Pfarelo Mathada wins ultra marathon

The annual Irene Ultra Marathon (48 km) was won by Pfarelo Mathada (28) of Maniini, a member of the Faranani Athletic Club. He finished the marathon in 2:51:05 on Sunday in Pretoria.

Mathada started running when he was still a grade 8 pupil at Thivhilaeli Secondary. At that stage he was interested in many sports, including volleyball. A teacher, Mr Farisani, recognised his talent and encouraged him to turn his focus to athletics when he was 14 years old.

“As a young man I dreamed about being a good runner and I was encouraged by sportsmen like Bethuel Netshifhefhe,” he said. He paid tribute to his family for assisting him in realising his dreams. “My grandmother was always behind me, guiding me,” he says.

Dedication and humility are the true hallmarks of a successful athlete, he said. “Some people will say that athletes who come from Limpopo suffer a lot and that’s why they do so well, but I don’t think of it like that. I think success comes from what you want in life. The most important thing is to be very disciplined and be very humble and listen to your parents and your coach.”

“The competition was tough, but I was well prepared. What I like about this competition is that, once you complete your race, you feel like you are on top of the world.”

Mathada said that he has decided to return to Thohoyandou for his preparations. He promised his fans that he is going to perform well during the JJ Zuma Marathon that will take place in Durban later this month.

“I bailed out during last year’s JJ Zuma because of a calf muscle, but now I’m in great shape,” he said.

“Running my first Comrades was an incredible experience last year. I did not know what to expect,  but finishing well inside the top 100 bracket was a dream come true.,” he said. He hopes to finish in the top ten in the Comrades this year. “I just hope I will be in the right frame of mind on the day of the race,” he said.

Date:12 April 2018

By: Kaizer Nengovhela

Kaizer Nengovhela started writing stories for Limpopo Mirror in 2000. Prior to that he had a five year stint at Phala-Phala FM as sports presenter. In 2005 Kaizer received an award from the province's premier as Best Sports Presenter. The same year he was also nominated as Best Sports Reporter by the Makhado Municipality. Kaizer was awarded the Mathatha Tsedu award in 2014.

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