COMRADES MARATHON REVIEWS BIGGEST DOWN RUN

The Comrades Marathon is the oldest, largest and most iconic ultramarathon in the world, attracting tens of thousands of local runners each year, along with thousands more from all over the world. Many of them come back year after year to tackle the hilly roads between Pietermaritzburg and Durban, which are lined by tens of thousands of spectators and volunteers, cheering the runners on, and millions more tune in to the live television broadcast. This is why it is known as The Ultimate Human Race, and why many believe that the Comrades is more than just a race… it is a life-changing journey.

As the dust settles following the 98th edition of the Comrades Marathon on Sunday 8 June, the Comrades Marathon Association (CMA) is celebrating another incredible race in the rich history of this unique ultramarathon, whilst also acknowledging that there were some issues and challenges experienced on race day. These will be thoroughly investigated and covered in the post-race debrief, and actions taken to improve on these aspects for next year’s race.

The CMA stated earlier that it was treating this year’s race as a dress rehearsal for the 2027 Down Run, which will also be the 100th edition of the race, with (potentially) another record-sized field and extra celebrations as part of the event. The 2025 race, with the first ever split start in the history of the Comrades Marathon and a new street finish at People’s Park in Durban, delivered important lessons that the CMA and its Race Organising Committee (ROC) will take on board in the planning for 2026 and 2027.

In terms of what went well, the 2025 race featured a record field for the Down Run, with 18,194 official finishers (86.75%) out of 20,972 starters, and various innovative changes successfully introduced. These included the two-group split start, for safety reasons, and this worked so well that all runners were over the start line within six minutes of their starting gun being fired, vastly reducing the amount of time lost at the start by slower runners at the back end of the field. “The CMA would like to thank the runners for their co-operation and discipline at the Start in Pietermaritzburg, which not only set the scene for a great race, but also ensured the safety of all runners in the event,” says CMA General Manager Alain Dalais.

In the elite race, South African superstars Tete Dijana and Gerda Steyn emerged triumphant once again. Dijana, the winner in 2022 and 2023, crossed the line in 5:25:28, just ahead of 2024 winner Piet Wiersma (Netherlands), while Steyn added a fourth title to her already impressive record with another convincing win in 5:51:19, followed by 2022 winner Alexandra Morozova. This makes Steyn only the second woman (after eight-time winner Elena Nurgalieva) to win the race more than three times.

At the Finish, all runners’ race numbers were scanned to determine which medal they earned, and in the process 19 runners from Group 2 were flagged for having started with Group 1. After being interviewed by race officials, it was decided to penalise them with a 30-minute time penalty added to their finish times.

“Other positives that the CMA is proud of is that there were no long queues at Registration over the three days, and the registration process was seamless, with all runners receiving their goodie bags, Mr Price Sport Race T-shirt and Toyota cap. On race day, all 47 refreshment stations were well stocked, and supplied the runners with the hydration and nutrition they needed, and at the finish, all runners received their medals and finisher badges. Meanwhile, incidents of crime in and around the Finish venue were drastically reduced from previous years, as a result of an increased security presence in the Finish Precinct, but we would still like to improve on that even more,” adds Dalais.

The race also celebrated a remarkable milestone this year as Louis Massyn became the first athlete in the world to complete the same ultramarathon 50 times. He crossed the line in 11:53:14, being met on the line by CMA Board Member Barry Holland, himself the owner of 49 Comrades medals, and then went through to the Green Number Tent to receive his specially framed Quintuple Green Number. Equally remarkable was Johannes Maros Mosehla extending his own record of oldest Comrades finisher, as the evergreen 83-year-old came home in 11:47:27. Earlier, three more women – Malie van der Walt, Helen Mann and Gina Hinchliffe – joined the fairly exclusive women’s Triple Green Club, growing its membership from nine to 12. A total of 528 runners received new Green Numbers on the day, for 10, 20, 30 or 50 finishes, Meanwhile, 4258 novice runners claimed their first Comrades medals.

On the medical front, a full medical report will still be issued by Comrades Race Doctor Jeremy Boulter, but initial reports show that 440 athletes were admitted into the Finish Medical Tent, and 200 athletes were sent to hospital – 169 directly from the route, and 31 from the Finish. There were no deaths reported during or as a result of the event, although some digital news platforms falsely reported the passing of two Comrades runners. Of the 200 athletes sent to hospital, 25 patients were admitted, and at the time of writing (Wednesday, 11 June) five are currently still in hospital, including Moira Harding, who was reported missing after the race and only found the next morning. “All of these patients are stable and recovering, and are likely to be discharged in the next few days. The Comrades Race Doctor is closely monitoring their recovery, and is in constant contact with the hospitals,” says Dalais.

Concerns Being Attended To

However, the CMA readily admits that certain aspects of the race need immediate attention. 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 Runner’s Exit area behind the finishline, and resolved it before any serious incidents could occur. “There were no stampede incidents on the day, nor were any injuries reported by any runners or spectators as a result of the congestion at the Runner’s Exit, but this is one of the most important aspects of the race plan that we are already looking at carefully and working to fix for next time,” says Dalais.

Unsurprisingly, there have been a number of comments posted on social media platforms since the race about the challenges experienced at the 2025 race, and Dalais says the CMA is listening. “We strive to put on the perfect race, ensuring the safety of our runners and spectators while providing them with an exhilarating experience, from Registration through the Start all the way to the Finish and beyond, but there will always be room for improvement, and thus we are taking note of all the feedback and input from our runners – whether positive or negative – and adding this to the post-race debrief notes.”

“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. 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.”

As part of this process of self-evaluation, the CMA invited world-renowned road running expert, Dr Hilary Walker, General Secretary of the International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU) to attend this year’s race, and the CMA Board met with her the day after the race for an initial feedback session. “She had valuable insights to share on various aspects of our race, and will be sending us a more detailed report soon, which we will add to the 2025 debrief process as we work towards making the 2026 and 2027 races even better,” says Dalais.

“So, whilst we celebrate the success stories of the 2025 Comrades Marathon, the CMA will continue to have an open, two-way channel of communications with its runners, spectators, media, sponsors, partners and volunteers, and all feedback is welcomed. Anybody that would like to contribute their thoughts or ideas to our debrief process is welcome to mail us at info@comrades.com. We not only welcome this input, we rely on it, in order to ensure the continued success of The Ultimate Human Race,” concludes Dalais.

Comrades 2025 Stats

The Comrades Marathon always delivers a number of interesting results and statistics, and a quick look at the numbers shows the following:

NUMBER OF STARTERS

NUMBER OF FINISHERS

*The final number of finishers may change, as a small number of queried results are being investigated.

PERCENTAGE - FINISHERS

MEDAL BREAKDOWN

NOVICES - FIRST COMRADES

BACK 2 BACK

GREEN NUMBERS EARNED

TOP 20 MOST TRACKED PARTICIPANTS ON THE COMRADES APP