'I'd like to run Comrades as long as I live' - Mthembu earns 11th gold medal

Having completed his first Comrades Marathon in the colours of Verulam Checkout Falcons AC in 6:25:19 back in 2006, Bongumusa Mthembu underlined his legendary status when he grabbed his eleventh gold medal at the 98th running of The Ultimate Human Race on Sunday 8 June. Mthembu who is a 3-time winner of the the world’s oldest Ultra Marathon, stopped the clock in 5:35:48 to claim eighth position and draw level with Bruce Fordyce on 11 gold medals, just one adrift of Alan Robb whose 12 gold medals are the most ever won by any Comrades male competitor.

Mthembu says running the Comrades Marathon is like nothing else on earth. Photo Credit: DUT.

"The work starts in training," he told#TheTopRunner during the Comrades Champions Breakfast on 9 June. "We usually sit down and study how people run. We can be 100 in the bunch at the beginning of the race but you know that at a certain point, the work begins. You know your competitors. We study what they do because it’s very rare that runners change a strategy that works."

"So I knew that Tete and Edward would do the running, with Piet also there. Then I controlled the pace form Cato Ridge. I went down Fields Hill with them and I was okay. With about 29km to go you could see who was still relaxed. And knowing what it takes to win Comrades I felt that Tete was fit. You could see that when David Gatebe went to the front Tete would leave him alone, but he would watch Piet. So when we got to Pinetown I took a decision to forget about the win and defend myself and be consistent to keep this position because I knew I was already in the top ten. I knew that I wouldn’t be run out of the top ten. That’s where experience also counts. It’s important to have a plan," he said reflecting on the 89.98km Down Run from Pietermaritzburg to Durban.

Mthembu in action during the first half of the 2025 Comrades Marathon. Photo Credit: Thami KaQoma.

That his first and eleventh gold medal have been separated by sixteen years is a sign of the 2016 IAU 100km World Championships runner-up’s incredible longevity. Now 41 years old, Mthembu attributes his long and productive ultra marathon career to the fact that he generally focuses on just one race a year - The Comrades Marathon. He says he borrowed that principle from 2003 Comrades victor Fusi Nhalpo who himself won ten gold medals.

"I've learnt from the preceding generation of Comrades runners - especially Fusi Nhlapo. He would only run Comrades and then you don’t see him for the rest of the year. The best thing I ever did was to copy this strategy. And what's more I even got to meet him and stayed with him at his home in QwaQwa where he taught me so much about life and managing one's body for Comrades. That's why for example, when I run Two Oceans I use it as part of my training and only run it depending on how close it is to Comrades because Comrades requires time for training and rest," explained Mthembu who also won the 2019 Two Oceans 56km in 3:08:39.

Nhlapo celebrates after winning the 2003 Comrades Marathon. He inspired Mthembu. Photo Credit: Supplied.

It's a love affair with a race that is two decades in the making. As a result of that and perhaps unlike some top runners who choose to hang up their running shoes once their days in the lead bunch are over, the man who hails from the town of Bulwer roughly 90km west of Pietermaritzburg, says he intends to keep on coming back to Comrades even after he is no longer able to break six hours.

"I was inspired by the 83-year-old Mr Mosehle who finished the race this year. It's amazing. It is also my wish to continue running Comrades even when I’m no longer able to compete. I'd like to run Comrades as long as I live because it has changed my life. Comrades is about breaking barriers. One can get involved in running for charity. I wish to have that taste of finishing in 11 hours," he smiled.