Durban — So how do the elite runners feel ahead of Sunday morning’s 48th running of the Comrades Marathon down run from Pietermaritzbug to Durban?
The women who are expected to challenge for glory gathered at the Southern Sun Elangeni Hotel here to speak about their readiness for the race.
Here’s what they said:
Alexandra Morozova (2022 champion): I have had a long way to come here, I changed four planes. But I am now relaxed, there are no issues (unlike last year when she had to go to the courts to ensure her participation) and everything is good for race-day.
Dominika Stelmach (2022 runner-up): I’ve told myself that I will be coming to Comrades until I win. So, on one hand it will be great to win, on another if I don’t I will come back next year - so it is all good. But the women’s field this year is very, very tough. It is a dream (to win Comrades) and we will see how the competition goes, so we are crossing fingers. Comrades is really hard so this year I changed altitude and I have only done short distances. I am ready.
Adele Broodryk (third in 2022): I think it takes an exceptional, all-round athlete to win Comrades and I will (also) come down every year until I win it. And (I will come) not just solo but I will have my two children and husband and mom, and they will only be released from their support duties once I win it. Last year at the start, my legs were fresh (because) they had no kilometres on them and as a novice I did not know what to expect. This year I definitely know every single hill that will come, every descent. So I have amended my whole training plan for this route this year and also (because of) my race experience that I gained has also changed All routes lead to Sunday.
Galaletsang Mekgoe (fourth in 2022): It takes hard work, determination and discipline to end up on the winning side. To finish on the podium, it takes a lot for you to see yourself there. You sacrifice a lot you, you don’t just wake up and say you are going to run Comrades. I am not thinking about the competitors, I will be focusing on executing the strategy that my coach and I have planned.
Gerda Steyn (Up run record holder): “It’s absolutely impossible for me not to think about the record (Frith Van der Merwe’s 5:54:43 from 1989) because the media has been going nuts about it. But it does not affect me. I want to focus on producing the best performance I can produce as an athlete. I look at my training, I look at my preparation before the race and I base my expectations on that and not so much on what the current record is. I feel like that is a better approach for me personally and it’s also what has worked for me in the past.”
IOL Sport