31 Marathons in 31 Days

The excitement is mounting because this weekend in Cape Town, 29 000 runners from all over the world will be descending on the Mother City for the 54th Totalsports Two Oceans Ultra Marathon.

Running and finishing this iconic event is a major accomplishment, but it pales in significance when compared to what local runner, Matthew Trichardt achieved by running 31 marathons in 31 days in an effort to raise money for the homeless. Appropriately his mantra during his effort was “suffering for suffering”.

In case you are in any doubt that a marathon or an ultra involves a certain amount of suffering, just look at the scramble for substitutions for the highly-sought-after Two Oceans 21km entries. A quick glance at the official Two Ocean’s Substitution Facebook group, shows just how quick you have to be on the uptake to grab an entry, whereas getting a place in the 56 km is (relatively) easy.

The 56 km Ultra is the really iconic event and back in the 1990s (when I was a young, fit, slim and enthusiastic participant) there was not even an option of a 21 km. So why is the half marathon so popular? This is because marathons, and particularly ultras, are hard, and it takes a certain mindset, a large amount of discipline, incredible perseverance and yes, pain and suffering to train and finish one of these gruelling events.

This is why Trichardt's incredible feat is so astounding. What is even more amazing is that a day after his 31st marathon, on day 32, he ran a 100km ultra – so he effectively did a total of 1408 kms over 32 days. He did it all in support of The Secret Love Project, a non-profit organisation which is dedicated to helping the destitute and homeless uplift themselves.

When interviewed on SABC's Expresso morning show, Trichardt explained what it took to achieve his goal:

“The first few days were terrible, it took about 10 days for my body to adjust to the whole thing. I was injured on day 2 and had to push through the suffering, but the suffering I went through, you cannot compare to what the homeless go through on a daily, monthly and sometimes yearly basis … it was suffering for suffering basically.

"I didn’t even know how to train for something like this, so for the first 10 days my body had to adapt. It’s 100 percent a mindset because your body is inevitably going to start breaking down. My focus was just on keeping my mind on the goal of getting to the end.”

According to Trichardt, he was inspired by Briton Russ Cook, nicknamed The Hardest Geezer who ran the length of Africa in 352 days. Cook started from Cape Agulhas in South Africa and travelled approximately 16 400km, through 16 countries along the western coast of Africa to reach Bizerte, Tunisia. During his run he was robbed, kidnapped and suffered numerous bouts of food poisoning, flu and several running injuries. He took on this astounding challenge to raise money for the Running Charity, who offer running and mental health programmes to people who are struggling, and the charity Sandblast, who support the indigenous. Cook took on the challenge because he had suffered with mental health issues, a gambling addiction and alcoholism.

As remarkable as the achievements of Trichard and Cook are, don’t forget to spare a thought for the Two Oceans Marathon runners this weekend.

The challenge they have set themselves might not be quite as awe-inspiring or noble as those of Trichardt and Cook. but believe me it takes a really determined mindset to complete this tough event. If you are in Cape Town, go out and cheer them on if you can. Your support on the side of the road will make a massive difference.

FinishTime provides the latest in cutting-edge sports timing technology. They use low frequency transponders with RFID timing systems and disposable UHF timing chips with ultra-high-frequency timing systems to provide over 300,000 competitors a year with fast and accurate results.

Using the very best and latest high-tech race timing software, FinishTime currently provides timing and I.T. services for three of South Africa’s biggest and most prestigious events, the Comrades Marathon, the Cape Town Cycle Tour and the Total Sports Two Oceans Marathon, as well as a host of smaller events all over Southern Africa, including Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Namibia and even as far afield as Mauritius.

FinishTime and Australian partners RaceTec also recently developed a revolutionary and affordable admin and timing system for event organisers, which can run off smartphones and mobile devices. RaceTec Toolkit provides clubs and event administrators with an affordable and easy-to-use system that manages smaller events.

It is designed to work seamlessly with the FinishTime Passport, the free competitor-orientated app created to make registration safe, secure and efficient. Together, the two apps provide a beginning-to-end system that covers race registration and late entries, timekeeping and results. 

Their hardware and software enables them to provide live timing and results on demand to organisers and competitors, as well as a variety of optional extras, such as: a fast, safe, simple and secure registration; commentary displays; live screens; live tracking; presentation results on demand; results to web; SMS and Whatsapp messaging; online certificates; race bibs and stickers.

Added to this is their online registration, social media, videography, press releases, photography and website development services, all of which makes them a one-stop shop for event organisers who are looking to provide a top quality event for their entrants.

The FinishTime sporting calendars below come with a warning to check with the event organisers to ensure events have not been postponed or cancelled.

More event information, a regularly updated events calendar and results of all events timed by FinishTime can be found at www.finishtime.co.za and all results of events timed by FinishTime at results.finishtime.co.za

WEEKEND WARRIOR: April 12-13, 2025

Weekend Warrior is a family-focused event that aims to promote the sport of cycling and the love for the outdoors. The two-day stage race in Grabouw offers a unique opportunity for families to come together and experience the thrill of a stage race atmosphere. The event aims to encourage the next generation to take up the sport and explore the trails. The race village, chill zone, food court and hot showers create a perfect environment for families to relax and bond after a day of cycling.

GRAVDURO: June 1, 2025

The thrill of gravel racing meets the relaxed atmosphere of enduro. Hammer it along some iconic sections in the Western Cape. Venture into Oak Valley, Paul Cluver and up the infamous Hans se Kop Climb. The whole event isn’t a race, you will be timed for 6 or 4 stages out on the route, which will count towards your overall time so you can enjoy a relaxed start and the social liaison sections.

TOTALSPORTS TWO OCEANS MARATHON: April 6, 2025

One of the Western Cape’s most prestigious races, the Totalsports Two Oceans Ultra Marathon takes athletes on a spectacular course around the Cape Peninsula. The route is often voted the most breathtaking course in the world due to the natural splendour of the course.