Seme and McLeod on top at packed Johnson Crane marathon
The 42nd edition of the race was packed with over 13 000 runners.
Hollywood Bets AC’s Sikhumbuzo Seme and Nedbank Running Club’s Bernadene McLeod claimed top honours at the sold-out 42nd Johnson Crane Hire Marathon at Willowmoore Park on January 26.
Seme won the men’s marathon, coming on top in a strong field that included multiple Comrades Marathon gold medallist Charles Tjiane and 2023 Totalsports Two Oceans Marathon winner Givemore Mudzinganyama.
McLeod topped a women’s line-up that included Nobukhosi Tshuma, who claimed her first Comrades gold on debut last year.
The event attracted over 13 000 runners and the organisers, Benoni Harriers, deemed it an enormous success.
Men’s race
After a training camp in December, Seme grabbed his Comrades elite seeding qualification when he hit the ground running on the flat and fast double-lap route to win the men’s 42.2km in 02:24:42.
“I am happy with my performance. It showed that my December training camp has helped. I ran to test my fitness level to see if the camp worked. I was not expecting to finish at 02:24. I was expecting to clock around 02:26 or 02:27. The 02:24 shows I am on the right path,” said Seme.
Veteran Maxed Elite runner Tjiane grabbed the runner-up spot in 02:28:16 and won the men’s masters category.
Thabo Moitsepi completed the top three at 02:29:50.
Women’s race
It became evident Nedbank’s McLeod would win the women’s title after going clear from the 30km mark.
She eventually cut the tape at 03:00:44, 03:36 ahead of second-place Tshuma of Entsika AC, who crossed the line at 03:05:15 for the silver.
Local lass Alison de Bruin of Benoni Northerns Athletic Club (BNAC) crossed the line at 02:42 after Tshuma to grab the last podium position at 03:07:57.
Half-marathon
Nedbank’s recruit, Kabelo Melamu, won the men’s race and former British duathlon world champion Emma Pallant won the women’s event.
Melamu led a Nedbank top-three after denying teammate Lucky Mohale a seventh Johnson Crane half-marathon victory. He held off Mohale on the finishing straight to cut the tape in 01:07:14, with the 39-year-old Mohale crossing the line 39 seconds afterwards.
Their teammate Lebogang Khonkhobe capped off a good afternoon for Nedbank when he grabbed the bronze at 01:08:22.
Former Two Oceans half-marathon winner Pallant, with a PB of 01:03:58 in this distance, was sandwiched by local girls BNAC’s Kailyn Bubb and Nedbank’s Kate van Jaarsveld in the women’s race.
She claimed her victory in 01:19:24, with Bubb second in 01:25:51 and Van Jaarsveld, who won the Spring Striders 15km race a week earlier, third in 01:26:16.
“This win came after a hard week of training. I am using the race to get a good training block in. I need to be running fast by April,” said Pallant.
Bubb praised her idol, Van Jaarsveld, for being inspiring her many young girls in the community.
“My legs are dead, but the mind was strong enough to carry me. It was amazing. Kate has been my idol for a couple of years.
“Being in Benoni, you see her run all the time and ask yourself, what is she doing? She’s incredible, and we are good competitors,” she said.
Nedbank’s Samantha Coetzer (37:41) and Waterfall City AC top runner Bennet Seloyi (31:03) won the women’s and men’s 10km races with Benonian Emma Hickley (24:32) and Lonwabo Mehlomakhulu (24:36) winning the 5km event.
Also Read: Full field expected at Johnson Crane
