'Athletes aware of Comrades Marathon medical risks'

Comrades Marathon Association chairperson Mqondisi Ngcobo says they do warn runners of the medical risks that come with running the 90km ultra-marathon. 

This comes after the death of Hollywoodbets Athletics Club runner Mzamo Mthembu, who participated in Sunday's gruelling, energy-sapping event.

According to Sowetan's sister publication TimesLIVE, Mthembu is said to have had complications along the route and collapsed in Pinetown on his way to Durban. He was then taken to Westville Hospital where he sadly died.

Ngcobo passed on his condolences to those who were close to Mthembu and the rest of the 16,000 Comrades Marathon entrants. 

"We wish to pass on our condolences to the family, club and everyone who was involved in this Comrades, it's very unfortunate," said Ngcobo. 

"We have heard about it. We are still in consultation with the club. Our medical team is working on getting a finalised medical report on the runner and including those who are in the hospital," he said.

The Comrades Marathon is known as the ultimate human race for a reason. It is a tough test and very much gruelling on the body. Not everyone can run the distance of 90km from Pietermaritzburg to Durban. 

Ngcobo revealed that they do communicate with the runners to warn them about the possible medical implications that may come with running the ultra-marathon. 

"We do everything for runners to understand what they're in for and at the same time we don't want to be alarmists," he said. 

"Runners have clubs and managers. From our side we communicate all the information to the runners, including the implications of the humbling race. 

"We try to encourage runners to be fit and proper for race day, physically, mentally and health-wise to make sure they don't go to race day with any form of preconditions," said Ngcobo.