by RIËL HAUMAN
STATS & FACTS
by RIËL HAUMAN
Stats & Facts
October Memories
The world of running produces scintillating times and interesting statistics , including these standout performances in October from the annals of SA running .
6 October 1956
Only one South African men ’ s marathon record has ever been set in October , by Jan Barnard . After he had lost to Jackie Mekler in the 1954 Commonwealth Games Marathon , when the two South Africans won the bronze and silver medals respectively , Barnard began a four-year period of great success in 1955 . On this day in 1956 , after he had won the SA Title in April , he established himself as a contender for an Olympic medal when he ran a National Record of 2:21:37.2 in Port Elizabeth , the eighth-fastest time in the world that year . Unfortunately , Barnard ran with an injury in Melbourne , and dropped out after 35km . However , two years later he won the silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Cardiff in 2:22:57.4 . His SA Record would stand for almost 10 years .
Jan Barnard
26 October 1980
South African women have twice set a national marathon record in October , and on the same date , six years apart ! The first was on 26 October 1974 , when Suzanne Gaylard ran 3:05:02 in King William ’ s Town , while the second came when Sonja Laxton competed in the 1980 New York Marathon . It came only six weeks after Judy Ryan had broken
Sonja Laxton a mail at rielh @ mweb . co . za .
16 ISSUE 162 | www . modernathlete . co . za
Laxton ’ s SA Record with her 2:44:28 in Stellenbosch , and Laxton had this new mark in her sights . She succeeded admirably by finishing a superb 11th in 2:43:49 . The winner was Grete Waitz , who posted the third of her unprecedented nine victories , with a new World Record of 2:25:42 .
28 October 1983
After middle distance running in South Africa had been dominated for years by Sonja van Zyl and Sarina Cronje for years , Zola Budd appeared on the scene in the early eighties . On this day , in her home city of Bloemfontein , at the tender age of just 17 , she set her first senior National Record over 1500m when she clocked 4:06.87 at the BP Universitas Meeting , smashing Cronje ’ s mark of 4:08.6 . Her time was by far the fastest by a junior in the world that year , as was her 8:39.00 senior SA Record for 3000m . Earlier in the year , also in Bloemfontein , Budd had won both the 1500m and 3000m at the SA Senior Championships .
Zola Budd
11 October 1998
South Africa ’ s Elana Meyer and Colleen de Reuck squared up in the Chicago Marathon in the USA on two occasions . This was the first , and it produced their best results . They started off fast , leading the race from the outset and going through 10 miles in 54:04 – sub-2:22 pace . Halfway was passed in 1:10:59 , and then De Reuck moved ahead , only to be caught by Kenya ’ s Joyce Chepchumba by 22 miles . The Kenyan then raced away , and while Meyer cut into De Reuck ’ s lead , she failed to catch her by 16 seconds . Chepchumba scored a huge PB of 2:23:57 ,
with De Reuck second in 2:27:04 and Meyer third in 2:27:20 . The next year , Meyer turned the tables on De Reuck when they finished third and fourth in nearly identical times , 2:27:17 to 2:27:30 . Meyer was also fourth in Chicago in 2000 .
Elana Meyer ( left ) and Colleen De Reuck ( right )
12 October 2019
This was the day that Eliud Kipchoge became the first human to break two hours for the standard marathon , clocking 1:59:40.2 in the Ineos 159 Challenge in Vienna . The purists may consider it merely a branding stunt , as The New York Times described it , because Kipchoge had a team of 41 pacers , all world-class runners and Olympic champions and medallists , who worked in teams ( with slick change-overs , it must be said ), but he still covered 42.195 km on his own feet ( clad in the latest plated technology from Nike ). And he did so with metronomic accuracy , never deviating by more than two seconds from his designated pace on the superfast 4.4km lap course .
About the Author
These stats and results are drawn from the weekly Distance Running Results mailer compiled by internationally acclaimed athletics statistician Riël Hauman , who has more than 50 years ’
Eliud Kipchoge
experience as a journalist , author , publisher , commentator , pundit , administrator , event organiser , coach , team manager and runner in South African athletics , road running and cross country . He is also a former editor of the South African Athletics Annual , and author of two books , Hardloop en Lééf and Century of the Marathon 1896-1996 . To subscribe to his weekly newsletter , send him
Images : Gavin Ryan & courtesy Athletics History , Zola Budd-Pieterse Collection , INEOS 159 Challenge , Racing Past