Fikile is passionate about running
Fikile Mbuthuma was the first woman in KZN to cross the finish line in the 89km ultra marathon between Pietermaritzburg and Durban, for the second time consecutively.
“SOME people run to relieve stress, but I have no stress. I just love running!” exclaimed Medicross Clinic receptionist at the Malvern branch, Fikile Mbuthuma, who has uncontainable energy and a passion for running that belies her petite physique.
“Running keeps me fit and young, and I have also made a lot of friends through my running. I absolutely love it,” the 34-year-old, who won a silver medal in this year’s Comrades Marathon, added.
Mbuthuma was the first woman from KZN to cross the finish line in the 89km ultra marathon between Pietermaritzburg and Durban, for the second time consecutively. In this year’s event, she was the 15th woman overall, and completed the race in an impressive time of seven hours, 18 minutes and 41 seconds.
She hails from Harding on the South Coast and has been working at Malvern Medicross for 11 years. Mbuthuma first tackled the Comrades Marathon in 2006 and has now ran it nine times. “I train almost every day. In preparation for the Comrades, I would train twice a day, six days a week, covering around 160km per week for five months before the race. I would get up very early in the morning to train before work, and then go running again after work,” she explained.
Mbuthuma is a member of the Nedbank Running Club KZN branch and has also been competing in the Zululand Ultra Marathon for the past six years. “In 2013 I ran the 68km Legends Ultra Marathon and came first in the women’s category, which I found a very satisfying achievement,” she elaborated. She will return to East London to run this event again in October. “My colleagues at Medicross Malvern are very supportive of my running and even threw a surprise party for me when I got back to work after this year’s Comrades. My employers have also been very accommodating. I know I am very fortunate to have this level of encouragement.”
Mbuthuma looks forward to taking part in next year’s Comrades Marathon and hopes to improve on her performance. “My ambition for next year’s Comrades is to finish in the top ten women,” she says.
The manager at the Medicross Clinic in Malvern, Roshan Ramparsad, congratulated Mbuthuma on her achievement and said he hoped his staff members would follow in her footsteps. “Fikile is an immense inspiration to our staff. Her determination in pursing her running goes to show that with hard work, discipline and passion it is possible to achieve great things.We wish her all the best in her future and, personally, I believe she will go from strength to strength,” he said.
“Her dedication to her running is paralleled by the enthusiasm and caring she shows when assisting our patients in the course of her reception job,” Ramparsad added.
