JOHANNESBURG – Fifteen thousand women will observe a moment of silence for victims of gender-based violence and femicide at Marks Park on Sunday before the final SPAR Grand Prix race gets underway.
Then the silence will give way to the roar of competition as Glenrose “Supercharger” Xaba launches her bid for a piece of history.
The defending champion can become the first athlete to win the SPAR Grand Prix four times if she takes the Jozi SPAR Women’s 10km Challenge, but the title race remains wide open.
Cacisile Sosibo leads the standings on 99 points, 10 ahead of Xaba on 89. Ethiopian Selam Gebre is third on 86, while Karabo More and Karabo Mailula remain in contention.
The five-race series counts an athlete’s best four results, keeping Xaba’s title defence alive after she missed the Durban leg while representing South Africa in the United States.
Sosibo has built her advantage through consistency. She has finished inside the top 10 in every race and collected maximum bonus points in three of them.
Xaba arrives in Johannesburg with momentum in her stride. She won last weekend’s Gqeberha SPAR Women’s Challenge in 31:17, the second-fastest 10km of her career. The 31-year-old Boxer athlete holds the South African 10km record of 31:12.
Her Boxer teammates Sosibo, More and Mailula will know exactly what pace she can unleash, while Gebre will be looking to disrupt the South African charge. Ethiopian junior Dirbe Dogne will make her SPAR Women’s Challenge debut.
Race director Brad Glasspoole says the series format means the championship can still be reshaped by Sunday’s results.
Adding another dimension to the event is South African ultra-running star Gerda Steyn.
The Hollywood Running Club athlete, a multiple Two Oceans and Comrades Marathon winner, will race the 10km before leading the moment of silence alongside the 15 000 participants.
Steyn has backed SPAR’s campaign against GBV and said the issue could not be ignored.
“Something must be done about the horrific levels of GBV in South Africa,” Steyn said.
“These have been highlighted by the spate of killings in Ekurhuleni. Women should be able to go about their daily lives without fear and if they want to run, they should be free to do so without wondering whether they will get home safely,” she said.
The single-lap 10km starts at 08:00 and finishes at Marks Park, taking runners through Emmarentia, Greenside, Linden and Parkview. The mainly flat-to-undulating course combines long, fast straights with steady climbs and passes landmarks including the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens and Melville Koppies.
First comes the silence.
Then comes the sprint for the crown.
