Comrades organisers to address ‘criticism and complaints’

Organisers of the Comrades Marathon have acknowledged some of the issues which arose during the annual ultra-distance race in KwaZulu-Natal last weekend.

In what was essentially a dress rehearsal for the 100th edition of the race, to be held in 2027, the ‘down’ run between Pietermaritzburg and Durban attracted a record field of 20 972 starters, with 18 194 runners finishing the 90km race.

On the positive side, the Comrades Marathon Association (CMA) said it was pleased with the decision to have two separate starts for the first time, which eased the congestion in the early stages of the race.

Conversely, however, with the race finishing in the street (as opposed to a stadium venue) in Durban for the first time, organisers admitted they would need to make some changes in 2027 when they expected another record field.

“Congestion at the finish and dealing with the flow of people in the venue were particularly challenging in the last hour, although the event’s safety and security teams attended to the bottleneck issue at the runners’ exit area behind the finish line, and resolved it before any serious incidents could occur,“ said CMA general manager Alain Dalais.

False start

There were some participants who were caught starting in group one when they were in the group two batch, giving them an extra 15 minutes to finish the race before the 12-hour cut-off. While they were not disqualified, they were given a time penalty.

“At the finish, all runners’ race numbers were scanned to determine which medal they earned, and in the process 19 runners from group two were flagged for having started with group one,” the CMA said.

“After being interviewed by race officials, it was decided to penalise them with a 30-minute time penalty added to their finish times.”

Meanwhile, it was confirmed there were no deaths during this year’s race.

While 440 athletes were admitted into the medical tent at the finish, only 25 runners were admitted to hospital, including Moira Harding, who was reported missing after the race and found the next morning after walking eight kilometres from the finish in a delirious state.

“All of these patients are stable and recovering, and are likely to be discharged in the next few days,” Dalais said.

“The Comrades race doctor (Jeremy Boulter) is closely monitoring their recovery and is in constant contact with the hospitals.”

Elite refreshment stations

One issue the CMA did not address was a bizarre situation which forced elite athletes to pick up their refreshments off the floor, with bottles being placed on the ground rather than tables, as is standard.

After the race, gold medallist and former race winner Edward Mothibi said this had been a problem, and some elite runners had opted not to take their bottles in an attempt to avoid cramping by bending down to pick up their personal refreshments.

However, the organisers said they would work on fixing multiple issues which had been raised by participants on social media, particularly around the congestion at the finish.

“We hear the criticism and complaints, particularly about the finish venue, management of flow in the venue, and security, and we want to assure the running community that we are taking this feedback seriously,” Dalais said.

“We will be implementing changes and improvements to enhance the overall runner and spectator experience, and of course, to improve on safety aspects as well.”