Mamabolo claims Comrades spoils

INLSA

South African Ludwick Mamabolo and Russian Elena Nurgalieva, winners of the 87th Comrades Marathon down run yesterday. PICTURE: Sbonelo Ngcobo

In winning yesterday’s 87th Comrades Marathon from Pietermaritzburg to Durban, Limpopo-born Ludwick Mamabolo became the first South African in seven years to achieve this feat.

The last win by a South African runner was in 2005 by Sipho Ngomane.

Mamabolo said he was “very grateful” to become the champion of “this ultimate human race”.

He dedicated the victory to his family and friends “and for all of South Africa. It’s a dream come true.

“Today I am very happy. It takes a champion to do it and it takes experience. I said to myself with still 38km to go: ‘No, let me see if I can do this!’

“It was when I joined up with the bunch running with Stephen Muzhingi that I began to believe that I could win.

“I sat in with them for a while listening to the rhythm and my confidence began to grow because I was able to stay with them.”

The women’s race was predictably won by six-times winner Elena Nurgalieva of Russia after a hard-fought challenge by Great Britain’s Eleanor Greenwood with Marina Zhalybina (formerly Bychkova) third for an 11th top-10-finish gold medal.

The 35-year-old full-time athlete and part-time student (Mamabolo is studying for a diploma in accountancy) showed that patience and opportunism are as much key factors in road running as they are in the business world as he lurked behind in the shadows of the big-name ultra-distance men for three-quarters of the 89.28km race.

Then he unleashed his energy reserves into legs and lungs he had been saving for just such a moment.

Once at the bottom of Field’s Hill, where he finally managed to shrug off Claude Moshiywa (Nedbank), Marko Mambo (Zimbabwe, Mr Price Sport), Bongamusa Mthembu (Mr Price Sport) and defending down-run champion, Stephen Muhzingi (Zimbabwe, F1 Bluff Meats).

With 22km still to be run, Mamabolo made his way through the streets of Pinetown and passed through the 70km mark in 4 hours 20 minutes as he began the climb up Cowies Hill.

Mamabolo, who was running in only his third Comrades (finishing 2nd in the 2010 down run and 7th in last year’s up run), had to work hard to defend his lead of barely a minute-and-a-half over his nearest challenger, Mthembu from Pietermaritzburg, Mambo at 2:15 and Muzhingi and Mushiywa running together at 4:10.

As Mamabolo went through the 5 hour mark with only 8km of the race to run, it was clear Muzhingi had no chance of realising a fourth consecutive Comrades victory.

Mamabolo, still wearing the white gloves he had put on at the bitterly cold start, had time to enjoy the cheers of the crowds at the roadside as he freewheeled downhill all the way from Tollgate and into Pine Street before coasting through the Toyota Mile and into the finish at the Sahara Kingsmead Cricket Stadium to a Royal Diamond Jubilee welcome by Comrades Marathon VIPs.

Nurgalieva, Natalia Volgina and Greenwood were all in contention until the halfway mark at Drummond, but Nurgalieva put down the pedal as the group approached Pinetown after the steep descent of Fields Hill, and then she surged into the lead.

Nurgalieva’s winning time of 6:07:12 was 34 seconds faster than her previous down record of 6:07:46 set in 2003 and she now has 10 gold medal top 10 finishes to her credit and seven wins.

Greenwood came in second in 6:08:24 with Zhalybina third in 6:30:54.

The first South African female runner to finish was Kerry Koen (Bonitas AC) in 6:45:45 with two others coming 9th and 10th, Melanie van Rooyen (Richard’s Bay AC) and Julanie Basson (Toyota AC), respectively.

Mamabolo’s winning time of 5 hours 31 minutes 03 seconds was 10:14 outside Leonid Shvetsov’s 2007 record of 5:20:49 with Mthembu second in 5:32:42, just 99 seconds later, to give South Africa the first two places.

International runners filled the next six places – Leboka Noto (Lesotho, Nedbank) third in 5:33:31, Mambo (Zimbabwe, Mr Price Sport) fourth in 5:33:44, Shvetsov (Russia, Nedbank) fifth in 5:35:12, Muzhingi sixth in 5:38:02 and Lephethsang Adoro (Lesotho, F1 Bluff Meats) seventh in 5:38:05.

And three more South Africans completed the top 10 – Gift Kelehe (Samancor Chrome) eighth in 5:38:39, Claude Moshiywa (Nedbank) ninth in 5:39:10 and Petros Sosibo (Phumanati) 10th in 5:40:13.

Fusi Nhlapo (RSA, Mr Price Sport), the 2005 Comrades winner, finished in 11th place to miss out on his 10th gold medal.

Mamabolo and Nurgalieva won R300 000 each, Mthembu and Greenwood received R145 000 each for second and Noto and Zhalybina got R110 000 each for third.

The early pacesetter was novice Lebohang Monyele (Lesotho, Toyota) who came through the first “Hot Spot” at 26km at Camperdown in 90 minutes.

He was overtaken by another novice, Olympian marathoner Gert Thys (Mr Price Sport), who overtook Monyele at the 36km mark after 2 hours 6 minutes of the race.

Thys held the lead for nearly 30km and went through the halfway mark at Drummond in 2:35 and continued to lead until he was reduced to a walk at the bottom of Fields Hill, allowing Mamabolo to take over the lead that he never relinquished.