Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 120, July 2019 | Page 34

ROAD RUNNING
Leaving
on a
an inspiration to us all, and Urban Lime was very
proud to have him represent Durban and South
Africa in one of the most elite marathons in the world,
coming 14 th in his group, in the most elite marathon
in the world. What a true champion. This entire
experience was quite challenging for him, but his
humble determination shone through and his result
is a true reflection of his extraordinary character. We
are all so proud to have been able to make his dream
come true.”
.
.
.
e
n
a
l
Jetp
A lifelong dream came true
for Durban-based gardener
Michael Ndlovu when he
flew to Britain at the end of
April to take part in the London
Marathon. – BY SEAN FALCONER
strong,” and his impressive record includes earning
KwaZulu-Natal provincial colours as well as finishing
the Comrades 18 times, with 11 silver medals and
a best of 6:49:41. A highlight in his career was
competing in the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon, which
saw him fly for the first time, and he still ran a good
time in spite of a strong wind on the day. “I enjoyed
the challenge of the wind, and I also enjoyed taking
part in a run outside KwaZulu-Natal.”
RUNNING PEDIGREE His participation in London was made possible by
his employers, Urban Lime Properties, specialists
in commercial property urban-regeneration. The
company employs Michael as a groundsman at their
Florida Road properties in Durban, and teamed up
with a UK-based charity, Fields in Trust, to secure a
much sought-after place in the marathon for Michael.
In turn, he ran to raise funds for the charity, which is
dedicated to preserving green areas for public use,
raising money through a GoFundMe page, with Urban
Lime matching every rand or pound he raised.
Michael hails from Ntuzuma, north-west of Durban,
and has been running for more than 20 years. He took
up running in 1997 because he says “I wanted to be As Jonny explains, “Michael runs at least 20km to
and from work each day. His passion for running is
34
Michael managed to get away from them by running
away, jumping over a fence and hiding in a yard,
gashing his hand badly on the fence in the process.
“I think they tried to drive around the block to look
for me, so I jumped back over the fence, ran to
the railway station and took a train to work,”
he says. Most importantly, he said he was
determined not to let the incident mar his
preparations for the London Marathon, or
stop him from running.
ISSUE 120 JULY 2019 / www.modernathlete.co.za
The race was won by current marathon World Record
holder, Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya, who posted his fourth
win in London in a new course record of 2:02:37, the
second-fastest marathon time ever run. Further back
in the field, Michael finished in a very commendable
2:42:45, wearing his Zulu headband the whole way
for luck as he placed 14th in the 50-54 age group and
570th overall. A jubilant Michael was greeted at the
finish line by his employer and sponsor, Urban Lime
Properties CEO Jonny Friedman, and immediately
after finishing, told his employer, “It was a good race,
but it is cold here, and I miss the Durban weather!”
Michael’s trip to London might not have happened,
however, if not for his running speed. Just under a
month before the race, he was running to work in the
early hours of the morning when he was confronted
by armed men. “I was running along as usual and
it was before 4am, which is when there are usually
other runners on the road, but it was very quiet that
day. A car came past me, suddenly did a U-turn and
stopped close to me. Two men got out and one of
them pointed a gun at me. I think there were some
other men in the car.”
And when Michael landed back in South
African a few days after his successful
London adventure, his first priority was
to get back into training for the Comrades
Marathon, due to take place a month after
London. Come 9 June, he set out from Durban
aiming to earn his 18 th Comrades medal, and
came home in a brilliant 6:53:26, less than four
minutes outside his PB, to earn another silver
medal. As he says, running is everything to him. “I will
run until I die, because running is my life. All I want is
to become better, race after race.”
T
he London Marathon is a major bucket list
item for many runners around the world. That’s
why a record 414,168 people applied for one
18,000-odd ballot entries, in order to be part of the
total field of around 40,000 entries in this year’s 39th
edition of the race. Given the long odds on being
successful in the ballot draw, many runners choose
to secure a guaranteed entry by electing to run for
one of the charities affiliated to the race, and it was
in this way that 52-year-old Michael Ndlovu found
himself flying overseas for the first time in his life and
experiencing one of the world’s great marathons.
FRIGHTENING ENCOUNTER