Local taxi driver hopes to be among the top 20 in this year’s Comrades Marathon
The runner said growing up as a boy in the rural town of Nongoma in KwaZulu-Natal, he always wanted to become a soccer player.
A member of Waterfall City Athletics Club Sbusiso Mchunu said he hoped to be among the first 20 runners home in this year’s Comrades Marathon.
Mchunu who works as a full-time minibus taxi driver from MTN Taxi Rank in Johannesburg to Bryanston, previously completed the Comrades Marathon in 2018 and 2019.
He said growing up in the rural town of Nongoma in KwaZulu-Natal, he always wanted to become a soccer player.
Mchunu said when he started running in 2014, he just wanted to keep fit and healthy until someone convinced him to join a Johannesburg-based runners club.
“I grew up playing soccer and I was well-known by opponents for my high speed when chasing the ball. I never thought of becoming a professional runner until 2014 when I started running every morning, because I always felt tired.”
After participating in the first competitive marathon in 2018, he developed a love for running and participated in a number of marathons in the same year.
“Things were tough in the beginning and I received a lot of negative comments from some of my colleagues in the taxi industry. The intuition I had within me kept me going until they realised that I was serious about running.”
Mchunu recently made it in the top 15 in the Racing to Equality Marathon held at Marks Park Sports Complex on March 12.
“This year I will be running my third Comrades Marathon which will be a down run from Pietermaritzburg to Durban on August 22. I am hoping to be among the top 20 if not the top 10.”
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