Kyla Jacobs powered her way to the win in Stellenbosch
under-13s to Masters , as well as the only skateboard mile race in the country . The event also has a festive vibe , thanks to the participation of a number of student residence teams in the social race , with many dressing up for the occasion .
In both the main event races , it came down to tightly contested sprint finishes . The men ’ s title was won by local athlete Deon-Lee Hendricks in 4:05.22 , after the born and bred Stellenboscher found an extra gear to beat Christopher Swart ( 4:06.72 ), the defending champion . Swart is studying at the North West University in Potchefstroom , and had flown down for the event in an effort to become just the third man to defend his Dagbreek title , after Johan Cronjé and Jerry Motsau , and for much of the race he looked like he could do it , but Hendricks proved to have the speed to outkick him for the win .
As with the top two men , the top two women finished well clear of the chasing pack , and also had to be split by a sprint finish , with SA 5000m champion Kyla Jacobs adding her name to the list of winners with her 4:54.11 effort . Narrolwly second was Lisha van Onselen in 4:55.16 . Both these young women competed on the American collegiate circuit in recent years , having earned athletic scholarships to study in the USA , and Jacobs represented South Africa in the 5km event at the World Road Running Champs in August .
ROAD RUNNING
Social residence entrants
Open Men ’ s Mile |
1 Deon Lee Hendricks ( Athletes Academy ) |
4:05.22 |
2 Christopher Swart ( Pukke ) |
4:06.72 |
3 Lorenzo Zimry ( Athletes Academy ) |
4:15.39 |
4 Kananelo Thulo ( UWC ) |
4:18.94 |
5 Joshua Steytler ( Ind ) |
4:19.91 |
Open Women ’ s Mile |
1 Kyla Jacobs ( Boxer ) |
4:54.11 |
2 Lisha van Onselen ( Athletes Academy ) |
4:55.16 |
3 Fina Dube ( Athletes Academy ) |
5:01.16 |
4 Kobie Griffiths ( Nedbank ) |
5:02.43 |
5 Danel Louw ( Ind ) |
5:11.02 |
Pride of Thembisa
SPAR Thembisa Mile & 10km , 29 October 2023
The inaugural Thembisa Mile took place in 2012 , with a 10km race added in 2014 . While the 10km is a conventional event and open to all participants , the mile event is run in waves , with different ages and genders , and except for the social walking waves , all entrants take part by invitation only . That saw over 2000 runners flood the hilly streets of South Africa ’ s second-biggest township in the 10km , with Puseletso Mofokeng winning the men ’ s race in 30:56 , while Glenrose Xaba dominated the women ’ s race as she won by almost three minutes in a new course record of 33:28 . However , it was the fast and furious mile racing that really caught the attention of the Thembisa residents lining the route .
Images : Tumi Kekana / Thembisa Mile , Tumelo Mabua / Thembisa Mile & Courtesy Dagbreek Street Mile
In the women ’ s elite race , SA 800m and 1500m double champion Prudence Sekgodiso was bidding to win the race for the fifth time , but 800m specialist Charne Swart came to Thembisa determined to claim the win for herself . She got her timing just right as she unleashed her track speed in the final 100 metres , overtook Sekgodiso and claimed a thrilling win in 4:54 , three seconds ahead of Sekgodiso . “ I knew that the last hill would be long , so I just waited for the right time to strike , and it worked . I ’ ve been doing a lot of strength work and putting in the mileage , so it ’ s paying off ,” said Swart .
In the men ’ s race , Botswana ’ s Tshepiso Masalela showed why he was able to finish sixth in the 800m at the recent track and field World Championships in Hungary , as he took the win in 4:13 , outkicking SA 1500m champion Nkosinathi Sibiya by one second in a frantic sprint finish .
Charné Swart takes the women ’ s title
Start of the Junior Girls race in Thembisa
Besides the winners , another very satisfied person after all the racing was done and dusted was event founder and Race Director Donald Mathipa , who is also well known in Gauteng running circles as a commentator . “ When I started this event 11 years ago , I never dreamed that it would reach these heights , attracting world class athletes and producing such good times ,” he told media . “ What makes me happiest is that we also have the age
Tshepiso Masalela outsprinted Nkosinathi Sibiya in the men ’ s mile group miles , which serve as development races , while clubs have come from across the country to be part of the event . It shows that we are going in the right direction , so we just have to keep doing that .”
Elite Men ’ s Mile |
1 Tshepiso Masalela ( Botswana ) |
4:13 |
2 Nkosinathi Sibiya ( UJ ) |
4:14 |
3 Ketlobogile Hanguira ( Botswana ) |
4:14 |
4 Johannes Morepe ( Murray & Roberts ) |
4:15 |
5 Kwazi Nogcantsi ( Tuks ) |
4:17 |
Elite Women ’ s Mile |
1 Charné Swart ( Tuks ) |
4:54 |
2 Prudence Sekgodiso ( Ind ) |
4:57 |
3 Oratile Nowe ( Botswana ) |
4:58 |
4 Aviwe Hoboloshe ( Excel ) |
4:59 |
5 Sisanda Dumisa ( UJ ) |
5:00 |
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