Pune’s Yogesh Sanap, 39, becoming the fastest-ever Indian finisher at the prestigious Comrades Marathon in South Africa, clocking a remarkable sub-seven-hour finish in the 85.77-km race on Sunday. A three-time Boston Marathon qualifier, Sanap clocked 6:59.57 hours in what is widely regarded as the world’s oldest and most iconic ultramarathon. He eclipsed Devarao Chaudhari’s record for fastest-ever Indian in the event, set last year.
This year’s race — the 99th edition of the Comrades Marathon — was an “Up Run” from Durban to Pietermaritzburg, including five major climbs. Breaking the Indian record has still to sink in for Sanap, who ran the marathon at a brilliant pace of 4.54 minutes/km. “All this seems like a dream,” Sanap told The Indian Express from South Africa.
Adding to India’s impressive showing were Sanap’s fellow Pune runners Saarth Sable and Dr Yogesh Satav, who completed the gruelling race in 7:15.08 hours and 7:24.46 hours respectively. According to the International Association of Ultrarunners, as many as 21,633 runners took part in the Comrades Marathon, with George Kusche winning among the men in a new “Up Run” record of 5:15:56 hours and Gerda Steyn’s finishing first among women in 5:49.46 hours. The official cut-off time for the Comrades marathon is 12 hours.
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