'I will cherish those memories forever' - Andrew Kelehe reflects on 2001 Comrades victory

In the almost 100-year history of the Comrades Marathon, only eight men have managed to win ten or more gold medals. Just three of those are black. Three-time champion Bongumusa Mthembu is one, 2203 winner Busi Nhlapo is another, while the other is the legendary Andrew Kelehe whose ten gold medals earned him the nickname 'Mr Consistent.' Kelehe’s gold medal haul is unique because he achieved a record ten consecutive top ten finished between 1997 to 2006. Of those ten gold medals, the most memorable was the sensational 5:25:51 run he produced to win the 2001 edition of the race from Pietermaritzburg to Durban - a performance which was the second fastest time Down Run clocking at the time.

Kelehe won the 2001 Comrades Marathon in the colours of Rentmeester Fattis & Monis. Photo Credit: Supplied.

"It's very funny that I nearly didn’t run the race competitively that year. In February, I lost my daughter which almost made me change my mind about training hard for the race. I then decided to do the race in her honour. I went to the training camp in Dullstroom as usual to prepare and I had a positive mindset. I left feeling strong and knew that I would do well on race day," explains Kelehe who beat Russian debutant Leonid Shvetsov (5:26:28) as defending Champion Vladimir Kotov (5:27:21) took third position. 

"Before halfway, my stomach was bothering me and I need to go the toilet. I decided to continue and then I  consulted my coach (John Hamlett) who advised me to go to the toilet. I did and managed to catch up with the leading bunch afterwards," he told #TheTopRunner reflecting on the events of June 16, 2001. Kelehe describes the race as tactical saying he only decided to make his winning move with about 20km to go in Pinetown. 

Kelehe (left) still has a good relationship with coach Hamlett (right). They are pictured here with 2015 Comrades champion Gift Kelehe and 2016 Comrades Champion David Gatebe who were all coached by Hamlett. Photo Credit: John Hamlett.

"Running needs you to be smart. In the latter stages of the race, it was between me and Leonid. I started to look at how he runs, look at his facial expressions to see if he was feeling the pain. I realised that he was struggling, I then made a move and he never responded. Running to the finish, I was going through a lot. I had mixed emotions seeing that I'm about to make history. When I crossed the finish line, I told myself that I'm the champion," said Kelehe, who had came close in 1999 when he had finished in third place.

His victory came during sixth Comrades race. At his first attempt, he clocked 5:58:29 to finish 30th overall, a performance which was built on the foundation of a solid ultra marathon pedigree that included four Two Oceans 56km gold medals. But Kelehe almost didn’t return to run the Ultimate Human Race again after that sub 6 hour debut because he says it was too brutal.

Kelehe won five of his gold medals running for the famed Liberty Nike Comrades team. Photo Credit: Zane Lesetedi.

"The first time I ran Comrades, I finished the race super tired. I told my coach that I don't want to do the race anymore. I thought after I had a good record in Two Oceans, I would adapt easily to Comrades but it wasn't the case," explains Kelehe who finished second in 1993 Two Oceans in 3:16:02.

"But a few weeks after Comrades, I changed my mind. Once I had recovered I started to fall in love with the race. I told myself that I'm going back the following year to do well. Then I obtained a gold medal which motivated me to keep going. Each year, I came to get another gold till my time came to win the race. That was special," said the man who worked as a police officer for the South African Police Service (SAPS) before taking retirement in April this year.

Kelehe got to meet Madiba after his historic 2001 Comrades Marathon victory. Photo Credit: John Hamlett.

By becoming the first South African Comrades winner in three years, Kelehe earned the admiration of the entire nation. That The 60-year-old who hails from Mahikeng describes winning the race as something that changed his life. He feels the victory was for all South Africans. 

"After winning the race, too many people were offering me things. My head was spinning. I managed to get myself a good house and renovated our family house. I even received a call from late President Nelson Mandela congratulating me for winning. That made me realize that this is not my victory alone. It was a special moment. Even Russian runners, invited me to their country in order to see how they train and live. I remember it was winter there and it was so cold. I will cherish those memories forever," said Kelehe who alongside 2015 Comrades champion Gift Kelehe, are the only brothers to have both won Comrades.

Andrew embraces his brother Gift at the finish line in 2015 after he also won the Comrades Marathon. Photo Credit: Supplied.

Having run last run his beloved Comrades in 2010 when he finished in 6:37:38, Kelehe no longer runs competitively but still keeps a close eye on the world’s oldest ultra marathon. He believes it will take an extra effort to dispatch Piet Wiersma from defending his title this year. 

"Piet is my favourite to win the race. That boy is smart and has a good approach to the race. It will take a good tactical approach to beat him. In the last down run, he ran the good race despite not being familiar with it. I think he is coming back to do damage this time around."