Over the past three Comrades Marathon editions, only two South African women have secured three consecutive top 10 finishes. The first is four-time winner Gerda Steyn, who continues to etch herself into the history books as arguably one of the country’ s greatest ultramarathon runners. The second is Jenet Mbhele, who is a record-breaker in her own right. She is a former South African Marathon Champion and represented her country at the 2018 World Half Marathon Championships in Spain, but it is her Comrades record that really stands out. The Umzikhulu Striders athlete is the first black South African woman to achieve three gold medals in the Comrades Marathon, and that accomplishment is all the more remarkable given her relatively recent entry into ultradistance running.“ I think I have exceeded my own expectations with the Comrades Marathon, considering the fact that I’ m still new in ultras,” she says.
Three for Three So Far
Mbhele has a 100 percent success rate in the race since her debut in 2023, when she clocked a commendable 6:27:14 to finish 10th in the women’ s race. The following year she earned back-to-back golds with an improved 6:16:24 to take eighth place, and last year, the 31-year-old former clocked her fastest time of 6:14:24 to finish one place higher in seventh.
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For Mbhele, tackling that first Comrades was more about experimenting than running it competitively.“ When I decided to line up for my first Comrades, it was more about seeing how will I perform in the race. I didn’ t have any expectations going into the race. When I realised that I had managed to get a top 10 finish on my debut, I was so happy!” says Mbhele.
“ It was more of going out to enjoy myself, and I think running with no pressure on myself contributed largely to having such a good race. After that, I told myself to never look back. From there, I decided to throw everything at fighting to be among the top 10 finishers. Overall, I’ m happy with the progress I have been making in the last three years, but I’ m still learning the ways to master the race,” she adds.
Disciplined Dedication
Having secured three consecutive Comrades gold medals, Mbhele is recognised as the most successful South African black woman athlete in the history of the race. When questioned about her ability to excel, she identifies her diligent training and winning mentality as the primary factors contributing to her success.
“ I think being unemployed and fully focused on running is helping me a lot. It gives me more time to train the way I want to. I don’ t skip training, as I follow the training programme given by my coach, as in most cases he is not around to supervise me,” explains
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“ My preparations for the Comrades Marathon have gone well, compared to other years. I have done a lot of mileage to get ready for the race,” says Mbhele.“ The speed work is the part where I’ m perhaps lacking a bit, as we don’ t have a track stadium in our area. I have been forced to travel to Durban in order to do track sessions, and that costs a lot of money.”
“ Besides that, I did the Zululand race, which I believe is a good one if you are preparing for the Up Run. Now it’ s all about getting the job done on race day. My goal remains the same, and I’ m eyeing another gold medal. I know I have it in my legs, so I feel it is a matter of position now. I’ ll be happy if I can once again improve on my previous position and move further up,” she concludes.
Confident she can make it four golds in four years in the 2026 race
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Images: Comrades Marathon Association |
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