With seven Comrades finishes to his name. Rethabile Taunyane – who was born blind – is well on his way to obtaining his Green Number. Cuan Walker chatted to him about his running journey.
Born in 1983 in KwaZulu-Natal, Taunyane attended school at the Blind Society in Durban, and it was here that he learnt how to write and read in braille. After completing school, Taunyane relocated to Johannesburg where he managed to get a job as a general worker at a manufacturing company. “I still had partial sight in one eye even though it was very limited, however over the time it started to get worse to a point when I could not see anymore at all,” said Taunyane.
With his eyesight now completely gone, Taunyane could not do his job anymore and found himself sitting at home. It was this situation that saw him look to sport. “I had heard about this thing called blind cricket and I decided that I wanted to try it because I was just sitting at home and I did not want to be doing nothing,” recalls Taunyane.
After a season of the game, Taunyane realized that his favorite part of the sport was all the running around the field. This led him to the track where he competed as a sprinter. “I started running the 200m, but I also moved up to the 5 000m and I really enjoyed it more the further that I went.” This was 14 years ago, and an introduction to someone at Rockies Running Club saw Taunyane move to the roads where he now has completed seven Comrades Marathons.
“Each and every one of them has been a special run but I really did enjoy it in 2023 as I ran my first Comrades for Hollywood and I had six teammates who ran the whole way with me, guiding me through to the finish.” A 10:50:59 finish that day secured a comfortable bronze medal.
“Last year was supposed to be my eighth finish but unfortunately I missed the cut off late into the second half because I was struggling to find pilots to assist me on the road.” The thought of commuting on foot from Durban to Pietermaritzburg is a daunting enough task yet imagine doing that with your eyes closed. Finding pilots who can assist Taunyane is yet another adversity he must overcome each time he laces his running shoes.
“The problem is that most of the people who do assist me are a lot slower than me,” laughs Taunyane. “It is difficult to find people and even more difficult is that the only time I train is at a race because during the week there are no pilots that can assist me.”
“I have given inspiration to many people and lots of people ask how I have achieved the things I have,” says Taunyane. “The number one thing I say is that I will never let my blindness be a determining factor in limiting what I can and can’t do and nothing in life is given to you on a platter. You need to work for it.”
