Why Lebo Phalula feels the Comrades Marathon isn't for elite athletes
Image: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
Veteran distance runner Lebo Phalula says that running the Comrades Marathon is the furthest thing from her mind, insisting the renowned ultra-marathon is for social runners.
The evergreen 41-year-old has been a prominent figure in South African athletics for decades, alongside her twin sister Lebogang, and she is showing no sign of slowing down.
On Sunday, she was the first veteran runner home in the Durban leg of the SPAR Women's 10km Challenge, clocking a time of 36:19, despite recently recovering from swine flu. The race was won by fellow Boxer Athletics Club runner Glenrose Xaba (31:54).
While she finished outside the top 10 this time, Phalula has enjoyed an impressive season so far, continuing to outrun some of South Africa's top young road-running talent. The highlight to date was a remarkable third-place finish in the Absa Run Your City race in Cape Town in May. She also secured fifth place in the opening Cape Town leg of the SPAR Grand Prix.
Well-known twin sisters Lebogang and Lebo Phalula will not be seen together on the road for a while.
Image: RAJESH JANTILAL
Yet, taking part in the Ultimate Human Race is still regarded as folly by the runner known for her sharp tongue and devilish sense of humour.
'I think Comrades is for social runners. I'm an elite athlete, I'm not a social runner. I can't run 90km from six to six. I'm mentally okay upstairs,' she said, to howls of laughter from the gathered media at the post-race briefing in Durban.
'I'm not saying they are mentally disturbed, but Comrades is for social runners, not elite athletes.'
Playing the long game
Phalula suggested that she owed her longevity in the sport to the fact that she avoided the ultra-marathons.
'I've been running since I was a sub-youth. If you check, all those people who have been winning Comrades, they've got 10 years of running. They started now-now,' she said.
'Do you think I can run that thing at this age and think I'm going to win Comrades? My body is tired. I don't have the energy to run from six to six. I only run now for 30 minutes, then I'm done.
'This thing of running Comrades and the Two Oceans Marathon ... no, no, no. I'm mentally okay.'
Another South African running legend, Zola Budd-Pieterse, had apparently expressed the desire to run the Ultimate Human Race at age 50 (she is now 58), after repeated questions about it. There were even suggestions that she would run this year's race, but that came to nought.
Phalula was asked if that could also be a goal for her at the same age.
'Even if I'm a 100, I will never,' she said.
'This thing is not for elite athletes — it's for people who started running now. People who didn't do their sub-youth running, world juniors, and world cross-country champs. Those people who don't have those major events — they've only got Comrades and Two Oceans.'
Even the massive prize money on offer is not enough to tempt the diminutive ace. This year's Comrades women's race winner, Gerda Steyn, reportedly pocketed over R1.6 million in prize money alone.
An uphill battle
'I've been running since I was young. I know what I want in life. Those Comrades people are not serious. I don't want to lie, I can't run for 90km and run 10km uphill or 3km climbing a hill. It's not in my mind,' Phalula insisted.
Phalula seems to be enjoying life in the absence of her equally famous sister, who is set to return to the circuit in August after giving birth.
But what about her long-term plans? Is she considering retirement any time soon?
'I thought I had two years left before retiring to focus on the athletes I'm training. But I still run like a youngster, so it's not going to be easy for me to retire now,' Phalula said. 'You're still going to see more of Phalula evergreen, as you all say.'
Her immediate goal is to recover fully before targeting a sub-32-minute time in the remaining 10km road races this year.
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