Hopetown hero, Arthur Jantjies, continued his run of success in Cape Town by claiming victory in the inaugural Nelson Mandela Marathon on Sunday.
The Pan African Resources Club runner was joined atop the podium by Ethiopia’s Bize Beyira Negasa.
Negasa dominated the elite women’s race, winning by over seven minutes.
Both champions ran new personal bests, despite the blustery conditions.
Tough to run fast on the day
A fresh southeasterly breeze and cool conditions made it tough to run fast times, but did not hinder the 4 500 entrants in the marathon distance, or the 22 000 other athletes who took to the 21-, 10-, and 5km routes from loving their morning out on the roads of the Mother City.
The marathon route took in some of South Africa’s oldest town’s most famous sights. These included the historic District Six, Company Gardens and Bo Kaap within the first 10km, followed by coastal runs along the Sea Point Promenade and the road that traces the Table Bay shoreline to Milnerton’s Woodbridge Island.
The opening kilometres, to the top of District Six, were run into a headwind, before the route turned west and the southeaster pushed the contenders for victory along.
After descending from the Bo Kaap into Green Point, the ridgeline linking Signal Hill with Lion’s Head provided welcome shelter from the wind. This helped a group of 30 men stay together through the first 21km.
Jantjies was firmly ensconced in the group. Then pushed on with Tukiso Motlomelo, Llyod Bosman, Tsépo Ramashamole, Moses Tarakinyu, Simon Sibeko, Siboniso Sikhakhane, Lebenya Nkoka, and Ntsebenza Nake. Once they turned at Woodbridge Island, 33km into the course, the wind came into play once more and helped splinter the field further.
Leaving the highway and turning back in the city, with 2km to race, only Ramashamole and Tarakinyu were still in contact with Jantjies.
“At the 40km mark I made my move,” the champion explained.
“I thought that was the moment to empty the tank! I love running in Cape Town. The Mother City is very nurturing to me.”
“The plan for today was to try to run a new personal best, and I achieved that, so I’m really happy with how the race went,” Jantjies, who hails from Hopetown in the Northern Cape, added.
“I had a few niggles coming into my Nelson Mandela Marathon training camp, but I can look back now and say the camp went really well.”
Jantjies’ winning time was 2 hours, 15 minutes, and 14 seconds, a full 4 and a half minutes quicker than his previous best time over the marathon distance.
The title is Jantjies’ third in Cape Town this year, adding to the Two Oceans Ultra Marathon and the 10km Peace Run victories he achieved in April and May.
Ramashamole crossed the finish line in second, just 10 seconds after Jantjies, with Tarakinyu rounding out the podium, 20 seconds down.
Sibeko and Sikhakhane stopped the clock within a minute of the victor, while Nkoka rounded out the top 5, 3 minutes and 17 seconds back.
One-woman race
In the elite women’s race, Negasa exhibited none of the patience Jantjies had needed to exercise. Running on the shoulder of the pace-maker, the Nedbank Running Club athlete kept a metronomic 3 minutes 40 seconds per kilometre pace virtually throughout.
In the first 10km, Malineo Mahloko, Fortunate Chidzivo, and Ethel Pangiso could match Beyira Negasa, but the runners from Lesotho, South Africa, and Zimbabwe would drop away over the next 11km.
By the halfway mark, Negasa led by nearly eight minutes.
Mahloko had endured a difficult spell in the middle part of the race, dropping out of the podium places, but surged past both Chidzivo and Pangiso in the home stretch.
Her fast finish was not enough to reel in the runaway Negasa, however.
The softly spoken Ethiopian stopped the clock in 2 hours, 36 minutes, and 42 seconds. This time is nearly 4 minutes better than her previous personal best, and 7 minutes and 11 seconds faster than Mahloko’s effort on the day.
Chidzivo secured third, but had to fight to hold off another fast finisher, Monique van der Merwe. Pangiso rounded out the top five.
Dominant performance
In the Slave Route Half Marathon, Kenya’s Stephen Ngigi Kangethe took home the title after a dominant performance. His winning margin was an impressive 2 minutes and 18 seconds over the Go Tyme Bank Run Club duo of Yanga Malusi and Rowhaldo Ratz.
Weynalem Haftu Gebre’s margin of victory in the half marathon’s women’s category was even bigger. The Ethiopian bested Kirsti Bell by 8 minutes and 11 seconds, while trail runner Mila Geldenhuys completed the podium places.
“It’s great to see South Africans and Africans excelling on home soil,” David Bellairs, COO of the Nelson Mandela Marathon’s race organisers Galoza South Africa, said.
“A highly competitive men’s race and two personal bests from our champions, despite the difficult conditions, bodes well for the future of the Nelson Mandela Marathon as a race which can attract the continent’s best marathoners.”
“Beyond the elites, the smiles from runners who clocked 3-, 4-, 5-, and even 6-hour times are really special. We’d love athletes to run for a cause and embrace the ethos of the Nelson Mandela Marathon, but we’d also love them to have fun while doing so. I hope the vibe on the roadside, the support of the City of Cape Town and Capetonians, and the beauty of the route continue to bring runners to our roads in the years to come, and that they have a great time running the Nelson Mandela Marathon. And then take the ethos of the race home with them too,” Bellairs concluded.
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2026 Nelson Mandela Marathon Results
Men’s Marathon Results
- Arthur Jantjies: Pan African Resources Club (2:15:14)
- Tsépo Ramashamole: Durban (2:15:24 | +10)
- Moses Tarakinyu: Akasia (2:15:34 | +20)
- Simon Sibeko: Nedbank Running Club Central North West (2:15:59 | +45)
- Siboniso Sikhakhane: Entsika AC CG (2:16:11 | +57)
- Lebenya Nkoka: Durban (2:18:31 | +3:17)
- Ntsebenza Nake: Phantane AC (2:18:53 | +3:39)
- Tumelo Motlagale: Phantane AC (2:19:22 | +4:08)
- Sithembiso Mqhele: Nedbank Club Kwa-Zulu Natal (2:19:47 | +4:33)
- Benjamin Nyongesa: Akasia (2:20:16 | +5:02)
Women’s Marathon Results
- Bize Beyira Negasa: Nedbank Running Club (2:36:42)
- Malineo Mahloko: Durban (2:43:53 | +7:11)
- Fortunate Chidzivo: Akasia (2:49:55 | +13:13)
- Monique van der Merwe: Social Runners Club KZN (2:50:07 | +13:25)
- Ethel Pangiso: Akasia (2:53:24 | +16:42)
- Ilse Marais: Nedbank Running Club CG (2:55:27 | +18:45)
- Jenna Spooner: Maverick Athletic Club CGA (2:58:26 | +21:44)
- Renata Vosloo: Ubora Athletics Club Johannesburg (2:58:59 | +22:17)
- Gina Pocock: Ubora Athletics Club Johannesburg (3:06:01 | +29:19)
- Samantha Shabalala: Fourways Road Runners (3:06:56 | +30:14)
Slave Route Half Marathon Men’s Results
- Stephen Ngigi Kangethe: Akasia (1:03:58)
- Yanga Malusi: Go Tyme Bank Run Club (1:06:16 | +2:18)
- Rowhaldo Ratz: Go Tyme Bank Run Club (1:06:19 | +2:21)
Slave Route Half Marathon Women’s Results
- Weynalem Haftu Gebre: Akasia (1:13:41)
- Kirsti Bell: Kovsies Club (1:21:52 | +8:11)
- Mila Geldenhuys: Go Tyme Bank Run Club (1:23:45 | +10:04)