In the build-up to the new season, we take a look at five South African road runners who are expected to shine during the 2025 campaign.
Glenrose Xaba
Having made gradual progress over the last few years, Xaba really enjoyed a breakthrough season last year.
After clipping one second off the long-standing SA 10km record, clocking 31:12 at the Absa Run Your City race in Durban, she went on to win the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon on debut in 2:22:22. She also won the national 10km and 21km titles in 2024 and secured victory in the Spar Grand Prix series.
Under the guidance of Violet and Caster Semenya, Xaba will be eager to carry her momentum into the new year, and she will have more national titles and potentially more records in her sights.
Already a dominant force at domestic level, perhaps we will also see her spreading her wings a bit more this year and participating more regularly in international races.
Elroy Gelant
One of South Africa’s most experienced athletes, Gelant made waves last year by producing perhaps the best season of his lengthy career.
He won the national marathon and half-marathon titles, set a 10km personal best of 27:47, lowered his 42km best to 2:08:56, and finished 11th in the Olympic marathon.
At the age of 38, he is in the shape of his life, and Gelant is likely to have another great season in 2025.
A former national 5 000m record holder on the track, he has earned medals at the African Championships, World Student Games and World Road Running Championships, and with the speed he still has in his legs, it seems like his best might still be yet to come.
Gerda Steyn
The only athlete to win the Totalsports Two Oceans ultra-marathon five times, Steyn also has three Comrades Marathon titles to her name, and even more impressive has been her record-breaking spree in recent years, having shattered long-standing marks held by the legendary Frith van der Merwe.
In addition, Steyn has twice broken the South African standard marathon (42.2km) record.
She has confirmed she will defend her Comrades and Two Oceans titles this year, and at some point she says she wants to try and claim the national marathon mark back from Glenrose Xaba.
Regardless of which races she runs this season, however, Steyn is likely to shine again, and her own ultra-marathon records could be in danger.
Onalenna Khonkhobe
After winning the Two Oceans ultra-marathon last year, becoming the first South African to claim the men’s title since 2019, Khonkhobe went on to win the popular Soweto Marathon by launching a magnificent fight in the closing stages of the 42km race.
Khonkhobe finished sixth at the Two Oceans 56km contest in 2022, but he made a real breakthrough last season, shattering the ceiling as he joined the ‘big dogs’ of South African road running.
In the closing stages of the Soweto Marathon, he raised one arm in triumph as he made his charge down a sharp hill in his surge for victory. He’s also been open about his self-belief in press conferences, where he is not shy to talk himself up. And he backs it up on the road.
Based on his confidence and his recent form, he will be tough to beat this year.
Thabang Mosiako
Mosiako enjoyed some good form last season, again dipping under 28 minutes over 10km, but it was his marathon debut in Abu Dhabi in December that really turned heads after he clocked an impressive time of 2:09:14.
In a great season for SA marathon running, Mosiako was one of five men who dipped under 2:10:00, and though he was not the quickest (he was ranked third behind Elroy Gelant and Adam Lipschitz) he has already shown he has the pedigree to shine over 42km.
A former national champion over 5 000m on the track and 21km on the road, Mosiako has the experience and the natural ability to go a fair bit quicker than he did in his first attempt at the classic distance.
He will also be a threat once again over shorter distances on the road this year.
* Featured image of Glenrose Xaba by Michael Sheehan/Gallo Images
