74-year-old Louis Massyn first to run 50 Comrades Marathons

Outeniqua Harriers athlete Louis Massyn has made history by becoming the first runner to complete 50 Comrades Marathons.
According to Oudtshoorn Courant, the 74-year-old completed his first Comrades in 1973.
Massyn left Pietermaritzburg City Hall at 06:00 with a special starting batch, including 50 friends from overseas and locally.
His personal best time is 6:25, and he has earned 10 silver medals in the race.
In addition to the Comrades, Massyn has completed the Two Oceans Marathon 46 times, a feat that includes a remarkable 10th-place finish in 1985 with a time of 3:57:30.
He is the only athlete to have run both ultra-marathons 40 times, earning him a spot in the exclusive 40 Club.

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Chaeli Mycroft triumphs in her seventh Comrades Marathon, pushing for wheelchair inclusion

IOL News

4 hours ago

IOL News

Chaeli Mycroft triumphs in her seventh Comrades Marathon, pushing for wheelchair inclusion

Chantal Fisher, Chaeli Mycroft and Jerome Swartz after completing the 98th Comrades Marathon on Sunday. Image: Supplied Michaela 'Chaeli' Mycroft, 30, is on course to obtain her green number after finishing the 98th edition of the Comrades Marathon with seconds to spare on Sunday. Chaeli, a wheelchair athlete living with cerebral palsy, braved the cold, wind, and hot weather from Pietermaritzburg to Durban to claim her seventh Comrades finish. Chaeli, who founded the Chaeli Campaign with her mother Zelda Mycroft, served legal papers on the Comrades Marathon in 2016 because their rules stated no wheelchairs or mechanical devices. After two months and then threatening to take them to the Equality Court, they relented. Also in 2016, Chaeli and another woman, Anita Engelbrecht, who is also an assisted athlete, were the first two wheelchair athletes to participate and finish the Comrades. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. 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Next Stay Close ✕ 'Chaeli is the first wheelchair athlete in the event's history to finish the Comrades and also the first to receive a back-to-back medal. This means she did that in 2016 and 2017,' Mycroft said. She said Chaeli has competed in every marathon since then, but in 2019, she did not finish after missing the halfway cut-off in Drummond. On Sunday, Chaeli finished her seventh Comrades, making it a total of seven finishes. 'On Sunday, she had two running partners with her. Her long-term running partner, Chantal Fisher. This was the fourth Comrades that Chantal has done with Chaeli. And the first time with Jerome Swartz. This was his ninth Comrades. 'Jerome has already said that he wants to run with Chaeli next year when he runs to get his green number,' Mycroft said. 'Chaeli is set on getting her green number because we have fought long and hard for the inclusion of wheelchair athletes in the Comrades. The only way for her to be assured of it being a permanent thing is for her to get her green number. So it is her goal to get her green number in 2028.' Mycroft explained that wheelchair athletes started at 5am, 45 minutes ahead of the field. So they had two hours in the dark, and when you leave Maritzburg, the temperatures dip when you go out into the countryside. She said for Chaeli, Sunday's down run alternated between freezing and very hot. 'The first two hours were extremely cold, and then hot and windy, and the first half was amazing. They were hoping for a bronze, and in the first half of the marathon, up to Bothas Hill, they were ahead of schedule. Then Bothas Hill, they did more than 11 minutes a kilometre, so that set them back,' Mycroft said. 'Then the last half, where they were hoping to go faster, it was nine minutes a kilometre. This meant they had to do the last five kilometres in 30 minutes. 'They came in with 24 seconds to spare. It was down to the wire.' Back: Jerome Swartz, Chantal Fisher, Marissa Groenewald and Shaun Black. Front: Chaeli Mycroft and Hayden Driemeyer. Image: Supplied Mycroft, who sees herself as the archivist for wheelchair inclusion, said she has the history of all the wheelchair athletes since 2016. 'There are only seven of them. Two self-propelled wheelchair athletes and five assisted athletes have participated in the last nine years,' Mycroft said. 'Chaeli is the only wheelchair athlete to have done them all.' Chaeli is also an author and activist. In 2023, she received the Forbes Woman Africa Young Achievers Award.

Toyota welcomes Comrades winner Gerda Steyn as official ambassador

TimesLIVE

4 hours ago

TimesLIVE

Toyota welcomes Comrades winner Gerda Steyn as official ambassador

Toyota SA Motors has announced Gerda Steyn as its new brand ambassador for the next three years. The announcement was made at the 98th Comrades Marathon on Sunday, where Steyn was crowned winner in the women's category. The qualified quantity surveyor is a four-time Comrades marathon champion and one of the most accomplished ultra-marathon athletes in the world, holding records for the Two Oceans (six times) and Comrades Marathon down run and up run. Steyn's running career kick-started at the Comrades Marathon in 2015 where she finished in the 56th position. As part of her ambassadorship Steyn will be paired with the Toyota Fortuner SUV. 'Toyota SA Motors is proud to support athletes who embody determination, resilience and a global sporting spirit. To this effect, Toyota's partnership with Gerda is the beginning of new and exciting adventures,' said Tasneem Lorgat, GM marketing communications at Toyota SA. The company said Steyn's appointment reaffirmed Toyota's commitment to supporting sports as a tool for nation-building and social cohesion — values linked to its historic 21-year support of the Comrades Marathon. Commenting on her appointment, Steyn said: 'To represent Toyota — pioneers and leaders in the motoring industry — is a huge honour. I look forward to this long-term partnership with a name that stands head and shoulders above the rest.'

Lost comrades runner found alive [video]

The South African

6 hours ago

The South African

Lost comrades runner found alive [video]

There was a major scare at the Comrades marathon on Sunday when race organisers declared runner Moira Harding to be missing. 'She is confirmed to have finished Comrades at 16:52, but has not been seen since,' the initial post read. 'Any information would be greatly appreciated.' On Monday morning it was then confirmed that Harding had been found and is alive, but there is still concern for her wellbeing. Read the full version of the ' Missing Comrades runner has been found' article. Garrith Jamieson, the director of ALS Paramedics, told The Witness publication that she was found in a critical condition and was being airlifted to hospital. 'A wide-scale search was launched and paramedics with SAPS and Metro Police Search and Rescue and Netcare 911 managed to locate the runner who was in a critical state of health on Point Road. Looking for quick updates? Watch News in a Minute videos on The South African's YouTube page for all the key stories you need to know! Catch all the latest videos on news, lifestyle, travel, sports and more – there's always something to watch! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky to stay connected and get your news on the go!