CORNER FLAG: Keep Tommy Malone’s legacy alive

On December 25, I watched a re-run of the Comrades Marathon story, Down A Comrades Story, which celebrates 100 years of the world’s greatest ultra-marathon.

Packed with anecdotes from the first race in 1921 to the 2022 down run, the story is riveting and delivered in a manner that makes one appreciate the sacrifices the runners make for this event.

It’s not because of the race’s conclusion that drove my obsession but how Malone soldiered on after suffering a cramp in his right calf muscle with a few kilometres to the finish.

Malone had probably sacrificed six months of his life training to run the 90km, and he wasn’t going to let a slight discomfort derail his plans.

I asked myself what we could learn from this man, who won the 1966 Comrades and was the first chairperson of the Boksburg Athletic Club (BAC).

I then remembered he had left a rich legacy at the BAC that has seen the club’s blue and white colours become a constant feature at marathons and races around SA.

I don’t know Malone personally, but from what I’ve read and been told, he was a man of honour who gave more than he took.

Nicknamed the Flying Scot, no one in the history of the Comrades has provided a moment that’s been the subject of conversation for decades other than Malone and Kuhn.

Yes, Frances Hayward (1923) and Robert Mtshali (1935) defied politics and ran under protest because women and blacks were not allowed to partake in the race.

Today, record-breakers dominate the headlines, but none of these, in my opinion, come close to the magic Malone and Kuhn produced in 1967 when they ensured the most dramatic and agonising finish in the competition’s history.

But, it pains me that Malone is better known for coming second in the 1967 Comrades than his 1966 win when he won by the biggest margin at that time.

So, how can a man who has given so much to the sport be honoured?

The BAC launched the Tommy Malone Memorial Race – 15km and 5km races run annually – to honour his legacy, but I was disappointed when a lack of sponsorship saw the race cancelled last year.

Malone deserves this honour. He played an integral role in fostering a running culture in Boksburg and ensured the BAC survived during the darkest days in our country.

He was quoted after being elected chairperson of the BAC as saying: “There are going to be problems in the future, but success lies in the team spirit of the club. The club will last, as talent in Boksburg is unlimited.”

I hope and pray the Tommy Malone Memorial Race, scheduled for October 8, happens to keep Malone’s legacy alive.

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