August 2024 - The Running Mann

31st August 202431st August 2024

Zinhle Sokhela still sauntering around Comrades House after ban

Despite being banned for life from being a Board member, Sokhela and her supporters on the Comrades Board appear to be using a loophole to keep her active in the affairs and operations of the Comrades Marathon Association (CMA).

On Thursday 29 August, the Heritage and Traditions Committee met, apparently to deliberate and determine this year’s Spirit of Comrades award winners. Sokhela was previously part of the committee and was in attendance. It is unclear how members of the committee are chosen as Sokhela has never run Comrades and has only been involved with Comrades for a fairly short time.

28th August 202429th August 2024

Interim CMA Board says “No” to Transparency at Bizarre Press Conference

Perceptions that those in Comrades House live in a parallel universe will only be exacerbated after a rather bizarre press conference held on Monday morning. Apparently, the intention was to reinstill confidence in a severely compromised CMA Board rocked by a number of dismissals and resignations. However, instead of ‘steadying the ship’ most viewers left concluding that the CMA is now far further up the creek without a paddle.

27th August 202431st August 2024

Highveld Marathon (An unreserved apology to Ermelo)

[MARATHON #265 / UNIQUE MARATHON #161 / 6 April 2024]

Unlike the Boards of major ultra marathons in South Africa, I will readily admit when I am wrong. My memories of running marathons in Ermelo were clouded by the coal smoke from this industrial town when I ran the Gert Sibande Marathon in 2016.

There is even beauty amongst the squalor if you know where to look for it.

25th August 202418th September 2024

The Running Mann’s Guide to September 2024 Marathons

This article provides detailed information on all South Africa’s September 2024 marathons and ultras including race descriptions and recommendations. You can find the full 2024 marathon / ultra calendar here.

[Note: I am currently unable to update the full calendar.]

A summary of your choices is below:

20th August 202420th August 2024

Comrades Capture: Season One Epilogue

This is a reflection on the series “Comrades Capture” articles and results from the Special General Meeting (SGM) held on 15 August 2024.

Unfortunately, I was not able to attend the meeting as I was facilitating an offsite for work in the Magaliesburg. However, I was able to attend vicariously through WhatsApp messages from various attendees. The extremely positive results received from the SGM did mean that I added one to two celebratory whiskies to my regular intake of beer that night (but, even so, I woke up on Friday with the clearest head I’ve had in several weeks).

One photo, four Comrades champions: Bruce Fordyce, Shaun Meiklejohn, Gift Kelehe and Cheryl Winn (photo from Facebook).

19th August 202419th August 2024

Festival of Running Marathon (Earning your Easter eggs)

[MARATHON #264 / UNIQUE MARATHON #160 / 29 March 2024]

After Two Oceans moved away from their traditional Easter timeslot, a vacuum appeared on the marathon running calendar. Fortunately, this year two races stepped in to ensure that the Easter weekend is not ‘all eggs and no legs’. You could either run the City to City (back after a long absence) in Gauteng on Easter Sunday or the inaugural Festival of Running (FoR) Marathon in Gqeberha (PE) on Good Friday (or if you are Julian Karp you could run both).

With Two Oceans moving away from their traditional timeslot, you could choose between the Festival of Running or City to City Marathon (or if you are Julian Karp you can run both).

I decided to turn Good Friday into a great Friday with a trip to the Eastern Cape. I was particularly interested in the FoR Marathon as it was billed as the first 100% plastic free marathon in South Africa and also had the novelty of an afternoon start (the only other non-morning marathon in South Africa is the Ottosdal Nite Marathon). This allowed for a same day marathon sandwich with an 8:00am flight out of Joburg and an 8:00pm flight back home.

I originally thought that I would be flying solo as Julian sent me a “Pity to miss this but the flights are too expensive” message. A few days later he sent me, “I am getting FOMO on the Friday marathon – please forward your flight details and I will see what I can do.” This communication saga was concluded shortly thereafter with, “I’ve booked my flights. You are a bad influence on me Mr. Mann”.

14th August 202414th August 2024

PRESS RELEASE: Urgent Application for Court Interdict against the CMA / KZNA to be heard in Pietermaritzburg at 2pm today

Attorney Mark Leathers, a Director at Mc Naught and Company, representing over 100 Comrades Marathon Association (CMA) members will be fighting for the rights and voice of the running community at 2pm today (Wednesday 14 August) against a severely compromised Comrades Board and the dubious decisions of KZN Athletics (KZNA).

The CMA Board originally said it did not have the finances to hold a Special General Meeting (SGM) after a racist WhatsApp from Board member Zinhle Sokhela surfaced and the subsequent eruption of Vanillagate. However, CMA members (as per the CMA constitution) called for a SGM and specially asked for no food or drinks to be provided to save costs. The SGM is scheduled for 6pm on Thursday 15 August but the Board decided to provide food and drinks anyway. The Board also appears to have the money to waste of frivolous court appearances.

12th August 202418th August 2024

Cools & the Gang – Greatest Hits (A Comrades Communication Breakdown)

It is no secret that relations between the former Comrades Race & Operations Manager (ROM), Ann Ashworth, and the Marketing & Communications Manager, Delaine Cools, were frosty at best and openly hostile at worst before, during and after the 2024 edition of the race.

The previous article in this series detailed the conjecture and supporting evidence that Cools had been promised the ROM (or General Manager) job and went out of her way to make Ashworth’s tenure difficult. In some circumstances, this appears to have escalated to outright sabotage.

11th August 202411th August 2024

Why Ashworth was Fired Part III: Succession Shenanigans

This is a part of a series of articles on how Comrades was captured and why Ann Ashworth was fired. Despite support from the Chair, Vice Chair and Tier 1 sponsors, Ashworth’s contract extension was rejected at a Board meeting in June and her contract was ‘terminated with immediate effect.’ Ashworth believes that there were three main reasons leading to the Board firing her, this is the third.

Whilst reasons 1 and 2 are indisputable chains of events and facts, reason 3 does involve some conjecture (albeit with plenty of substance).

The two points of conjecture are that:

Delaine Cools was promised the Race Manager position by the four “bussed-in and bought” (BIAB) Board members.
Zinhle Sokhela was earmarked by the gang of four BIABs to be elevated as the next Chair of Comrades.

10th August 202410th August 2024

Why Ashworth was Fired Part II: Cash and Carry On Regardless

It appears to be an open secret that Board votes are “bussed-in and bought” at the AGM. Prior to the November 2023 AGM, Ashworth was warned by a staff member that she was about to be “educated”.