SAYS sport man says by MANFRED SEIDLER
SPORT MAN
SAYS sport man says by MANFRED SEIDLER
A Job Done Well
The organising team behind the 2024 Comrades Marathon may not have put on a perfect event , but they deserve praise for a really good effort that included innovative and exciting initiatives .
One of the most thankless jobs in the running industry has to be that of race director . No matter how well your races runs , and no matter how many new initiatives you bring in that actually work , you are guaranteed to take flack for the things you did not get right . And there will always be something that goes wrong on the day . Unfortunately , runners can be a demanding lot , sometimes even incredibly entitled …
For example , I saw a post on Facebook a few days after the recent Comrades Marathon , complaining that there were no showers for the runners at the finish . It doesn ’ t matter that stand-in Comrades Race Manager Ann Ashworth introduced various great new features to the race this year , such as more toilets along the route for the runners , including dedicated women ’ s toilets stocked with sanitary pads , to name just a few … No , some runners were still not happy , and that is invariably the case at most races .
Images : Marathon Photos
The truth is , the 2024 Comrades Marathon was one of the best organised editions of the race in many years . Sure , many will say that is because there was ‘ new blood ’ in the race organising team , and they would be partly correct , but it is also attributable to a CMA Board that had come under so much fire in recent years , that they realised they needed to do things differently . So , when Ann came in with new ideas , they were a lot more amenable to introducing change – but crucially , they still needed to buy into the new ideas she came up with .
The Good and the Bad
As I said earlier , there is always something that doesn ’ t quite go according to plan during a race , and at Comrades 2024 , the traffic was a huge problem . I think the Comrades Marathon Association and its Race Organising Committee got it horribly wrong here . The buses returning to Durban were delayed , and the highway was a glorified parking lot . It took some people a seven-hour round trip to get from Durban to pick up their runners in Pietermaritzburg and then back to Durban . That is simply not acceptable , and this traffic congestion and the busses running so late were , in my opinion , the big blights on an otherwise extremely good 2024 Comrades .
Unfortunately , that will detract from the many good things that were introduced , and done well . I ’ ve already mentioned the extra toilets on route . In fact , a quarter of those toilets were women-only , and sanitary products were available at all eight physiotherapy stations as well . There were other things that were changed or introduced , which worked well and made a positive difference . One example was the 320-metre finish straight , which was a lot more physically forgiving than at the last Up Run finish in 2019 , but even better , it was lined by enthusiastic spectators and the expanded club tent areas . The design of the 2019 finish did not allow for club tents to be so close to the finish , but having those tents in the finish straight is part of what makes Comrades what it is !
The prize money was increased dramatically for the elites , with Cell C coming on board and adding R275,000 to the winners ’ cheques , and the partnership with Cell C also saw the reintroduction of Hotspots along the way ( with strict finishing criteria ), which added greatly to the excitement of the race . But what really made a
The 2024 Comrades introduced several innovative initiatives
big difference in the elite race was the introduction of elite water tables , in addition to the normal refreshment stations for all runners . This was a real game-changer , which levelled the proverbial playing field dramatically .
You see , there is a stand-and-hand rule specifically used at Comrades that says any club or individual can stand anywhere on the route and second runners . In the past , this meant that the bigger elite clubs or teams , which have more resources and manpower , could position or move seconding staff along the route , meaning they could look after their runners better than the smaller clubs and teams , thus giving their runners an advantage . This year , there were eight dedicated elite tables , roughly 10km apart , where athletes that did not have the back-up that the bigger clubs enjoy , were now ensured of their own support system . And it worked well , from what I have heard from most elites !
Deserving of Praise
So , all in all , the 2024 Comrades with its new initiatives has shown other races in SA what can be done . Yes , you will always find a few disgruntled runners , like the ‘ shower man ,’ but one cannot say that this Comrades was not a game-changer .
About the Author
Manfred Seidler is a freelance sport journalist who has been in the industry since 1994 , in both print media and broadcasting , covering four Olympic Games for SABC Radio , and producing various athletics shows for the SABC . Follow him on X : @ sportmansa ; Facebook : Sport Man SA ; Instagram : sportman _ sa .
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