- Galeitsiwe and Too overcome late-race pressure, challenging conditions and strong winds to claim the prestigious 42.2km titles
TLOTLO KEBINAKGABO
Kefilwe Galeitsiwe and Lazarus Too delivered determined performances at the Orange Phikwe Marathon, winning the women’s and men’s 42.2km races after navigating a demanding course and difficult conditions.
Galeitsiwe crossed the finish line first in the women’s marathon in 2:50:22, ahead of Kitsiso Joseph, who finished in 2:52:19, while Rudo Mohunderwa secured third position in 2:52:43.
The victory followed a challenging race for the athlete, who admitted that maintaining momentum over the final kilometres required both physical and mental strength.
“The race was quite hectic,” Galeitsiwe said. “I would say in the first half of it I was cruising nicely and towards 30km I shut down a bit.”
She said she realised she could not maintain the lead for the entire race without risking being caught towards the finish. The runner from Molepolole was eventually overtaken before the 38km mark but managed to fight her way back into contention.
“I told myself that I can’t give up at the last half of the race when I came all the way from Molepolole to Phikwe, that’s when I fought myself back into the race,” she said.
Wind challenge
Galeitsiwe described the route as challenging, particularly due to strong winds experienced around the 35km mark.
The marathon winner said her first 42.2km race in April produced a national record and encouraged her to return with the aim of achieving a better time.
“I did my first 42.2 km on April and did a national record, it was such a great move for me because I wanted to do a better time,” she said.
In the men’s race, Kenya’s Lazarus Too defended his title after winning in 2:20:09. Amos Kipchirchir finished second in 2:20:13, while Israel Mudimba completed the podium in 2:22:16.
Too said the race was difficult, especially after dealing with injuries during the year.
“The race was tough, I was struggling because I had injuries this year because I didn’t perform well this year but I thank God I managed to defend my title,” he said.
He added that he secured victory after applying pressure at 31km and noticing that his competitor could not respond.
“The running course was okay, the only thing that made it difficult was the wind,” he said.
The winners of the 42.2km category received P30 000.