WHEN approximately 22,000 runners start their journey from Durban to Pietermaritzburg in the Comrades Marathon on June 14, one of them will be Gagasi FM broadcaster, Siyabonga “Heazy” Madida.
Heazy (35), booked himself a place to run this huge race by completing his first marathon (42.2km) in less than five hours at the Sapphire Coast Marathon, Manzimtoti, in October last year.
This radio host isAfter 8 is After 8 is-Urban Top 40, he said it had been his dream for years to run Comrades which will be held in 99 this year.
“I am proud to be from KwaZulu-Natal and this race is happening right here in the province. I believe that everyone should run this race,” said Heazy.
He said he has been running for years but in June, it will be two years since he has been doing it with determination.
“I used to go to watch the Comrades and stop at Fields Hill and wait where it ends. In 2017, I said that one day I will run it.”
He said that it is nice to have something that you are looking to achieve in life that challenges you because it makes him grow, he said that running keeps him away from things that can disturb him in life.
“I was lucky to be able to change my life in the right direction. I spend a lot of time in the gym and cut down on alcohol. Last year I finished eight months without touching alcohol at all. Now I wake up quickly and watch the things I eat,” said Heazy who is the brother of singer and music producer Zakes Bantwini.
He went on to say that people can learn from him that anyone can change their life whenever they want.
“I wasn’t doing anything in secret, people know me as the person who was the first to arrive at a party and the last to leave. It’s time for a person to grow up because the years don’t stand still. I’m 35 now.”
He revealed that he now wakes up to run or jog, take his child to school and pick him up in the afternoon before preparing for his schedule at night, and said that he is determined to have a good time on the road and finish Comrades in less than 12 hours.
In preparation for Comrades, at the weekend he will run the Balwin Dolphin Coast Marathon which will start from Ballito and end at North Beach in Durban.
He will take off from there to run one of the toughest races in the world, the Rising Sun Chatsworth Freedom Ultra on April 19.