Dancing in the street
SOUTH AFRICANS MAKE IT 1-2 IN BIG RACE
Gelant successfully defends his SA 10km title in Nelspruit.
Ahandful of distance runners delivered memorable performances in local road races at the weekend, led by Irvette van Zyl and Elroy Gelant.
Competing in her second 42km race in seven weeks, Van Zyl overcame the deficit after taking two toilet breaks yesterday to chase down compatriot Mapaseka Makhanya in the latter stages of the Soweto Marathon.
She finished in 2:41:06, breaking a lengthy drought by becoming the first South African woman to win the annual race since Rene Kalmer in 2009.
“I thought I had lost the race completely because if you make a pit stop you lose time and rhythm, so I’m just happy to have kept it going and maintained my stride,” Van Zyl said.
Racing over the marathon distance in her home town for the first time, Makhanya held on to finish second in 2:44:37.
“When we reached 32km it got so lonely and very tough, but seeing my mom on the route made it worth it,” Makhanya said.
“She has never watched me running a marathon, so today was more than amazing.”
Tsepo Mathibelle of Lesotho won the men’s race in 2:19:41, relegating three-time winner Sintayehu Legese of Ethiopia to second position (2:20:56), and Ntsindiso Mphakathi was the first SA man across the line, ending third overall in 2:21:23.
Gelant, meanwhile, successfully defended his title at the SA 10km Championships in Nelspruit on Saturday, clocking 29:08, and went on to finish second behind David Manja (1:06:14) in the half-marathon race in Soweto.
Gladwin Mzazi and Glenrose Xaba also delivered fine double efforts by reaching both podiums.
Mzazi grabbed silver at the national championships and again took second place in the 10km contest in Soweto, behind Namakoe Nkhasi of Lesotho (30:52), while Xaba was third behind newly crowned SA champion Kesa Molotsane (33:38) in Nelspruit before winning the women’s 10km race in the historic township in 35:33.