on his training run early yesterday morning. They took off with his water bottle and hat, but he finished his route as planned.

Durban-based Komalan will do 20km loops along the beachfront, from uShaka to the Moses Mabhida Stadium, with his own water table manned by family.

Wietsche van der Westhuizen, with 42 straight Comrades, will run a treadmill at his home in Bellville, Cape Town.

The former school teacher once ran the race with three broken ribs, inflicted while teaching first-team players to crash tackle.

His Noordheuwel school in Krugersdorp was taking on local rivals Monument, a team which featured two future Springboks, notably legendary centre Jaque Fourie.

The plan was to try to stop him. “I was holding the bag they were tackling and the one player missed the bag and hit me.”

His team copped a hiding, but he completed the Comrades.

Van der Westhuizen, who also ran the Two Oceans Marathon on his treadmill earlier this year, hopes his machine can withstand the punishment. “I hope it doesn’t overheat,” said the 62-year-old. “Otherwise I’ll have to go out to finish on the road.”

Van der Westhuizen, who is using a Garmin as backup, will miss the crowd that gives Comrades its unique vibe, but he will live-stream on Facebook with friends for moral support.

Zwelitsha Gono, who turns 69 later this month, has 42 Comrades under his belt, but this time he’s doing only the 5km race.

The retired teacher-turned-farmer, who lives about 60km from Kokstad, said he was unable to do sufficient training because of the lockdown.

He made his Comrades debut in 1973, at the height of apartheid.

“At the start of the race white men would elbow me, but once we were on the road it was fine. I ignored it. I thought it was a way of life then. I only realised it was discrimination after 1994.”

The poor treatment never stopped him from returning to the starting line. “I do it because of love. Next year, I’ll be there.”

Along with the Moodleys, Van der Westhuizen and every other Comrades lover.