Sammfish triumphs in grueling Washie 161.5km ultra-marathon

Runner and engineer Sammyfish Sikhonde from the Springs Platinum Refinery Athletic Club (Sprac) is overjoyed after completing the Washie 161.5km Ultra Marathon held from Cathrust to East London from July 19 to 21.

Sammyfish finished in a time of 25:21:32, securing the 56th position out of 81 runners. He was awarded a handmade trophy medal and the Washie 100 miler jacket.

He expressed that the Washie ultra marathon was tough, where one spends time training alone in the streets or gym.

“As the name suggests, the marathon washes your mind, soul, and body,” remarked Sammyfish.

“Throughout the entire 25 hours, your body goes through a rollercoaster of moods, experiencing happiness, sadness, anger, dehydration, hunger, no appetite, tears, feeling cold and hot, and pains all over the body.

“To top it all off, there is only one town in the entire 161km (Stutterheim), while the rest is farms, forests, and birds. With each step nearing East London, you appreciate nature.”

He added that dealing with temperatures ranging from -2°C to 20°C makes it harder for runners as temperatures drop and rise every kilometre or step.

“You dig deeper to prevent hypothermia or overheating where you can’t breathe.”

Sammyfish dedicated his victory to his wife Sandy of 18 years, who supported him from start to finish without sleep.

“She acted as a coach, nutritionist, psychologist, motivator, and wife during this journey through night and day,” said Sammyfish.

“She topped it all by pushing and running with me over the last 10km.”

Sammyfish also thanked his running partners Sibusiso Mnisi and Mbongeni Khoza, who greatly encouraged him through emotional video and voice calls.

“They ran with me remotely in the last 30km.”

He added that his family in Springs and Siphofaneni in Swaziland cheered him on remotely to bring it home and finish within 26 hours.

“Lastly, I would like to thank my running club, SPRAC, for all the assistance provided, and Just Gym at Springs Mall for the facilities and classes offered for fitness to tackle such crazy ultra-marathons.”

Sammyfish said that after the gruelling experience, he will take some rest before resuming training as both cycling and running are coming up in October.

His next mission in the coming years is to complete a full Ironman, another Washie, and the Badwater 235km Ultra in the USA.

“I believe anything is possible as long as you put in the work, are determined, disciplined, and have the guts to fight for it.”