Mosiako is hoping to build on his latest comeback by proving he still has the leg speed over 10km.
Long-distance runner Thabang Mosiako hopes to show his opponents a clean pair of heels by finding top gear on Saturday when he lines up at the annual Hollywoodbets 10km race in Durban.
Mosiako has not had the smoothest career.
In 2018, in Potchefstroom, he was brutally assaulted by a group of men after friend and fellow athlete Rantso Mokopane had tried to defend a cashier who was being verbally assaulted by the same group.
Mosiako was eventually able to make a full comeback, regaining his best form. In 2023, he set impressive personal bests over 10km (27:45) and 21km (59:52) and led the SA men’s half-marathon squad to the team bronze medal at the World Road Running Championships in Latvia.
But last year he had a falling out with former coach Michael Mbambani, with Mbambani expelling Mosiako from his training group (along with four other athletes) for allegedly breaking rules during a camp.
Again, however, Mosiako bounced back from the setback, clocking 2:09:14 in his marathon debut in Abu Dhabi in December 2024 and winning the national half-marathon title for the second time in his career in Phalaborwa last month.
‘I’m just going to gooi’
Since leaving Mbambani, though, he has struggled to find his best shape over shorter distances, and he hoped to prove this weekend he still had the leg speed to compete against the country’s top 10km athletes.
“I’m still asking myself ‘where is that shape?’. I’ve been promising myself I’m going to come back to that sub-28 (over the 10km distance) and it’s very painful, but I can see a light after the SA Half-Marathon Championships,” he said.
“I think maybe I must just relax. The shape will come. I must just stick to my plans and stick to my training.
“I’ve been training so well. I’m healthy, I’m mentally strong, and I think on Saturday if the weather is good, I’m just going to ‘gooi’.”
Strong line-ups
Mosiako is up against a strong field at the Hollywoodbets 10km race, which is expected to be held in favourable conditions on a flat course, giving athletes an opportunity to chase fast times.
He is up against the likes of in-form athlete Kabelo Mulaudzi and veteran Stephen Mokoka.
The women’s field is spearheaded by SA record holder Glenrose Xaba, as well as Tayla Kavanagh, who is in the form of her life, and Lesotho’s Neheng Khatala who won the race last year.
The Hollywoodbets 10km race in Durban will be broadcast live on Saturday from 6.30am on SABC 2.
