Vhembe's own long-distance champion, Lutendo Mapoto from Muwaweni, received a hearty welcome on his return from the Comrades ultra-marathon. Mapoto won a gold medal after he ended in the 10th position on Sunday (28th).
This year's race was a "down run" of approximately 90 km that started at the City Hall in Pietermaritzburg and finished at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban. Almost 16 000 athletes entered for the gruelling race, which included roughly 2 000 competitors from other countries. Out of these, 11 700 runners completed the race in less than the 12-hour cut-off time.
The men's race was won by South African athlete Tete Dijana, who finished in 05:30:37. Lutendo Mapoto was not far behind, finishing in 05:47:20. He was only 15 seconds behind Charles Tjiane, who ended in ninth place.
At the first split, at Lynnfield Park, Mapoto was in third position in a time of just below one hour. He then fell back to 34th position when the runners passed Cato Ridge. Mapoto slowly made his way to the front again and when he passed Winston Park, he was in fourth position with a time of 03:33:04. From there the going was tough and when the runners reached the last split at Sherwood, Mapoto was in 29th position. He finished the final stretch to the finish line in just over 40 minutes to clinch a coveted gold medal.
The 34-year-old Mapoto ran his first Comrades Marathon in 2017, ending in the 19th position in 6:00:02.
Mapoto was very humble about his achievement, saying that a lot of hard work and experience in other marathons over a long period of time were needed to win. He said that this year's race, being a down run, had been especially gruelling. "I would have done better, but our late arrival at Pietermaritzburg, due to logistical problems, counted to our disadvantage. All in all I had a good race, having attained 10th position. I was the first from Limpopo to finish the race. I'm happy, very excited. It still feels like I am dreaming. I can't believe this has happened to me," he said.
The well-known runner Bethuel Netshifhefhe of the Murray & Roberts Running Club said Mapoto deserved the honour, having represented Vhembe and the Limpopo Province so well. "As a club, we are very proud of and happy for him. We hope his achievement also inspires others to work hard, so we can produce more winners from this part of the country," he said.
For a talented full-time athlete such as Mapoto, who regularly participates in different races, things can become very challenging financially. He is still looking for a sponsor to help him cover his travelling expenses and running shoes. Those who would like to help can call him at 071 322 0704.