Comrades 'salutes' Wally

When legendary road runner Wally Hayward died in April this year at the age of 97, he left behind a string of Comrades Marathon records.

In an athletics career that spanned an incredible 60 years, Hayward won his first Comrades at the age of 21 in 1930.

On his return to the race in 1950, he was discounted as a serious contender because of his age - 41 - but proved his critics wrong when he won again.

Hayward was to complete the event seven times, winning it an incredible five times.

Perhaps his most dramatic moment came in 1989 when, at the age of 80, he completed the Comrades "down run". He is the oldest person ever to finish the great race.

Because of his tremendous spirit, Hayward inspired hundreds of people to run Comrades - and now the race is saying thank you.

As a mark of respect to Hayward, the Comrades Marathon Association (CMA) will, from the 2007 event, award the Wally Hayward medal to elite runners who miss out on gold medals by failing to place in the Top 10, but still manage to complete the gruelling distance in under six hours.

The Hayward medal will be pure gold on the one side and silver on the other.

"In creating this medal, the CMA salutes a man who epitomised the spirit of Comrades," said CMA chairman Dave Dixon.

The 2007 Comrades - dubbed the Ultimate Human Race - will be run over 89km from Pietermaritzburg to Durban on Sunday, June 17, with the theme: "It will define you."

Said CMA general manager Gary Boshoff: "Running Comrades, an iconic South African event, is one way of discovering what one is capable of and our new theme is what Comrades seeks to inspire in ordinary people."

Entries for next year's event will open in early January, with May 7 the closing date. The entry fee has been increased from R150 to R160, although prizemoney is unchanged.

For the first time, people can enter at any of over 300 Mr Price stores nationwide.

According to race director Renee Smith, a field of 15 000-plus is anticipated.