A Comrade has fallen

Sam Tshabalala has died and a flame has been extinguished in the portals of the Comrades Marathon, somewhere along the road between Pietermaritzburg and Durban.

Tshabalala became known as the first Black athlete to win the Comrades Marathon, but he was much more than that and his humble but strong and courageous approach to his sport inspired thousands of others to take up distance running in a bid to emulate their hero Sam. 

His win in 1989, 14 years after the great ultra-marathon was formally opened to women and black runners, Tshabalala took the tape to win a great race, preventing the great Bkekizizwe Willie Mtolo from taking that honour, relegated to second place on the day.

Having set a fantastic time of 6:10:40 in his very first Comrades in 1987, Tshabalalal improved to clock 5:54:34 the following year in the Up Run. In only his third Comrades run, and his first Down Run, Tshabalala went on to make history, with his convincing win of 5:35:51 four minutes ahead of Mtolo.

This historic victory would go on to inspire Black runners for decades to come. Many future winners have attributed their passion for running to Tshabalala, especially when faced with the adversity of a horrific car accident in 1991 that left him in months of recovery, and extensive injuries. Undaunted, Tshabalala returned to run a sub 6h30 in 1992. Throughout his Comrades career, Sam managed to attain 13 finishes, with one Gold and a staggering 12 Silver medals.

The extraordinary career of the best ultra-marathoner in the world in the 1980s, Bruce Fordyce, undoubtedly delayed the moment where a Black athlete would take Comrades glory. Almost certainly, the great Hoseah Tjale would have done so, having made it onto the podium on four occasions, the first after a race-long battle with Fordyce in 1985, where he finished second, five minutes behind the nine-times champion.

Before that, many expected Gabashane Vincent Rakabaele to earn the honour.  The swift Lesotho-born marathoner had won the country’s second-biggest ultra – the Two Oceans Marathon – after outsprinting Comrades champion, Allan Robb at the finish of the 1976 race, but Comrades is Comrades, as they say and Rakabaele never conquered the longer distance. He placed 8^th in 1976 and an excellent 4^th a year later but that proved his highest placing.

A 31-year-old bricklayer from Ixopo, Chrisostomus Mkize, made a bold attempt to win, leading the 1981 race for long periods – the year of the black armband protest where many protested the decision to include the Comrades into the Republic Day festivities. But it was Fordyce, sporting such an armband, who won his first of the nine wins on that day and took the tape, with Mkize placing fourth.

Fordyce himself acknowledged Tshabalala’s contribution to distance running on social media. “ The great Sam Tshabalala has died. I will miss you Sam. You were a worthy @ComradesRace champion and you were a good friend. Your win changed the race, for the better, for ever.

For his milestone achievement and massive contribution to the sport of ultra-distance running, the Comrades Marathon Association awarded Sam with the prestigious Platinum Medal Award in 1998. With the introduction of the official Comrades Winners Jacket in 2016, the CMA presented Mr Tshabalala with a retrospective jacket in 2019 for his 1989 performance.

Both on and off the field, he was known and admired for his humility, kindness and giving nature. He motivated an entire generation of Comrades runners and spectators; and imparted the desire to dream, to win and achieve amongst many of today’s Comrades Champions.

CMA Chairperson, Mqondisi Ngcobo, paid tribute to Tshabalala. “It was with a great sense of sadness that the Comrades Marathon Association extended its condolences to the family and friends of Samuel Tshabalala. He passed away yesterday at the age of 65.

“We live in gratitude to a Comrades Winner, Hero and Legend,” Ngcobo continued. “What Mr Tshabalala did for ultra-running and our generation of athletes is part and parcel of our road-running history and great South African heritage. He showed us how to be courageous, great and at the same time humble and real.”

“Sam was a trailblazer and pioneer. He was someone who lived out the noble attributes of The Ultimate Human Race by his determined nature, will to succeed and continuously giving of his best. He will be sadly missed by the Comrades community and everyone who knew him.”

1989 Comrades Runner-Up Willie Mtolo said, “Sam was at Comrades in 2019 and it was really good to catch up with him after many years. He was a very good person. We ran a great race in 1989 and remained very good friends since then. We had a lot to talk about every time that we met. I know that he was involved in assisting youngsters in his village with their running. That was Sam for you – helpful, encouraging, motivating and a true inspiration. I will always remember him.”

“Sad news,” said 1991 Comrades Winner, Nick Bester. “I will never forget Sam during the 1989 Comrades Marathon when he passed me with his running cap and he was wearing the cap with the flap at the back covering his neck and he went on to win the race as the first ever black athlete to do so. Willie Mtolo was in 2^nd place, Jean Marc Belloq in 3^rd and I in 4^th position. Sam also ran the Comrades Marathon again many years later after he survived a terrible motor accident. A true Comrades Marathon Champion, he was always down to earth and humble.”