Rules
Athletes currently have 12 hours to complete the course, extended from 11 hours in 2003. There are a number of cut-off points along the routes which runners must reach by a prescribed time or be forced to retire from the race. A runner who has successfully completed nine marathons wears a yellow number, while those who have completed ten races wear a green number, permanently allocated to the runner for all future races.
Medals are awarded to all runners completing the course in under 12 hours. Medals are currently awarded as follows:
- Gold medals: The first 10 men and women.
- Wally Hayward medals (silver-centred circled by gold ring): 11th position to sub 6hrs 00min
- Silver medals: 6hrs 00min 01sec to sub 7hrs 30min.
- Bill Rowan medals (bronze-centred circled by silver ring): 7hrs 30min to sub 9hrs 00min.
- Bronze medals: 9hrs 00min to sub 11hrs 00min.
- Vic Clapham medals (copper): 11hrs 00min to sub 12hrs 00min.
Prior to 2000, only gold, silver and bronze medals were awarded. The Bill Rowan medal was introduced in 2000 and named after the winner of the first Comrades Marathon in 1921. The time limit for this medal was inspired by Rowan's winning time in 1921 of 8hrs 59min. A new copper medal, the Vic Clapham medal (named after the race founder), was added in 2003. This medal coincided with the increase in the time allocation for completing the event from sub 11hrs to sub 12hrs. The Wally Hayward medal, named after five-time winner Wally Hayward, was added in 2007 for runners finishing in under 6hrs.
Read more about this topic: Comrades Marathon
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“Those rules of old discovered, not devised,
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—Alexander Pope (1688–1744)