Mathanga Does the Double SA Cross Country Championships , Rustenburg , 17 September

Mbuleli Mathanga successfully defended the title he won in the long race at coastal Amanzimtoti at last year ’ s SA Cross County Champs , easily beating Mathews Leeto this time . Mathanga , who is also the South African 10,000m champion on the track , was second in the 4km in 2021 , but did not run the shorter race year , and that title went to Kabelo Melamu . In the women ’ s long race , Glenrose Xaba scored an even easier win to claim her 16th national title on all surfaces , and her sixth in cross country . In the 4km race , the former double Olympic champion over 800m , Caster Semenya , won her first cross-country title .

Mbuleli Mathanga

Seoposengwe Takes It Absa Run Your City Joburg 10km , 24 September

In the Absa Run Your City Joburg 10km , the recently crowned SA 10km Champion , Andries Sesedi , had to give way to the man he beat for the title , Nicholas

Seoposengwe . Sesedi finished five seconds behind Seoposengwe ’ s 29:42 , with Kabelo Seboko third in 29:55 . In the women ’ s race , the SA Champion , Glenrose Xaba , was also beaten into second place , but by a Kenyan . Emmaculate Anyongo Acholi won in a PB of 33:50 , with Xaba clocking 34:03 .

Nicholas Seoposengwe

Mokoka Claims Third Win Sanlam Cape Town Marathon , 16 October

Two-time champion Stephen Mokoka faced a strong East African challenge in the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon , but delivered a masterful tactical performance to take his third title in this event in 2:09:59 , almost one-and-a-half minutes ahead of Ethiopia ’ s Derseh Kindie Kassie ( 2:11:27 ). The new course included three noteworthy hills and a new section through District Six , which kept the times slower than what was hoped for , and Mokoka described it as “ tough .”

Stephen Mokoka

Nevertheless , Meseret Dinke Meleka of Ethiopia won the women ’ s race in a new course record of 2:24:04 , for which she earned a bonus of R100 000 . In doing so she not only set a new personal best , but also posted the fastest women ’ s time ever run on the continent of Africa . Meanwhile , runners from Ethiopia and Kenya took the first seven positions in the women ’ s race , with Stella Marais ( 2:38:36 ) finishing in eighth as the first South African , in her fastest time on a record-eligible course . ( She has run 14 seconds faster on the aided Peninsula course .)

Nare Retains Grand Prix Title Spar Grand Prix Cape Town 10km , 23 October

Tadu Nare of Ethiopia clinched the SPAR Grand Prix Series for the second year in a row with a comfortable win over compatriot Selam Gebre , 31:53 to 32:18 , in the final leg of the 2022 series in Cape Town . The 2019 Grand Prix champion , Helalia Johannes of Namibia , finished third on the day in 32:21 , and the three foreign runners finished in the same order in the final Grand Prix standings . The first South African in the race , and also in the series , was Kesa Molotsane with 33:15 in fourth .

Tadu Nare

Images : Anthony Grote , Lisa Carter , Reg Caldecott , Johan Minnaar , & courtesy Mbuleli Mathanga , Gerda Steyn , Soweto Marathon