Bruce Fordyce
Nine-time Champion
The most dominant figure in Comrades history, with nine victories and an enduring course record that stood for decades. His tactical mastery of the down run redefined how the race is run.
Established 1921 · Kwa-Zulu Natal
The Comrades Marathon
The world's oldest and largest ultramarathon — 90 kilometres of road between Durban and Pietermaritzburg, run every year as a tribute to camaraderie, courage and the unbreakable human spirit.
90 km
Of Open Road
12 hrs
The Final Cut-off
1921
The First Race
01Origins
A tribute carried across ninety kilometres
Vic Clapham returned from the battlefields of the First World War having marched alongside his comrades across the deserts of East Africa. Haunted by the friends who never came home, he dreamed of a living memorial to their endurance and brotherhood.
In 1921, against considerable resistance, he staged the first Comrades Marathon between Durban and Pietermaritzburg. Thirty-four runners set out; a handful finished. From that humble act of remembrance grew the ultramarathon the world now knows.
“A celebration of the camaraderie and friendship that survived the war — open to any man brave enough to attempt it.”
1921
Inaugural Race
34
First Starters
02The Course
Ninety kilometres of unrelenting road
The direction reverses each year — the gruelling ‘up run’ from Durban to Pietermaritzburg, and the punishing ‘down run’ back to the coast. Between the two cities stand the Big Five hills, the giants that define every runner's race. Tap each to climb it.
Durban — Sea LevelPietermaritzburg — 700m
Polly Shortts
Approx. 81 kmThe cruellest of them all. Arriving with barely 9 km left, 'Polly's' steep ramp has broken sub-time dreams for a century. Crest it, and Pietermaritzburg is yours.
03The Legends
The names written into the road
In 1975 the race was formally opened to runners of all races and to women, and Comrades became a true mirror of the nation. These are some of the figures whose courage shaped its century.
Gerda Steyn
Record-breaking Queen of the Road
A modern icon whose blistering times have rewritten the women's record books on both the up and down runs, inspiring a new generation to chase the ultimate distance.
Wally Hayward
Five-time Winner
A Comrades immortal who won across four decades, returning at the age of 79 to complete the race once more — the embodiment of lifelong endurance.
The Pioneers of 1975
Opening the Road to All
The year the race was formally opened to runners of all races and to women, transforming Comrades into a true reflection of the nation that runs it.
04The Traditions
The rituals that make it sacred
More than a footrace, Comrades is a ceremony of sound, emotion and unbreakable custom — each one a thread woven through a hundred years of dawns on the road.
The Max Trimborn Cock Crow
Moments before the dawn start, the recorded crow of a cockerel rings out over the field — a tradition begun by runner Max Trimborn in 1948. As the haunting call fades, thousands surge forward into the dark.
Chariots of Fire & The National Anthem
The pre-dawn ceremony swells with 'Chariots of Fire' and the anthem, a goosebump-raising ritual that binds the bunched starting pens into a single, breathing body of runners.
The Green Number
Complete ten Comrades Marathons and your race number is retired and reissued in permanent green — a Green Number, worn for life. It is the sport's most enduring badge of devotion.
The Final Gun
At exactly twelve hours, an official turns his back to the field and fires the gun. The barrier closes without mercy — a single stride can decide a medal, and the line between triumph and heartbreak.
05The Medal Gallery
Every medal tells of a finish line earned
There are no random rewards at Comrades — only time. From the sub-six-hour Gold reserved for the very fastest, to the Vic Clapham earned in the final desperate half hour, each medal marks an exact window against the clock. Select one to explore.
Finishing Window
Gold Medal
Sub 06:00
Reserved for the first ten men and first ten women to cross the line. The rarest reward in the sport — a place among an elite handful each year.
06Connect
Join the conversation around the race
Whether you are chasing your first medal, researching the history, or seeking to share a story from the road, leave your details and become part of the Comrades community.