YOUR FEBRUARY COMRADES QUALIFERS
There are 22 confirmed qualifier marathons in February (20 marathons and 2 ultras). With so many great options all around the country you really are spoilt for choice.
My pick for an excellent marathon combined with an away weekend would be Assegaai in Piet Retief near the eSwatini border (and you get to enjoy the Charka table, perhaps the best in the country, twice on the out-and-back route).
The most unique race is John Nugent in Upington (for several years this has been the only marathon in the ‘Northern Cape – West’ athletics province) where you can enjoy running along the lush Orange River and on the outskirts of the arid Kalahari Desert. Northern Cape marathons are a scarce commodity but the Meerkat Marathon provides an excellent on foot tour of some of Kimberley’s historic sites like the Big Hole, Rhodes Memorial (with canons and other artefacts from the Anglo Boer War), the Northern Cape houses of parliament and the Star of the West (the oldest pub in South Africa).
The oldest standard marathon in the country, Peninsula (now part of the Balwin series), returns for a 57th edition. This is a scenic point-to-point route from Green Point to the naval base in Simon's Town with plenty of coastline running along the second half. This is an excellent option for upcountry runners who want to make a weekend of it and get the benefit of the thick sea-level air over a pancake flat route – it’s all fun and games unless the South Easter wind blows! However, it appears that schooling, property and marathon entries are all in short supply in Cape Town – the event sold out very quickly last year.
Balwin have really stepped up to support road running in South Africa and the good news is that you do have two other options to take part in the Balwin Sport marathon series with the 51st edition of the Pretoria and 44th edition of the Jeppe Marathon. With a total climbing elevation of 653m, the Pretoria is the hilliest February qualifier but going up and down Klapperkop a couple of times is great preparation for Comrades’ fearsome hills (and the panoramic views of the nation’s capital from the top are worth the effort). Jeppe, the oldest marathon in CGA, will be taking late entries this year and your entry fee includes all the bells and whistles including free race day photos.
The Aquelle Joburg North City Marathon also provides good value and is the cheapest marathon in Gauteng whilst Sasol Secunda, Aurum Klerksdorp, Legends Township and Cape Gate Vaal are other flat double-lap options easily accessible to those in Gauteng. Vaal, together with Pretoria the oldest marathon in Gauteng, will be celebrating their 50th anniversary this year and have the flattest of all your February options with just 159m of elevation over the two laps.
KZN is spoilt for choice with Rolando Hillcrest, Richards Bay Minerals (a new race), Zabalaza and Capital City. For those who want to get an early taste of the Comrades Down Run start line, Capital City starts in front of the iconic Pietermaritzburg City Hall but the rest of the route explores new territory around KZN’s capital. Those who want another Comrades teaser should check out the Hillcrest Marathon which provides two-laps of terror (in beautiful surroundings) for those wanting to get acquainted with the hills on this section of the Comrades route.
The Free State has the Kloppers Marathon in Bloem and the triple-lap Anco 48km ultra in Welkom. This latter is three laps around Circle City which is ideal mental preparation for Harrison Flats.
There are some other good quality upcountry runs. Another good weekend away option is the City of Mbombela Marathon which runs from Barberton to Mbombela and has plenty of testing climbs to provide ideal training for Comrades’ hills. Limpopo’s largest city sees the CDM Polokwane and Mapungubwe Marathons on offer.
If you missed out on a Balwin Peninsula entry but still want to run along the coast, then it’s best to head for the Eastern Cape. SA Home Loans Buffs is a downhill marathon and the easiest qualifier of the month. Gqeberha provides your second February ultra option with the NMB 50km Ultra that has evolved from the Runified event. This year the route has been changed to the old Bay Ultra course which provides many kilometres of exquisite coastal running.
Stuart Mann is the proud holder of Comrades Green Number 50252. He writes and blogs as ‘The Running Mann’. You can follow him on social media @runningmann100 and read about his marathon running adventures at www.runningmann.com
Full details of all February qualifiers can be found here
A complete list of all 2025 Comrades qualifier marathons and ultras can be found here
