Glenrose Xaba ends SA’s six year drought in Spar women’s 10km series

Xaba, who last claimed victory in the series back in 2018, crossed the finish line in an impressive time of 30 minutes and 17 seconds, clinching the race title.

Overwhelmed by her accomplishments, Xaba, representing the Boxer Running Club, expressed disbelief at disrupting Ethiopian dominance.

Diniya Abaraya and Getenesh Agafaw of Ethiopia secured second and third place respectively, with times of 32:24 and 33:02 in an electrifying competition.

Xaba was awarded R33 000 for her victory and an additional R10 000 for being the first South African to cross the finish line in a race that attracted 40 000 entries.

"Yoh, I'm feeling very excited to be the first one to finish the race. As South Africans we are trying our best, I always say as South Africans it's not like we don't want to be the first ones crossing the finish line, we want to. Now is our time to work very hard, I'm showing the ladies that it's possible, we can do it, we can run with those [Ethiopian] ladies and challenge them so that when they come to South Africa they know that, we don't have a chance to win there," Xaba said.

Xaba’s dedication to training has yielded fruitful results as her relentless pursuit of excellence pushes her to exceed her own limits in every race.

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"I am a person that likes to challenge myself from training and the thing that I'm doing on training, I apply it in the race. I don't like to run slow, I want to run fast, Zola Budd and Elena Meyer, they were running very fast. Even Ethopians and Kenyans, they know them, so if you want to make your name, run fast so they can know you."