SuperSport TV and Comrades Marathon organisers have announced a historic continuation to their partnership, in airing the Ultimate Human Race. For the first time ever, there will be a second channel dedicated to showing the women’s race. While the Supersport main feed will take the entire race.
According to the Comrades Marathon website this move is to ensure that “the narrative around the women’s race can be told with greater clarity.”
In a fitting move, former winners Helen Lucre and Cheryl Winn will form part of a female commentary team to take viewers through the race on the 11th of June in the 2023 ‘down’ run between Pietermaritzburg and Durban.
Joining the rest of the commentary team, will be two-time gold medallist Jenna Challenor. After sadly announcing that she won’t be lining up to race at Comrades 23, due to multiple battles with illness, Challenor credits this partnership and believes it’ll do good for the exposure of female athletes as she tells Lonwabo Nkohla.
You inspired the nation when you courageously crawled across the finish line last year to finish fourth at Comrades (birthing the Challenor Crawl 😉 A year on how are you reflecting on that moment in your life?
It’s been a long hard 9 months since this moment. It was a moment that broke me into pieces but as it did that it also showed me and I think a lot of people my fight and never give up attitude. I was truly blown away by the response I got from it afterwards, it honestly humbled me and touched my heart, and although my health has suffered with the consequences of pushing beyond my limits it has also kept me going through this hard period in my life and made me believe I will get through this eventually.
I am heartbroken not to be able to run comrades this year, I’ve tried everything to get well and overcome everything but it’s just not to be this year. If you ask me if it was worth it last year and if I would do that again my answer is yes. I love inspiring others, it is what drives me and I believe I did so, not just in running but in all aspects of life in general. I just know that right now my body needs time to recover and heal before I do Comrades again but the fire is back and I’m counting the days until I can do it in 2024. As we all know it takes all of you so you need to be prepared for that.
𝕾𝖚𝖋𝖋𝖊𝖗𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖊𝖘 𝖊𝖓𝖉𝖚𝖗𝖆𝖓𝖈𝖊, 𝖊𝖓𝖉𝖚𝖗𝖆𝖓𝖈𝖊 𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖊𝖘 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗, 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖊𝖘 𝖍𝖔𝖕𝖊
My Comrades 23’ dream is over, I will not be lining up to race this year. I am devastated💔 pls read the comments pic.twitter.com/WzgavvJk2r— Jenna Challenor (@jennaChallie1) May 19, 2023
Despite a hurdle in your Comrades Marathon dream, you’ve risen up and are gearing up to join the commentary team at SuperSport, what has inspired you to keep going regardless of the challenges you’ve faced?
To be honest I would say my children and husband. They have never seen me like this, I’ve always been the one with so much energy, drive, the organiser and leader of our pack as such. I was left in bed, broken and sleeping the days away. I became depressed and had very little if any energy to do much and they had to pick up all the pieces.
I am incredibly blessed because that’s exactly what they did and never, not even once did any of them complain. I think my husband, Brett had the hardest role to play, holding me together, paying ALOT of Dr’s bills and keeping the Challie ship afloat and his own business all at once but he did it all and never, not even once lost his patience or told me to get over it. It wasn’t easy, I would have told me to get lost haha. Brett has (along with my medical team) nursed me back to health again and I will be forever grateful.
So when I stand on the 2024 Comrades start line it will be in honour of my family and my special doctor, Kevin Subban.
You will be among commentating royalty for Comrades this year, how do you feel as you look ahead to this exciting chapter?
It’s an absolute honour for me, I was speechless when I was asked. Bruce Fordyce was always my hero in sport then later he became a friend and mentor to me which as a 10 year old kid watching him race, I never dreamed of. He was the captain of our 200km “Battle of the sports” charity race we did during COVID, so now to do this with him too is pretty cool. Cuan has been a friend for a long time, he is Mr running encyclopaedia so I know I’m in good hands with him and definitely have to bring my A game to keep up with them. I haven’t met the other team members but have no doubt he is someone I’m going to be super excited to have met after the day is done. I love meeting new people.
Kindly share your thoughts on a dedicated channel for women at this year’s comrades.
AMAZING. INCREDIBLE. FINALLY. I think it’s the best addition I’ve heard of in this year’s comrades race and other races could learn from this. I’m personally so excited to follow the ladies race and it excites me for 2024.
SuperSport has embarked on the #HereForHer campaign, what are your thoughts on the necessity of such campaigns?
It was really special to see this campaign begin, I think it will go such a long way in raising our incredibly talented woman up, featuring them and opening doors for them for things such as sponsors which will in turn allow them to be able to pursue their sport further, chase their dreams and make it to the top. It hasn’t been easy for us to secure sponsors because they want coverage/exposure, rightfully so, and here they can get it. It will definitely help to unearth female talent around the country.
You have an amazing attitude to sport. Where does it come from and how have you ensured that this love for sport has rubbed off on your children?
In life growing up at times I never felt “good enough”, SPORT made me feel good enough, it filled my soul with such happiness, appreciation, drive and a sense of being good enough. I threw myself into every sport I could do, you name it, I did it.
Having older brothers, I wanted to keep up with them and do everything they were doing. I was a sporting all-rounder at school and only specialised later in life. I followed the same thing with my own children, I’ve encouraged them to try every single sport, I want them to find their own passion, their own sport that sets their souls on fire and I think they have done so. I don’t want them to specialise young. I’ve always made it about fun because in the end that is why we start it in the first place, to have fun.
The girls have grown up in a world of sport, it’s all they know and at times they don’t know how lucky they are but in saying that they have the same passion for sport that my husband and I share and have already seen how sport opens so many doors. Nicky(18) has competed for SA on the world stage for life saving and has been to Egypt and Italy and New Zealand already for it.
Rylee(16) has been to America for SA for biathlon and has travelled around a lot locally for her running and lifesaving, as has Nicky. They are (Nicky is finished now) also both on sports scholarships for high school. Tao is little, she is 11 and I must admit has the most incredible “go get it attitude” so we shall see where her journey goes. I never push them, I offer opportunities and encourage them BUT it must come from them.
Who is your favourite to win the women’s title?
Gerda Steyn and Comrades might as well deposit the record money into her account now. She is on fire.
Any other ladies to watch who may challenge for the honours this year
There is a lovely strong ladies field as always and it’s going to be an exciting race to follow. I think our SA ladies will hold their own but it will be tough at the top because we also have the 2022 winner, Alexandra Morozova coming and the 2nd place lady Dominika Stelmach and they are both fierce racers and love Comrades. One of my picks for top 5 and I believe she has the potential to have an amazing race this year, is definitely Carla Molinara, I’ve watched her training and never seen her in such awesome shape before. She ran an insane Two Oceans Ultra in April to finish 3rd so I can’t wait to see how she does on the 11th.
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