TRAIL RUNNING
Elites Fired Up for AFRICANX
Going into the 12th edition of the THIRSTI AFRICANX TRAILRUN , held at the Houw Hoek Hotel Grabouw from 19 to 21 March , there was all to race for as several teams with aspirations of taking line honours took to the trails of Grabouw . After three days of racing and great moments of emotion and ‘ stoke ,’ covering a total of some 80km with about 2450m of ascent , there were clear winners in each of the main categories .
Kane Finally Wins the Big One
In the men ’ s open category , Team Salomon ’ s Kane Reilly and Daniel Claassen pulled out all the stops to secure three consecutive stage victories and the overall win , completing the three stages in a lightning-fast combined time of 5 hours 17 minutes 33 seconds . This was Kane ’ s first appearance at AFRICANX since 2017 , while his teammate was making his AFRICANX debut .
Debutants Take Women ’ s Title
“ It was great to be back at the AFRICANX . I have lots of memories running on some of these trails . I love racing in South Africa , especially in races close to home , and AFRICANX is one of those races . It ’ s also one of the events that attracts the attention of both trail and road runners , which creates a pretty cool and unique vibe , not to mention the competitive racing experience ,” says Kane . “ Daniel and I had been training together , so we knew how we wanted to run , and we just got stuck into our rhythm and just kept it . I am pretty stoked , because I ’ ve been on the podium a few times , but I have never won this race before . To tick that off is a good feeling !”
“ AFRICANX had been on my bucket list since 2018 , when I first started running trail ,” says Daniel . “ The fast-flowing trails and the fact that you need to run well for three days really excited me . Also , I had never done a three-day stage race or run with a teammate before , but Kane and I have similar running capabilities and were excited to give it a go . It was nice to run with someone – usually we ’ re chasing each other . It was a super fun weekend , and I ’ m really chuffed with our effort . The AFRICANX is proper !”
Men ’ s Open Teams
1 Kane Reilly and Daniel Claassen ( Team Salomon ) 5:17:33 2 Lovemo Nyaude and Hakeem Smith ( Team HTRCrew Goats ) 6:09:21 3 Wandisile Nongodlwana ( Team ASICS Mojos ) 6:14:18 4 Guido Tagge and Derrick Baard ( Team 69 ) 6:37:45 5 Casper Van Antwerpen and Jason Van Antwerpen ( Team Revenants ) 7:02:01
Kane Reilly ( left ) and Daniel Claassen
Lijan van Niekerk ( left ) and Marion Leiberich
The team most widely tipped to take the win in the women ’ s category was Team Blazing Blondies , comprising Landie Greyling and Danette Walley . SA International Landie placed first in the mixed team category in 2013 , when she teamed up with husband Christiaan , and then from 2015 to 2017 she and Megan Mackenzie dominated the women ’ s team category . Danette placed first in the women ’ s team category in 2021 , running with Vicky Botha , and is also a former SA trail champion , SA Marathon Champion on road , and a Comrades gold medallist .
However , Landie was forced to withdraw after the first stage due to illness , and quickly stepping up to take control of the race were AFRICANX newcomers Marion Leiberich and Lijan Van Niekerk ( Team The Border Collies ). They finished fourth team overall in stage two and never looked back , completing the three stages in a combined time of 6 hours 31 minutes 28 seconds to claim a deserved win in the women ’ s category .
“ We have different strengths and I think we complement each other . I really enjoy uphills , so on the climbs I pulled Lijan , and on the downhills I was just holding on . We worked well as a team ,” says Marion . “ I liked the flowy trails and it wasn ’ t too technical – my favourite kind of trails , so I enjoyed it , and I ’ d love to team up with Lijan again next year .”
“ We just went as hard as we could , while keeping it conservative in the beginning ,” says Lijan . “ By day three I could feel the tiredness in my legs , but I loved the scenery high in the mountains with single track and fynbos . It was beautiful . Of course , it ’ s amazing to claim the women ’ s team title . I ’ ve always wanted to do AFRICANX , and can ’ t believe that we won .”
Women ’ s Open Teams
1 Lijan Van Niekerk and Marion Leiberich ( Team The Border Collies ) 6:31:28 2 Robyn Gardener and Leonie Schoeman ( Team Handle with Flair ) 7:35:41 3 Madeleen Van Wyk and Marise Prinsloo ( Team Jetlagged ) 8:17:58 4 Stephanie Laurie and Sarah Krumbock ( Team DGAF ) 8:20:14 5 Kerry-Ann Elson ( Team Easier Said Than Run ) 8:33:15
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