'We've got to make it worthwhile for elite SA women to continue with running' - Absa RYC pays R430 000 in incentives as Xaba cashes in for new SA Record

Two months before Glenrose Xaba celebrated her sixth birthday, a national running icon set a benchmark that would go on to define Xaba’s career. Running in Hungary on the 14th of October 2001, Elana Meyer took second place at the Budapest Avon Women’s Running 10km road race in 31:13 - the fastest time ever run by a South African woman. It is a mar that would endure for more than two decades until Xaba came along and broke it on 7 July 2014 at the Absa RUN YOUR CITY DURBAN 10K.

Before her magical run in the Indian Ocean city, Xaba’s personal best was 31:55. For this reason, even though she was in good form, she had not been expecting to break the record. “I was not expecting to run that fast, but I knew that I have something special in my legs like 31 minutes before we can go for the national record. But God answered me and gave me the national record. I’m very happy to break the national record because I promised Michael that I one day I will break the national record and I will be ver happy if I could break it in the Absa RYC,” said the Boxer Athletic Club top runner.

Xaba says she will plans to invest the R145 000 she won at the Absa RUN YOUR CITY DURBAN 10K, while putting some money aside for to renovate her family home. Photo Credit: Action Photo.

Before 7 July, many believed that Africa’s talented distance runners needed to travel to Europe, the United States, or Asia to achieve fast times. However, the iconic Durban race proved once and for all that world-class performances are indeed possible on African soil. Finishing in fourth place overall and as the first South African woman, Glenrose Xaba shaved a single second off the Olympic silver medalist’s time, to earn R130 000 in bonuses - R80 000 for running under 31:33 with a further R50 000 for breaking the record. Xaba also earned an additional R15 000 for her fourth-place finish, taking her winnings to an impressive, combined total of R145 000.

Lesotho's Neheng Khatala finished in 32:01 to secure fifth position and set a new national record for The Mountain Kingdom. For running under 32:08, Khatala earned R60 000. Photo Credit: Action Photo.

Managing Director of Stillwater Sports and Founder of the Absa RUN YOUR CITY Series Michael Meyer revealed that R430 000 in incentives were paid out to local athletes who competed at the Absa DURBAN 10K where four SA men dipped under 28 minutes in the same race for the first time in history. Elroy Gelant won the fast and flat 10km race in a personal best time of 27:47. The first five men finished in under 28 minutes, with four of them being South African. Gelant, Kabelo Mulaudzi (27:53), Thabang Mosiako (27:54) and Stephen Mokoka (27:55) pocket R60 000 each for their efforts in a race where eight of the top eleven men ran faster than they had ever done in their lives before.

For Meyer though, Xaba’s run was more meaningful because it set a new standard in female distance running in the country which he hopes will inspire more up and coming female top runners to stay in the sport. "In female running in South Africa there’s a huge drop off as they leave school. This is the bridge that we’ve got to cross. We’ve got to make sure that on the elite level women in SA feel that its worthwhile continuing with running as a sport. If you look at the mass participation field of any 10Km event in South Africa, it’s dominated by women. And so there should be more female champions on the highest level than male champions. This is a mission that the Absa RUN YOUR CITY Series is on. We hope that there will be many more women that challenge Glenrose in future."