Onalenna Khonkhobe earned his third major victory in two years on Sunday.
It is unclear when he might return to the Comrades Marathon, but Onalenna Khonkhobe says he will focus on shorter distance races for the foreseeable future.
One of South Africa’s top long-distance road runners, Khonkhobe has achieved some impressive results in the last two seasons, having won both the Two Oceans 56km ultra-marathon in Cape Town and the 42km Soweto Marathon last year. And he added the 50km City 2 City title in Gauteng on Sunday.
He might be best known, however, for opening massive leads at the 89km Comrades Marathon twice in the last few years, before dropping out in the closing stages.
After securing the City 2 City title on Sunday, completing the race in 2:52:01 to finish more than a minute clear of runner-up Tebogo Pulusa (2:53:25), Khonkhobe said a return to Comrades was not on his mind at the moment.
Instead, he would turn out in defence of his Soweto Marathon title in November, and he hoped to represent South Africa at the World Road Running Championships in Copenhagen in September next year.
‘I’m excited to represent SA’
Khonkhobe’s fastest half-marathon time this year was outside the top 10 in the national rankings, but he did finish third in the 21km race at the SA Road Running Championships in Phalaborwa in July in 1:04:17.
He would need to perform well again at the 2026 SA Road Running Championships to be selected for the national team, but he felt this was within his reach.
“I want to run the half-marathon at the World Road Running Championships and I will try run 59 minutes (more than three minutes faster than his personal best of 1:03:13). I’m so excited to represent South Africa,” Khonkhobe said after his victory at City 2 City.
The women’s race at City 2 City, held between Johannesburg and Pretoria, was won by Kenyan athlete Margaret Jepchumba in 3:11:14, nearly eight minutes ahead of Ethiopia’s Worke Degu Amena (3:18:59).
Jenet Mbhele was the first SA woman home, finishing sixth in 3:28:35.
