Nontobeko Dlamini is in Comrades heaven.
Not only did she complete her first-ever Comrades Marathon but was also the only RandMark representative. On top of that, Nontobeko finished at an astonishing time of 11:30:00.
“I feel super proud and extremely happy that I finished the Comrades Marathon,” she said.
She explained she seriously started focusing on her training in July 2023 only but looking back, her running journey started at the tender age of 15. She grew up in a running home with her dad who took her to races with him. They then used to run 5km to 15km races together. Then in university, she took a break but her desire to run the Comrades ignited in 2015 and she started by registering to participate in a 21km event. Unfortunately, her dream ended when she moved to Uganda.
In January 2023, she started focusing on running again explaining that she started slowly by completing just 1km a day.
“That was hard. I was also inconsistent as I have been a couch potato for so long. After supporting friends at the Washie 100 Miler in July 2023, I came back and decided to fully commit to my training.
“I would most definitely encourage others to also give it a try. I think everyone needs to experience the Comrades Marathon at least once in their life. It truly is The Ultimate Human Race for good reason. The support from strangers along the route is just amazing; people cheering for you to keep going. It’s such an amazing experience. You have to run it to understand it. There is no way you can finish this race and still be the same person.
“This journey has been truly amazing! This race was for my late son, Oagile, as well as my second-born, Amohelang, who is four years old. I can’t wait to go back next year and have a go at the down run.”
