Meyer cautions athletes against rushing to ultra-marathons

South African long-distance running legend Elana Meyer says the country loses out on potential world-class athletes as they rush to run ultra-marathons prematurely because of the high profiles they have. 

The Comrades Marathon and the Two Oceans Marathon are world-renowned ultra marathons, and the urge to run them for elite and social runners is always high. Many elite athletes have avoided the ultras because of how taxing they are, while upcoming prospects jump into them early in an attempt to earn their stripes. 

Meyer, who in the 1990s dominated on the track before becoming a half-marathon specialist, weighed in on the debate around the ultras, suggesting that they should be the last chapter for many athletes.

“In South Africa, they (ultras) have a high profile, all the clubs focus on the ultras, and that sometimes pulls away some of our top talent way too early. Ideally, I would like to see those iconic events being the last piece in the puzzle and not the first,” Meyer told Sowetan on the sidelines of the Spar 10km Grand Prix on Sunday.  

“The pathway would be to become the fastest athlete you can on the track on the shorter distances, develop as a good 10km, 15km and half-marathon athlete. Ultimately, the Comrades should be the last piece of the puzzle. Be fast first before you move to the ultras,” she said.

The prize money of the ultras is often seen as the big attraction for athletes. The 90km Comrades pays out R260,000 to the winner, while it’s R250,000 for the Two Oceans first place. Meyer is of the view that athletes can make more from running half marathons and marathons in Europe instead of targeting the big two ultras.

“The Comrades is a big payday but if you’re a world-class runner you can even make a better payday on the international circuit being a world-class marathon athlete,” she said.