Elroy Gelant reclaims the SA marathon title with a new course record

The 37-year-old athlete conquered the Durban International Marathon, doubling as the ASA Marathon Championships, held at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Sunday morning.

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Gelant shattered the course record, previously held at 2:10:10 by Tebello Ramakongoana of Lesotho in 2023, with an impressive time of 2 hours, 09 minutes, and 32 seconds.

His stellar performance earned him the winner’s purse of R75 000. 

Despite his achievement, Gelant narrowly missed the Olympic qualifying mark of 2:08:10.

He remains optimistic about securing a spot in the Paris Games through the points ranking system, aiming for his third appearance.

 ''It will mean a lot to me. I told myself that this year I want that third Olympics, it was difficult last year in terms of the preparations, getting myself that extra motivation to qualify but when the year started it was an automatic switch on to say it is Olympics time,'' said Gelant.

Meanwhile, Matthews Leeto claimed second place with a time of 2:09:47, earning R40 000, while Stephen Mokoka clinched third place in 2:09:52, taking home a prize of R15 000.

 Under the guidance of Coach Jean Verster, Gelant is experiencing the peak of his athletics career, evident in his remarkable achievements.

In February, he set a new personal record of 2:08:56 at the Seville Marathon in Spain. Recently, Gelant clinched second place at the Absa Run Your City 10km in Gqeberha. Clocking in at an impressive 28 minutes and 17 seconds.

He proved that his achievement was no fluke when he upset a competitive field in Durban.

''It is probably the consistency over the years, I started when I was 9-years and now 37, and it has been about 26 years of experience. The consistency has given me the ability to do what I do '' added Gelant.

Gelant says that winning the national title in an Olympic year was an honour as he had prepared well for the marathon.

The race was a tight competition between Gelant, Leeto, and Mokoka, but Gelant had the extra reserves to secure the victory and earn the title of the newly crowned South African marathon champion, along with the bragging rights.