The Corner Flag: Frith van der Merwe deserves more than applause

In the movie Hidden Figures, Mary Jackson, played by American singer Janelle Monàe, stands before a judge and makes a simple yet profound plea: To be allowed to attend classes that would enable her to become NASA’s first black female engineer.

“Your Honour,” she says, “out of all the cases you’re going to hear today, which one will matter 100 years from now?”

It’s a line that echoes through history, a reminder that breaking barriers often begins with one person daring to be first.

Frith van der Merwe had her own “Mary Jackson moment” in 1989.

In a world when women were still expected to “run within reason”, she decided to redefine reason altogether.

When she toed the line of the Comrades Marathon that year, she wasn’t just racing other women; she was challenging a culture that doubted whether a woman could run shoulder to shoulder with men in one of the toughest ultramarathons on earth.

She didn’t just win. She rewrote the script. Frith stormed through the down run in 05:54:43, becoming the first woman to break the six-hour barrier and finishing 15th overall, ahead of hundreds of men who had once dismissed women’s endurance as inferior.

Her record stood for 34 years, a near-mythical standard until Gerda Steyn finally eclipsed it in 2023.

Like Jackson, Van der Merwe didn’t just fight for her own dream; she fought against the quiet prejudices that tried to contain it. She silenced the scoffers, inspired generations and set a benchmark so extraordinary that even time itself seemed to hesitate before letting it fall.

Hers was not just a victory of speed, but of spirit; the triumph of conviction over convention.

More than three decades later, the name Frith van der Merwe still stirs something deeper than nostalgia in SA sport. It stands for possibility. For courage. For every runner who dares to dream of being first, and every woman who refuses to ask permission to do so.

A trailblazer like Van der Merwe deserves to be celebrated because hers was no ordinary feat.

Her “first” didn’t just break records; it broke barriers. Van der Merwe changed the narrative, proving beyond doubt that women could not only compete in ultramarathons but dominate them.

At a time when too many sporting greats fade away without the honour they deserve, Van der Merwe’s legacy must not be overlooked. Just as we have paid tribute to icons like Isavel Roche-Kelly and others who shaped our sporting history, van der Merwe, too, deserves her place among the revered.

She remains the only Benoni Northerns Athletic Club runner ever to win the Comrades Marathon, and she did it thrice, proudly flying the club’s yellow, white, and red colours.

That alone cements her status as one of the club’s greatest ambassadors. Perhaps it’s time the club finds a fitting way to celebrate her, maybe by renaming the Benoni Northerns Marathon in her honour.

Despite being named the club’s best ever sportsperson in 2012, the Frith van der Merwe Marathon would be a lasting tribute to a legend who redefined what was possible and who continues to inspire generations of runners.

Her “first” changed everything.

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