A bit of history about the Arthur Cresswell Ultra-Marathon

This year will see the famous Arthur Cresswell Ultra-Marathon being run for the 53rd year.

It was conceived in the pub of the Old Country Club in Golf Street by the late Dave Gardner and Dart Bousefield.

The first two years, 1966 and 1967, saw the runners coming into Ladysmith via the bypass, down Harrismith Road, turning into Keate Street, then Queen Street, running through the old car park next to the Town Hall and finishing with a lap around the old Oval.

Mayor Rankin of Bergville started the inaugural race at 7am on May 8, 1966. Manie Khun was the first ever winner in a good time of 3:42:20 for 56km.

Since those early days, both the start and the finish have been changed quite considerably.

This year’s race will start in front of Bergville Municipality in Bergville and finish at Ladysmith Athletic Club (LAC), making it a distance of 52km. The starting time is 6am.

A 21km run will also take place on the same day and will start at 6am from LAC.

The race could never take place without the sponsorship, support and help of business houses and the public of Ladysmith (names of businesses that contributed will be published after the event).

We are proud of the fact that our seconding tables are known as some of the best in the country and a very big thank you to all those who so willingly man them.

We are looking forward to a large crowd supporting the runners at the finish.

We are looking forward to seeing all our supporters there!