Two-time Durban series winner Precious Mashele will race young rival Modupe Tladi at the Boxer Super Run Joburg 5km on Sunday.
Both men run for the Boxer Athletics Club. Teammates Kyla Jacobs and Cacisile Sosibo will lead the club in the elite women’s race on the rolling Marks Park route.
“As I am now getting older, I don’t have the speed of the younger guys, but I am currently training for the Cape Town Marathon,” Mashele said.
Mashele is using the 5km race as part of his build-up to the Cape Town Marathon. He said the hills could help him.
“The route has hills, and I hope my strength on the climbs will give me a chance against the younger guys,” he said. “As an old soldier, I would be very pleased if I managed to achieve a top-10 finish against the young guns.”
The Joburg race is a different test from the Durban leg of the series. Durban is at sea level and is known for very fast times.
Ryan Mphahlele set the Durban course record of 13:37 last year. Amogelang Tatai won there in 13:38 last month. Mashele ran a South African 5km record of 13:44 in Durban in 2024.
Joburg sits high on the highveld, and its hills make the race harder. At the first Joburg race last year, Mphahlele won the men’s title in 14:20. Glenrose Xaba won the women’s race in 16:14.
Tladi, who runs from Bramley, will make his Boxer Super Run debut. He won the Region 5 Marathon 5km in Tshwane earlier this month in 13:53.
That time is almost half a minute faster than Mphahlele’s winning time in Joburg in 2025. It is also close to Luan Munnik’s 13:50 win at the 2024 Tshwane leg of the series.
In Tshwane, Tladi beat Musawenkosi Mnisi and Zenzile Pheko. The same two runners finished third and fourth in Joburg last year, in 14:30 and 14:39.
“I think the Boxer Super Run is a good event that will really suit me if there are hills,” Tladi said. “My goal in Joburg is to finish in the top three.”
In the women’s race, Jacobs and Sosibo will both run in Joburg for the first time.
Jacobs, from Somerset West, finished third in Durban last month in 15:57. Xaba won that race in 15:29, and Karabo More was second in 15:47.
Jacobs’ Durban time is well under the 16:14 that Xaba needed to win at Marks Park in 2025.
“I finished third at the Boxer Super Run in Durban, so I will be looking to improve on that performance and move up the podium,” Jacobs said.
Sosibo, who is based in Soweto, had a strong Spar Grand Prix season. Her steady results put her at the top of the 10km series standings before last month’s Joburg final.
She has also finished on the podium at the Boxer Super Run in Durban before.
“My goal is to run smart, have a controlled start, a strong middle and a fast finish,” Sosibo said. “With 5km racing, you need speed, but also patience.”
The elite women’s race starts at 9.45am on Sunday, and the elite men’s race follows at 10am.
Source: this article is based on reporting by IOL Sport. Image: IOL Sport. Written with the help of AI and published by the Tzaneen Voice Sports desk. See our Editorial Standards.
Tiyani Mathebula writes about sport for Tzaneen Voice. Tiyani covers Bafana Bafana, the Springboks, the Proteas and the PSL, along with athletics, tennis and local club sport. Match reports and previews focus on results, team news, fixtures and what each game means for South African teams and fans.