How Devarao Choudhari became the fastest Indian at the Comrades Marathon
The 28-year-old runner finished the 89.8km-long South African ultramarathon in 7 hours, 3 minutes, making it the fastest time by an Indian. He tells Lounge how he trained for it
For three months, Devarao Choudhari led an austere life in preparation of the Comrades Marathon (89.98km) in South Africa on 8 June. He shifted base from the comfort of his home in Pusad near Yavatmal in Maharashtra to the cool climes of Pauri Garhwal in Uttarakhand in order to train at altitude. It was the longest he had stayed away from family and managed on his own. The effort paid off when he clocked 7 hours, 3 minutes, the fastest time by an Indian at the Comrades.
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The 2025 edition of the race was the “Down Run" from Pietermaritzburg to Durban, where the previous best Indian timing was Kartik Joshi’s mark of 7 hours, 26 minutes. Last year on the “Up Run" (Durban to Pietermaritzburg), Choudhari had registered 7 hours, 4 minutes. He is the first Indian to win back-to-back silver medals at the race, which is awarded to male runners who clock between 6 hours and 7 hours, 29 minutes.
“I went back for another attempt because I wanted to push the envelope and change the mindset of Indian runners on what’s possible," Choudhari, 28, says. “Personally too, there’s room for improvement because I didn’t meet my target. But there’s definitely a sense of satisfaction to get another silver medal." In January, he clocked the fourth fastest time in his age category (25-29) at the Tata Mumbai Marathon. The following month, he ran a distance of 137km in 13 hours to support a social cause back home in Yavatmal. Five days later, he took second spot in the newly introduced 75km category at the Tata Ultra Marathon in Lonavala in a time of 6 hours, 20 minutes.
“That run had an elevation gain of 1,320 metres. It was good preparation for Comrades, where the course has an elevation gain of about 1,150m. But though I finished on the podium, it made me realise that my training was inadequate," he says.
All through the summer of last year, Choudhari trained in the scorching heat of Yavatmal while preparing for the Comrades. While he could push during the workouts and was satisfied with the numbers he was achieving, recovery was often a challenge. So, this time around, he decided to move to the hills in the run-up to the race.
He started off with easy runs during the first 10 days to acclimatise the body. During the early weeks, he took on a mileage of 180-190km, a mix of both speed and endurance workouts. For a month starting mid-April, he pushed the weekly mileage to 250km. Here on, the focus was primarily on speed before hitting the taper phase.
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“Early on, I would try to maintain a pace of 3 minutes, 40 seconds (3.40) over each kilometre. The weeks before the race, I went as fast as 3.25 and increased the repetitions over time while trying to maintain the same pace," he says. “Another runner from Mumbai, Hemant Nishad, who usually competes over shorter distances, joined me during the last month. Training alongside him was good for my speed work," he adds.
Most morning workouts would finish with an uphill run at an easy pace. Before stepping out for the evening session, he would take on a mixed routine that involved squats, theraband work, core and mobility training. Once a week, he would visit the gym for strength work. “There wasn’t much to do but train and rest and train again. It certainly helped me grow as a runner. But raising funds is always a task for international races and it was no different this time around," he says.
Choudhari was supported by Yavatmal-based foundation Go Green Foundation, Dr Anand’s Angels, a programme run by Mumbai-based Anand Patil that supports endurance athletes, Pune-based runner Rahul Sabnis, and Himachal-based runner Sunil Sharma. Three days before the race, he landed in South Africa and put in a few slow 10km runs. As he lined up at the start, he eyed a timing of 6 hours, 30 minutes. He reached the half-way mark in 3 hours, 4 minutes and looked good to achieve his target, while maintaining a pace of 4-4.8 with ease. But a strong headwind beyond 60km stunted his progress, wearing him down mentally rather than physically over time, as he saw his target gradually slipping away.
“At one point, I thought I should leave the race because I was devastated with the situation I found myself in after starting so well. But I thought of all the work I had put in and the support I had received and pushed on," he says. At the 80km mark, Choudhari picked up the pace. And by the time he made the finish, he had done enough to set a new benchmark for Indian ultra running at the Comrades.
Shail Desai is a Mumbai-based freelance writer.
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