Gatebe shatters Comrades record

[caption id="attachment_149406" align="aligncenter" width="500"] David Gatebe winning the Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon 2013. Pic: ESA ALEXANDER. 30/03/2013. © SUNDAY TIMES[/caption]

South African runner David Gatebe has won the 2016 Comrade’s marathon in a down run record time of 05:18:12‚ while fellow South African Charne Bosman won the women’s race in 06:25:55.

Gatebe‚ from North West province‚ broke the previous record of 5:20:39  set by Russian Leonid Shvetsov in 2007 by almost 2 minutes to claim the R400‚000 prize money plus an additional R100‚000 bonus for being a South African winner.

The bonus is courtesy of the Department of Sport and Recreation.

Ludwick Mamabolo took second place in the men’s event in a time of 5:24:05 - the fourth fastest time in the history of the 'down' run from Pietermaritzburg to Durban – with fellow South African Bongmusa Mthembu claiming the third spot in 5:26.39.

It was a hard fight in the women’s race between Bosman and Caroline Wostmann who finished second in a time of 6:25:55‚

Wostmann led most of the way but appeared to be cramping badly and was forced to walk at certain intervals of the race. At one stage she almost fell. There was also some uncertainty as to whether she was bumped by a motorcycle at one point of the event.

Swede Kajisa Berg finished third in the women’s race in 6:39:04.