FILE. Johannes Mosehla, at 84, broke his own record as the oldest Comrades Marathon finisher, completing the 2026 race in 11:12:27, inspiring runners worldwide with his remarkable journey. Picture: Sibonelo Ngcobo
Image: Sibonelo Ngcobo
While the headlines were justifiably dominated by George Kusche and Gerda Steyn at the Comrades Marathon on Sunday, one runner slowly shuffled across the finish line without much fanfare in a new record.
That, of course, was Johannes Mosehla, who broke his own record as the oldest ever finisher in race history at 84 years old. The inspiring runner crossed the line in 11 hours 12 minutes and 27 seconds (11:12:27), almost 50 minutes before the cutoff.
Mosehla did not run the race in 2024, after becoming the oldest ever finisher at Comrades in 2023 at the age of 81. However, he was back in 2025 as he crossed the line in 11:47:27 to set the new oldest finisher record at 83. It also means his time this year was 35 minutes better, which is quite incredible simply because of his age.
Mosehla’s effort in 2023 already made him the oldest-ever runner to finish Comrades, beating out the record held by the legendary Wally Hayward, who finished the race at the age of 80 in 1989. Hayward was a five-time winner of Comrades during his heyday.
Mosehla’s first Comrades came back in 2005 as a relative spring chicken at the age of 63. That year he was unable to finish the race, but since then he has completed a staggering 10 Comrades.
As Mosehla revealed in 2023, he had wanted to take part in Comrades as a young man, but apartheid laws prohibited black runners from competing at the time.
"I started running Comrades very late. When I first wanted to take part, black runners were not allowed in the early 1980s. I later joined Polokwane Athletics Club and decided to enter. Unfortunately, because of an injury, I could not run for a few years. I enjoy running the Comrades.
"I prefer the down run because I am light in weight. Most people prefer the up run because the down run is tough on the legs. I find Polly Shorts the toughest part of the route.”