After she smashed the SA women’s 42.2km record when she won the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon in her debut, Glenrose Xaba could not hide her excitement afterward.
Xaba finished first in 2:22; 22 seconds to beat Mare Dibaba Hurssa of Ethiopia and Kenyan Pascalia Chepkogei. Xaba, who has been in great form this year, broke a record of 2:24:03 set by Gerda Steyn in Valencia in December last year.
The 29-year-old led a pack of eight athletes, and she managed to shake off the last of her pursuers in the chase for the title to become the first SA woman to win the marathon since 2010.
Her performance brought to an end a spectacular year which saw her win the Spar Women’s Grand Prix, while she also broke the SA record in the 10km distance when she ran 32:12. “I’m very excited about my debut. At 33km I felt that now I’m running more than I used to run but I kept my focus because my pacemaker was there,” Xaba told SuperSport TV after the race.
“At 36km, he told me to remain focused and keep going. At 40km, I saw Dibaba pass and I knew I had speed, so I used that because we were close to finishing.” Xaba said her focus now is to run the 5km for her club Boxer Super Run in Pretoria on November 10 before she can take a well-deserved rest.
“The plan now is to rest and do the last 5ks for the boxer to give them back because they are the ones who take care of me,” she said. “Then I get enough rest to become fresh for next year.”
In the men’s race, Ethiopia’s Abdisa Tola Adera won in 2:08:16 with defending champion Adane Kebede Gebre finishing as runners-up. Melikhaya Frans was the first SA man home, finishing fifth in 2:12:18.
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Xaba excited about her debut and plans to take a well-deserved rest
Image: Tobias Ginsberg
After she smashed the SA women’s 42.2km record when she won the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon in her debut, Glenrose Xaba could not hide her excitement afterward.
Xaba finished first in 2:22; 22 seconds to beat Mare Dibaba Hurssa of Ethiopia and Kenyan Pascalia Chepkogei. Xaba, who has been in great form this year, broke a record of 2:24:03 set by Gerda Steyn in Valencia in December last year.
The 29-year-old led a pack of eight athletes, and she managed to shake off the last of her pursuers in the chase for the title to become the first SA woman to win the marathon since 2010.
Her performance brought to an end a spectacular year which saw her win the Spar Women’s Grand Prix, while she also broke the SA record in the 10km distance when she ran 32:12. “I’m very excited about my debut. At 33km I felt that now I’m running more than I used to run but I kept my focus because my pacemaker was there,” Xaba told SuperSport TV after the race.
“At 36km, he told me to remain focused and keep going. At 40km, I saw Dibaba pass and I knew I had speed, so I used that because we were close to finishing.” Xaba said her focus now is to run the 5km for her club Boxer Super Run in Pretoria on November 10 before she can take a well-deserved rest.
“The plan now is to rest and do the last 5ks for the boxer to give them back because they are the ones who take care of me,” she said. “Then I get enough rest to become fresh for next year.”
In the men’s race, Ethiopia’s Abdisa Tola Adera won in 2:08:16 with defending champion Adane Kebede Gebre finishing as runners-up. Melikhaya Frans was the first SA man home, finishing fifth in 2:12:18.
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