Running into the deep: Ledile Dikgale tackles the World’s Deepest Marathon

When 34-year-old mining engineer Ledile Dikgale descends 1,120m below sea level in Sweden this October when taking on the World’s Deepest Marathon, she’ll be coming full circle.

This groundbreaking event will see 60 runners from 17 countries attempt a full 42km marathon in Boliden’s Garpenberg zinc mine.

The conditions are formidable: 18 lengths of a 2.4km tunnel where temperatures climb to 28°C, with gravel underfoot, and darkness broken only by headtorches. It will be the deepest event of its kind ever attempted, breaking two world records and raising more than R27.3 million for charity.

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Digkale, one of only three South Africans and the only woman competing, was nominated by Anglo American’s Kumba Iron Ore CEO Mpumi Zikalala to participate.

In a sense, this challenge feels almost pre-ordained – her whole life has played out in the shadow of mining headgears.

Dikgale grew up in Mohlakeng, a former mining town where the industry wasn’t just an employer – it was a way of life, shaping families and communities. That early connection to mining never left her.

After completing her degree, she began an eight-year journey through South Africa’s mining heartland, working at Sibanye gold and Amandelbult platinum mines, learning the detail and execution of mining operations from the ground up.

Now, she’s transitioning into something she’s genuinely exhilarated about: leading the Drill and Blasting technical team at Sishen Mine as Section Manager. It’s a role that demands precision and technical expertise – qualities she’ll need in abundance for what lies ahead in Sweden.

Where passions collide

For Dikgale, this race is where two seemingly separate passions converge. She discovered running in 2015, but it was in 2019, after recovering from pleural effusion, that running transformed from hobby to lifeline.

“When I run, I feel I can conquer anything and I’m grateful that I have the means and capabilities to participate in sports,” she reflects. “This race is a marriage of what I have been doing in my career as a mine engineer and private time as a recreational runner.” 

Dikgale understands underground environments. She knows about ventilation and illumination – the critical systems that allow people to work safely underground. This technical knowledge, earned over years working in production spaces, gives her an edge that goes beyond physical conditioning.

Dikgale started her career as a bursary student at Kumba in 2009 and spent her formative professional years in Mining Technical Services before moving into production. That progression, from theory to practice, has given her the kind of comprehensive understanding this challenge demands.

“This race might be an epiphany that my life has been leading me this point,” she says. But she’s also pragmatic about the enormity of the task. She’s training hard, targeting a finish time within four hours and 30 minutes – ambitious for any marathon, let alone this one.

But she’s focused on the bigger picture. It’s an opportunity to represent not just herself, but Kumba – an organisation whose values of safe production, inclusion and innovation align perfectly with what this marathon represents.

And when she crosses that finish line in the darkness, she’ll be writing a new chapter – not just in marathon history, but in her own story.