02/09/2026
We're a bit late but meet our Magnolian of the Month:
Patrick Mbedzi.
Patrick’s running journey has had a bit of everything. The tough days, the big breakthroughs, the people who helped along the way, and plenty of reasons to keep putting one foot in front of the other.
His story is a great reminder that running is about so much more than the times and distances. It’s about finding your people, in his case, Judas Ntuli, having a little more belief in yourself, and seeing just how far you can go.
Patrick just ran his 10th Comrades earning him his green number and his second silver medal!
Congratulations, Patrick. This one is very well deserved.
We’re proud to have you as a Magnolian.
Read his running journey below.
My running journey started in 2014 as a simple test. I wanted to find out whether running was something I would enjoy as a form of exercise. I had no idea at the time that this little experiment would become such a big part of my life. I fell in love with running, and I have never looked back.
What has kept me going year after year is, more than anything else, the love of running. It has never really been about medals, times or recognition. Those things are certainly rewarding, but the real motivation has always been the joy I get from running. Like any long journey, there have been plenty of ups and downs, disappointments and moments of doubt, but I have never had a serious second thought about giving up running.
I consider myself very fortunate to have been surrounded by training partners and fellow runners who share the same passion. Over the years, I have come to appreciate that running may appear to be an individual sport, but the journey is anything but individual. The people you train with, the people who encourage you when you are struggling, and those who believe in you when you perhaps don't believe in yourself can make a tremendous difference.
My early running days were certainly not easy. I remember entering the Sunrise Monster 10km for the first time. When I finished the race, I went home and slept for the rest of the day. Looking back, I find that memory quite amusing, because today I can hardly imagine a 10km race requiring a full day's recovery! My first marathon was another story altogether. It felt like a punishment, and I remember asking myself more than once, "Is this really what I want to be doing?"
Those early struggles, however, became an important part of my foundation. They taught me to respect the distance, respect the training and, most importantly, to keep going when things become difficult.
For a long time, I believed I had reached my limit at Comrades. Except for my first Comrades Bronze Medal, I found myself consistently running around Bill Rowan medal time. Eventually, I accepted that perhaps this was simply the level I was capable of achieving at Comrades. I was comfortable with that belief, even though somewhere inside me there was probably still a little voice asking whether I could do more.
Then I met Judas Ntuli, a fellow Magnolia runner, and that belief began to change.
Judas introduced me to a different approach to training, one that emphasised hard training and taking it easier on race day. I trained with him for about a year and a half leading up to the 2024 Comrades Marathon. That period changed not only the way I trained, but also the way I viewed my own potential.
In 2024, I achieved my first Comrades Silver Medal with a time of 7:09. It was a very special moment for me, not simply because of the medal, but because it represented the breaking of a barrier I had convinced myself I could not overcome.
What makes that achievement even more meaningful is the role Judas played in getting me there. Ironically, Judas himself did not achieve a Silver Medal in 2024; he finished just before the close of the Bill Rowan medals. Yet despite that, he had spent months training with me and sharing everything he knew and believed could help me achieve better results.
That is the kind of person Judas is. He was not simply trying to make me a better runner; he genuinely wanted to see me succeed. His willingness to share his knowledge, time and experience without holding anything back is something I will always be grateful for.
Another milestone that makes me particularly emotional is achieving my Green Number in 2026 after completing my tenth Comrades Marathon. Ten Comrades finishes is something I could never have imagined when I started running in 2014. The Green Number represents much more to me than simply a number. It represents years of training, early mornings, long runs, difficult races, recovery, disappointment, perseverance and countless kilometres shared with other runners.
When I look back at the person who once went home to sleep for the rest of the day after running a Sunrise Monster 10km, and then think about reaching ten Comrades finishes, I cannot help but feel grateful for how far the journey has taken me.
My recent Two Oceans and Comrades results have reinforced something I have come to believe very strongly: running is more than an individual sport. You may cross the finish line with your own name on the results sheet, but there are many people behind that achievement.
There are training partners who run alongside you when the legs are tired, friends who encourage you when a race doesn't go according to plan, people who share advice and experience, and fellow runners who simply understand why you are willing to wake up ridiculously early on a Sunday morning to run for several hours when perfectly sensible people are still asleep.
I have been lucky to have many of those people around me.
When I think about my running journey, I don't only remember the medals or the times. I remember the people, the conversations, the long training runs, the difficult days, the laughter, the disappointment and the moments when everything finally came together.
Most importantly, I remember the feeling of simply being out there running.
That is what has kept me going since 2014.
I started running to find out whether I would enjoy it. More than a decade later, I can confidently say that I found something much more than an exercise routine. I found a passion, a community, friendships, challenges and a journey that has given me memories I will carry for the rest of my life.
And perhaps the greatest lesson running has taught me is that sometimes the limits we accept for ourselves are not really our limits at all. Sometimes, all it takes is the right people around you, a different approach, a little more belief and the willingness to keep going.
The journey continues.
