Five South African mining professionals were among 55 runners from 18 countries who made history this weekend by completing the World’s Deepest Marathon, held 1 120 m below the surface in Boliden’s Garpenberg zinc mine in Sweden.

The event – set to be recognised with two Guinness World Records for The Deepest Marathon and The Deepest Underground Marathon Distance Run (Team) – tested physical endurance and mental strength in extreme underground conditions.

Representing South Africa were Edison Makhetha, environmental engineering superviser at Gold Fields; Gareth Penny, chairperson of NinetyOne; Ledile Dikgale, mining section manager at Kumba Iron Ore; Michael Pappas, climate change lead at Glencore; and William Leshilo, VP government relations and community business partner at AngloGold Ashanti. All successfully completed the 42.2 km race.

The UK also had a strong contingent, reflecting a diverse mix of professionals. UK participants included professional dog runner Augustus Royds; Benjamin Penny from Morgan Stanley; Claire-Marie Rozario and Toni-Ivana Awofeso from Alpine Project; Faheem Chaudhry, who is co-founder of Lori; Henrietta Newman and Michael O'Rourke from the World Gold Council; James Lloyd-Smith from Brunswick; James Mason from Glencore, Jonathan Price from Teck Resources, Paul Gurney from BecomingX; Rohitesh Dhawan and Will Warde from the ICMM, marathon coach Rory Coleman, the Running Channel's Sarah Hartley and Callum Knight, aka Seapeekay.

Held in temperatures reaching 30 °C and near-total darkness, participants ran 11 laps of a 3.84 km tunnel to complete the marathon distance. The event raised over $1-million for the BecomingX Foundation and the Wild at Heart Foundation, and showcased the resilience of the human spirit and the innovation of the modern mining sector.

Organised by BecomingX, the ICMM and Boliden, the marathon also featured a first-of-its-kind Minecraft livestream from underground, where gaming creator Seapeekay broadcast to 22 000 followers on Twitch while running a lap of the course.

Gurney, who is BecomingX CEO, said the challenge exemplified “what we can achieve when we dare to go beyond the ordinary”, adding that running a marathon a kilometre underground “is a true testament to the extraordinary capability of humankind".

ICMM's Dhawan highlighted that air quality in the Garpenberg mine featured “about 30% more oxygen than in the atmosphere and fewer pollutants than major cities".

Boliden CEO Mikael Staffas added that the company was “immensely proud” to host the world-record event, noting that Garpenberg was one of the “safest and most technologically advanced mines in the world".