As the world's largest and oldest ultra-marathon race, South Africa's Comrades Marathon can be regarded as a true celebration of and homage to human strength and spirit. What other event so inspires ordinary people to become athletes for a day and compete against themselves to conquer themselves and a brutal course?
Although several books and articles have been written on this extraordinary event over the ninety years of its existence, it has only been in the past twenty-five years that the Comrades Marathon has truly entered the collective consciousness of all South Africans - and that the event has fully come to embody the history and transformation of the country.
This book - the result of an exclusive mandate given to the author by the Comrades Marathon Association - chronicles the official history of the race, from its inception to the present day. It includes a comprehensive description of the race course and showcases some of the greatest legends in Comrades history (such as Wally Hayward, Allan Robb and Bruce Fordyce) - and promises an inspirational, interesting and insightful read to runners and their supporters alike.
