CAPE TOWN - Lightning, so the saying goes, does not strike at the same place twice. But Papie Michaell Mazibuko will be hoping to defy this when he lines up for tomorrow’s Soweto Marathon starting at FNB Stadium.
As the last South African man to win the race back in 2011, Mazibuko is keen to end the foreign domination of the People’s Race. And he believes the omens are good for his second triumph.
“I think I am in great shape and ready to compete with the other top athletes.”
And it is the kind of build-up he has had to tomorrow’s run that has him even more confident he will reign supreme. “Last week I won the Diepkloof Marathon. And back in 2011 when I won Soweto Marathon, I did the same thing - winning the race a week before the big day.” A good omen perhaps. But Mazibuko is going to have to dig deep if he is to make South Africa proud in a race that will have some top Kenyan runners with great pedigree competing.
That he never got to defend his title or feature prominently in recent years was because of him having different priorities.
“My target was always on the Cape Town Marathon which is the only Gold Label status race in Africa. My best performance there came in 2015 when I finished third. So I have not been paying much attention to Soweto. But this year I am ready to fight for honours again,” he explained.