By Adnaan Mohamed
Front-row forwards are rarely associated with distance running. Tighthead props are built like granite pillars for the scrum rather than the endless rhythm of road racing. Yet two former Springbok giants have embraced a different test of endurance.
Former 1995 Rugby World Cup winner Marius Hurter and ex-Springbok prop Eddie Andrews will line up at the 2026 Totalsports Two Oceans Marathon powered by BYD over the weekend of the 11 and 12 April in Cape Town, chasing finish lines on roads that wind between ocean views and mountain climbs.
Hurter will again tackle the demanding 56km ultra marathon on Saturday 11 April, while Andrews returns for his sixth 21km half marathon the following day.
Both men once weighed more than 130kg while anchoring the Springbok scrum. Today they measure progress through kilometres rather than collisions.
Hurter, affectionately known as the ‘Hurternator’, now weighs around 103kg after shedding more than 30kg through endurance sport.
“My rugby career finished in 2006, but being from a military household I was used to exercise from a very young age,” Hurter said.
His mindset was forged during his youth.
“When I was about 15, I told my dad I wanted to be a paratrooper. He said, ‘You’re too soft, man. You’ll never be a paratrooper.’ That afternoon he came home with a two-metre pole and told me every morning before school I had to jog around the block with it, then do push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups.”
That discipline carried him through a career that now includes nine finishes in the Absa Cape Epic, multiple Ironman triathlons, the Two Oceans and Comrades Marathon as well as the Ultra Trail Cape Town (UTCT) 100-Miler (160km) race.
“I must say, being a prop, I like a bit of suffering,” he said.
“This stuff is hard on the body, but a lot of it comes down to mental toughness. Your physique is one thing, but it’s this little thing between your ears that runs the whole operation.”
This year’s Two Oceans Ultra carries special meaning as Hurter will run alongside his eldest daughter Annalien in her first ultra marathon.
“I told them if you start something, you finish it,” he said.
For Andrews, who currently serves as the Deputy Mayor of Cape Town, the running journey began with a modest first step in 2016.
“A journey of a thousand miles starts in the first step,” he said. “My running journey started in 2016 with Parkrun. Run, walk or crawl.”
The former Bok strongman, who played 23 Tests between 2004 and 2007, now views running as both challenge and community.
“Yes, this is part of my prep for the Two Oceans Half Marathon,” Andrews said after a recent 15km race. “It was my first road race back over the shorter distances.”
Even seasoned runners feel the strain in the closing kilometres.
“You know, fighting some demons at the end there but it’s all about crossing that line no matter the pace. It’s about finishing the race.”
The 2026 race will mark Andrews’ sixth appearance in the half marathon and move him closer to the coveted Blue Number awarded for ten finishes.
“This is my sixth Two Oceans Half,” he said. “Yes, I am almost there. I’m going to go for it.”
He believes other former rugby players should follow the same path.
“This is a challenge to all ex-Springbok rugby players to do it as well,” Andrews said. “Run the races, be in the community of runners and have other conversations.”
For two men once defined by scrums and collisions, the open road now offers a different contest where endurance, patience and belief carry the day.