Cape Town — Olympian Precious Mashele looks the pick of the men's field for Sunday's Absa Run Your City 10K series in Cape Town, after his record-breaking form in Gqeberha last month.
Mashele finished second to Kenya's Daniel Ebenyo (0:27:21), but Mashele's time of 0:27:35 was a South African 10km record.
Ebenyo is not in the Cape Town field and Mashele will face stiff competition from fellow countryman Thabang Mosiako (0:27:52), who was the only other athlete in Gqeberha to finish the 10K in under 28 minutes.
Apart from Mashele and Mosiako, the other leading contenders for honours are Anthony Timoteus, Melikhaya Frans, Elroy Gelant and Kenyan Denis Kipngetich, who finished fourth in Gqeberha (0:28:01).
An interesting inclusion in the field is 38-year-old South African road running legend Stephen Mokoka, who dreams of a sub-28-minute 10km on South African soil.
"Now it’s my dream and wish to also run a sub 28 here in South Africa," said Mokoka, who for many years has been the flag bearer of South African road running. "I did it overseas (27:38, Manchester 2015, the then SA record), so now I also want to do it here at home.
"It’s exciting to see Precious (Mashele) with the new SA record (27:35), Maxi (Maxime Chaumeton – 27:58) and Thabang (Mosiako – 27:52) running fast and they did it on home soil."
There is an exceptionally strong elite women’s field with the likes of Uganda’s Prisca Chesang, who boasts a 10km personal best time of 30:19, South Africa’s Glenrose Xaba, Lesotho’s Neheng Khatala, Zimbabwe’s Fortunate Chidzivo and Kenya’s Veronica Loleo the strongest candidates for line honours.
Ethiopian runner Bekelech Teku Wariyo (0:31:36) and Frida Ndinda, from Kenya (0:31:41) prevailed in the inaugural 10K Gqeberha event.
Xaba looks the pick of the SA runners to end the domination of the "Foreign Legion" in the elite women's field.
The race starts at Woodbridge Island, Milnerton, at 8am, and 12 000 runners have entered the event, which ends at lower Long Street in central Cape Town.
IOL Sport