Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 54, January 2014 | Page 34

Race Report

Forty Times TOUGH!
The year 2013 may have been coming to a close, but the
northern suburbs of Jo’burg still had a challenge in store
for around 5500 runners in the 40th running of the everpopular Tough One, a race with an impressive history and
some equally impressive climbs! – BY DONALD MATHIPA &

T

he Tough One was first run as a
20-Miler in 1975 with 280 entrants; today
it boasts a field of over 5500 runners and is
one of the biggest events on the Gauteng
running calendar. This past November saw
the 40th running of this classic, and while it
gave many runners a last ‘long one’ for the
year and a useful stepping stone to a good
marathon early in the new year as they
build up to the Two Oceans and Comrades
ultras, it also offered the elites a chance of
taking home some of the extensive prize
purse on offer as well as putting their
names into the mix for the Central Gauteng
team for next year’s SA Marathon Champs.
RECORDS & ‘UNKNOWNS’
In the early kays of this year’s race, a small
bunch formed at the front, but by halfway
the leading group was down to three
frontrunners. Inevitably, the infamous
Tough One hills took their toll, allowing
Abram Khumalo from the University of
Johannesburg club to pull 100m clear with
2km to go. He maintained that gap to win
in 1:45:54, a minute ahead of Frik Guys
from Nedbank (1:46:50), while Toyota’ s
Mailela Africa grabbed third spot a further
34
10 seconds adrift.

LAUREN VAN DER VYVER

The Tough One has traditionally been
an event that showcases up-andcoming runners before they hit their
peak, and several of the race’s winners
through the years were relatively
‘unknowns’ at the time, like Geoff
Tribe and Brian Chamberlain, who both
went on to win SA Marathon titles.
The race’s most famous winner back
in 1992 was the then fairly unknown
Josiah Thugwane, who cruised to
victory in 1:46:10. Four years later, he
shot to world fame when he won gold
in the marathon at the 1996 Olympic
Games in Atlanta. The Tough One
course record is held by SA Marathon
record-holder Gert Thys, who clocked
1:43:05 in 1991.
In 1988, an in-form Frith van der
Merwe set the current women’s course
record of 2:00:19, breaking Sonja
Laxton’s previous record of 2:05:04,
set just a year earlier in 1987. It was
therefore fitting that Sonja’s daughter,
Sunninghill Striders’ Kim Laxton,
was first woman home in this year’s
race, clocking 2:08:56. Kim ran with

Sonja’s permanent race number 1 as
a tribute to her mother, who had been
badly injured when she was knocked
down by a car the Sunday before the
race. Nolene Conrad from Nedbank
also capped a great 2013 with her
second place in 2:10:32, while Yolande
Maclean wasn’t far behind in 2:10:35.

Images: Jetline Action Photo

RAC – City Lodge
Tough One 32km,
24 November 2013
Presented by Rand
Athletics Club