Run The Comrades Marathon
Still to do
Around 90 kilometres across the hills of KwaZulu-Natal, a 12-hour gun and a century of history in every step.
The adventure
Comrades starts in the dark. Before the 5:30am start, thousands of runners sing the national anthem and Shosholoza, then hear Chariots of Fire and a recorded cockerel crow before the gun sends them off. Ahead lies around 90 kilometres of road between Durban and Pietermaritzburg, over named hills such as Polly Shortts, Inchanga and Botha's Hill that every Comrades runner learns to fear.
The crowds are what make it. People line the route with braais and music, children hold out their hands for high fives, and the support barely stops all day. The finish is brutally dramatic: at exactly 12 hours, officials turn their backs to the course and fire the final gun, and anyone not over the line misses out on a medal, however close they were.
Why it’s epic
- First run in 1921 as a memorial to soldiers who died in the First World War.
- Medals depend on your time, from the Bill Rowan medal for under nine hours to the Vic Clapham medal for under 12.
- Big years see around 20,000 runners, making it the largest ultramarathon in the world.
- The direction alternates each year between the up run from Durban and the down run from Pietermaritzburg.
What it is
The world’s oldest and biggest ultramarathon, first run in 1921. The course of around 90 km runs between Durban and Pietermaritzburg, alternating each year between the ‘up’ run and the ‘down’ run, and finishers must beat a 12-hour cut-off.
How to do it
Enter online when entries open, usually in the second half of the year before. You need to run a qualifying marathon within the time limit before the race.
Top tip
Train for the downhills as well as the hills. The big descents destroy your quads, especially on a down run.
Need to know
- You need a qualifying marathon in under five hours, run within the qualifying window before the race.
- Race day falls in June, South Africa's winter, so the start is cold and the afternoon can be warm.
- Durban's King Shaka International Airport is the gateway, and hotels in both cities fill up in race week.
Plan this trip
- Rough cost
- £2,000 to £5,000 per person, including flights from the UK
- Time needed
- Months of training; a 12-hour cut-off on the day
- Best time to go
- June
- Fly into
- DUR airport
Entry is modest; long-haul flights to South Africa and race-week accommodation make up most of the cost.
Make it happen
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Why it’s on my list
I’ve run ultras such as the Thames Path 100 km, Rat Race’s The Wall and London to Brighton, so Comrades is the classic one still missing. It would also tick off Africa for my marathon on every continent.
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