Latest news with #SowetoMarathon
IOL News
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- IOL News
Pretoria's Van Zyl ready to tackle Comrades debut despiten nerves and Down Run start
Irvette van Zyl. Photo: Backpagepix Image: Backpagepix Pretoria's favourite runner, Irvette Van Zyl, is excitedly looking forward to her Comrades Marathon debut, even though she would rather have started with the Up Run. Speaking during the elite runners' pre-race conference at a hotel on the Durban beachfront, the Hollywood Athletics Club star was in her usual high spirits, despite being on a table teeming with accomplished gold medallists of The Ultimate Human Race. Among them were her teammate and defending champion Gerda Steyn, former champion Alexandra Morozova, as well as Carlo Molinaro, Caitriona Jennings, Dominika Stelmach and Courtney Olsen – all of whom have previously finished in the top ten. It is not surprising, then, that the Olympian and multiple Soweto Marathon champion had a few butterflies in her stomach as she addressed the media. 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. 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. Next Stay Close ✕ 'Yes, I am nervous,' Van Zyl said, before breaking into her trademark giggle. 'But I am looking forward to it because it's been on my to-do list for a long time. I think it is time now, and hopefully after Sunday I will still have the legs to come back and do the Up Run, because that was the actual plan – to start with the Up Run and not the Down Run. Ja, I am excited, but let's see what happens.' Van Zyl has been training on the race route in preparation for her debut, but she says she does not see that as giving her any more advantage than the others. 'Ja, I've only done one route-tester and I didn't even finish that one, because that day I only managed to do 45km when the plan was to do 52km. But I'm gonna run and finish on Sunday.' That much is expected of her, Van Zyl having proven herself as one of the country's best distance runners over many years. Her multiple victories in the gruelling Soweto Marathon suggest she has what it takes to tackle the 90km monster that is the Comrades. In any case, she has done ultras before – having previously held the world 50km record, and also performing well at the slightly longer 56km Two Oceans Marathon, where she once dipped under the previous record when she finished second to the phenomenal Gerda Steyn. The two are now teammates at Hollywood Athletics Club, who are expected to dominate the women's race, with Steyn once again the favourite to win the title of the KwaZulu-Natal ultra she loves so much.
TimesLIVE
3 days ago
- Sport
- TimesLIVE
Meet 60-year-old who hasn't missed a Comrades race since 1990
'I also thought I'll never go back after my first one because of the way I felt. My body was in so much pain. How I find myself going back for the second race, I don't know. Maybe it's the pain that motivates me to come back time and again,' he said. The father of two ran his first Comrades when his eldest daughter was just a week old. He ran an impressive time of 8 hrs 16 mins. 'My family has long accepted my love for the sport. They tell me if my body is still willing, I must keep going because they can see this is where my happiness starts.' Over the years, Poli has achieved four silver medals, nine Bill Rowan medals, 18 Bronze medals, three Vic Clapham medals, with a best time of 7 hours, 18 minutes. His 34 Comrades races put him in an elite class of only a handful of runners who have achieved triple green number status. Less than 100 runners have completed more than 30 Comrades Marathon. This is a remarkable achievement considering that more than 20,000 runners enter the race every year. Traditionally, runners keep the same race number each year. After completing 10 Comrades, earning three wins, or achieving five gold medals, a runner is awarded a Green Number, which is permanently reserved for them. 'I have been fortunate that nothing has kept me from going to participate, no serious injury, no flu, and not even a funeral in my family or a close friend. No-one dies in June in my family. It's as if they probably think I will not attend their funeral and so they all 'choose' other months to die. It's been God's grace,' he said. Polis said running has helped him to be disciplined. Growing up in Sebokeng, it could have been easy to go astray, but thanks to running, it gave him purpose and direction in life. He has had only two bad experiences while running, one being bumped by a drunken motorist while participating in the Soweto Marathon and a terrible fall at the Comrades Marathon. ' I once fell while running down Drummond Hill during Comrades. I was running with the leading lady, I tripped over the cat-eyes [road reflector] and went tumbling down. I had to recover for about 30 minutes, and I carried on to finish,' he said. Polis, a professional chef, has ran all his Comrades in the colours of his former employer the correctional services department. 'Comrades is an endurance race, it needs discipline, patience and mental strength. Start slow and save energy, you have a long day ahead of you. At some point exhaustion will set in and your legs will want to stop, and your mind starts looking for excuses. It is your reasons why you started the race that will take you to the finish,' he advises.
