The Nelson Mandela Bay Half Marathon was again chosen to incorporate the South African Half Marathon Championships into the race, attracting a total field of 1,661 athletes.
Between Border and Eastern Province, the results were encouraging, though the absence of the former Transkei area was unfortunate.
A number of South African Championship gold and silver medals highlighted the outing.
Hanlie Botha, the Border veteran flyer, finished 8th overall and won the veteran 40+ age category in a time of 79:34. She thus pocketed another South African Championship gold medal.
Eastern Province’s Refiloe Solomons ran 82:12 to finish third in the age group, while her rival, Caryn Lategan of Border, finished fourth in 82:53, again proving her worth in a team competition.
Unfortunately Lategan’s sister Lauren Ranger was not chosen for the team, while their clubmate Andrea Ranger withdrew for personal reasons.
Lauren proved at the ECLB Awareness run that she would have been an asset to the team when she finished second in the age group on a much tougher course in 91:37. Her projected time in Nelson Mandela Bay would have been closer to 87:07.
If that had transpired, and there is no reason to believe that it would not have done, Border would have won the 40+ women’s team competition ahead of Western Province and Eastern Province.
Botha’s male counterpart in the 40+ category for men, Andile Ngqwani, continued to show his pedigree and his worth to Border by finishing third in 69:17.
The incredible Margie Saunders of EP won the 70+, and her time of 1:42:45 would have been good enough for a 60+ bronze
In total, in the men’s 40+ competition, Eastern Province had three and Border two in the top 10, proving the athletic talent in the Eastern Cape offers a sound reason to have the championships hosted in the province. It may well be that Border will get a chance in future.
In the 50+ men, Siyabulela Madlavana of Border finished fourth, and in the 60+, Desmond Zibi won in the colours of EP with his long-time rival, Makaya Masumpa of Border, second, and Mzoli Mpalala, also of Border, in fifth place.
Meanwhile, Melikhaya Frans of EP won the 35+ category in 63:19, finishing 10th overall.
The incredible Margie Saunders of EP won the 70+, and her time of 1:42:45 would have been good enough for a 60+ bronze.
Another Border runner who impressed was Uviwe Simon, second in the junior women’s event.
The 40+ men’s team finished second to Eastern Province by just over two minutes and beat Western Province by 18 seconds in the team competition. The team were Ngqwangi (69:17), Xolile Ndabeni (70:41), and Madlavana (73:45).
In the 5km SA Championships run on the same day, Border’s top junior male, Endinako Mpondo, finished sixth in his category with a 15:09, a mere five seconds behind Eastern Province’s Thandolwethu Matsalo.
The president of Border Athletics, Sicelo Pongoma, paid tribute to the team and to the management structure of Phaphama Malusi, best known to all in athletics as Papic, and Vuyo Stoto for their logistical arrangements for their team.
Daily Dispatch
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