How Comrades pacesetter Khonkhobe got carried away, spurred on by fans

Comrades’ fan favourite Onalenna Khonkhobe was meant to run for only 30km as a pacesetter but the screams and cheers from supporters saw him go nearly all the way as his coach watched on anxiously.

Khonkhobe had been told to run only a short distance and rest in preparation for the Soweto Marathon in November, which he won last year. He was roped in at the last minute by his coach at Nedbank Running Club to be a pacesetter so as not to put his muscles under undue strain.

However, upon hearing cheers from fans along the way the 29-year-old ended up covering 75km – 45km more than the original plan.

“Last year’s Comrades was boring; I brought the entertainment this year, and people loved it. If I had left, the race would have been lonely,” Khonkhobe said with a chuckle speaking to Sowetan on Monday.

The runner, who is from Taung in the North West, said when he heard spectators shouting his name, he knew that he had to go on.

“Around the 42km/43km mark, I saw a crowd. They kept saying, ‘Let’s go, let’s go’, while others screamed, ‘My money is on you’.

“At some point, the crowds even got crazier and got on the road even though they were not supposed to. I knew that I had to keep going,” he said.

“I only pulled out of the race at the 75km mark.”

While Khonkhobe was enjoying himself, revelling in the attention and greeting people along the way, his coach, Pio Mpolokeng, could not believe what he was seeing.

He drove to the 35km mark to pick Khonkhobe up, but did not find him and kept driving.

“I then checked the TV, and he was still running. I was anxious because it was not part of the plan. I was worried that he would be exhausted because preparations for the Soweto Marathon start soon.”

However, Mpolokeng understood that his young protégé is a showman. “He loves fame,” he said.

Khonkhobe, who won the 52km Prince Mangosuthu Ultra Marathon in April and the Two Oceans Marathon last year, hopes to defend his Soweto Marathon title win later this year.

Mpolokeng said Khonkhobe will be ready for the Comrades in two years as he needs to prepare physically and mentally.

“People want him to run, but it is not the time. We have to plan first,” he said.

Khonkhobe, as well as this year’s Comrades winner Tete Dijana, and Edward Mothibi, who finished fourth, were all discovered by Mpolokeng in Taung during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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