#Comrades2025: Mncube leads Qhubeka AC at 98th Comrades Marathon
A total of 52 runners finished the race, out of 70 starters.
Siyabonga Mncube led the Qhubeka Athletic Club cohort with a Bill Rowan medal at the 98th Comrades Marathon on June 8.
After a grueling 89.98km from Pietermaritzburg to Durban, Mncube crossed the finish line at the People’s Park in 07:37:59, becoming the first Qhubeka athlete to complete the race.
Hulikani Nyathi followed closely, finishing in 07:52:28 as the only other club member to break the eight-hour mark. Reuben Moraba rounded out Qhubeka’s top three with a time of 08:01:12.
Marionè de Beer led the women’s team, smashing her previous best of 10:24:23 from last year’s up run. She clocked 09:33:57, improving by nearly 51 minutes. Busisiwe Pakati was next in 09:39:17, with Disebo Thebapelo completing the women’s podium in 10:07:55.
Qhubeka AC earned an impressive medal haul: 10 Bill Rowan, nine Robert Mtshali, 17 bronze, and 16 Vic Clapham medals. Of the 70 runners who started the race in Pietermaritzburg, 52 made it to the Durban finish line.
Tete Dijana claimed his third Comrades win, finishing in 05:25:28—just five seconds ahead of defending champion Piet Wiersma. Nikolai Volkov placed third in 05:29:42.
Gerda Steyn secured her third consecutive Comrades title and fourth overall, winning the women’s race in 05:51:19. 2022 winner Alexandra Morozova followed in 05:55:56, while Kenya’s Shelmisth Muriuki placed third in 06:07:56.
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