News article

NRC KWAZULU-NATAL (KZN)

Absa Run Your City Durban 10K

The standout story of the weekend came from the Durban beachfront, where Jenna Challenor did something few mothers get to experience - she paced her own daughter, Rylee, to a huge personal best, with the pair crossing the finish line together in an identical time of 38:15. That shared result was also good enough to hand Jenna the win in the Women's 40-49 category, a "sneaky" age-group victory by her own admission, achieved while doing the hard work of guiding Rylee through the closing kilometres of the race.

In the day leading up to the event, Jenna had spoken about what a privilege it was to simply stand on the same start line as her daughter, joking about whether her Comrades-conditioned legs could keep up with the next generation, and adding that no matter the outcome, every step run together would be treasured. As it turned out, mother and daughter didn't just run together - they finished together, stride for stride, in a moment that captures exactly what makes this club feel like family.

Reflecting on the race afterwards, Jenna thanked the Run Your City organising team for another next-level event on Durban's iconic beachfront, praising the atmosphere and organisation that the race is known for. Teammate Fikile Mbuthuma also flew the Nedbank flag high in the same ultra-competitive age group, finishing 4th in 40:33 to help make it a memorable day for the women in green. Two generations,one green vest, one identical finishing time - Durban won't forget the Challenors in a hurry.

NRC GAUTENG (CGA)

It was a big weekend for Nedbank's Gauteng athletes, with standout performances across two major events on the province's road running calendar.

Leon Bezuidenhout Springbok Vasbyt

At the Leon Bezuidenhout Springbok Vasbyt, held at the historic Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria, Nedbank produced a dominant 1-2 finish overall in the 21.1km, with Albert Kangor crossing the line first in 1:28:26 and Pieter Swanepoel following him home in 1:33:24 - a result the pair also doubled up on in the Men's 40-49 category, again finishing 1st and 2nd. Musa Motha added a 3rd place finish in the same age group, clocking 1:52:39. The women were just as impressive: Dalene Sonnekus finished 3rd overall and won the Women's 60-69 category outright in 1:54:31, while Liesel-Marie Fritz claimed 2nd in the 40-49 division in 1:58:40. Over the 10km distance, Marie Snyman-Jacobs added a 2nd place finish in the Women's 50-59 category in 1:08:09. In the 5km, young gun Kai Hattingh also impressed, finishing 3rd on the day.

Rockies Gerald Fox Memorial Race with Discovery Vitality

A day later, Kabelo Melamu impressed over the 21.1km half marathon distance at the Rockies Gerald Fox Memorial Race, finishing 3rd in the Open category in a time of 1:11:02, while clubmate Estrelita Kotze also flew the Nedbank flag high, finishing in the top three overall. Barry Chapman added to the club's tally with a 3rd place finish in the Men's 50-59 category, and in the Junior Men's race Mphumi Kozana, representing Nedbank Soweto, claimed 2nd place in a time of 36:56. Over the shorter distance, Tebogo Mokgosinyane claimed top honours in the Veterans category of the 10km, crossing the line in 41:52 to take the win, capping off a hugely successful weekend for the Gauteng squad.

NRC WESTERN PROVINCE (WPA)

Western Province also enjoyed a strong weekend, with good results across trail running and cross country.

Out on the trails, Ronan Macey flew the Nedbank WPA flag at the Bastille Day Trail Run in Franschhoek, taking the outright win in the 10km trail category in a swift 51:03 - a superb result in a competitive field of 383 finishers.

On the cross country front, Nedbank Running Club WPA enjoyed a superb showing at League 5, held at Jan Kriel School, with athletes claiming outright wins across six different categories. Andrew Cooper topped the Men's 55-59 category in 30:20, Anthony Grendon continued his fine form with victory in the Men's 65-69 division in 22:08, and Robbie Lindsay completed a strong showing for the men's masters ranks with the win in the 70+ category in 29:07. The women were equally dominant at the top of the podium, with Petra Oerson winning the Women's 35-39 category in 17:49, Kobie Griffiths taking the Women's 40-44 title in 15:03, and Anneline Roffey leading a full club sweep of the Women's 45-49 podium in 15:41, ahead of Rolandi Schutte in 16:00 and Tanya Posthumus-Fox in 16:14.

Nedbank athletes also featured prominently further down the podium. Thebe Solani was 2nd in the Junior Men's race in 24:29, while Marcelino Booysen claimed 3rd in the Senior Men's 4km in 12:00. In the age-group ranks, Johan Oerson was 2nd in the Men's 35-39 in 25:44, Riaan Wildschut 2nd in the Men's 40-44 in 25:42, and Vakalisa Kopolo 3rd in the Men's 45-49 in 26:49. On the junior side, Luke Rudolph took 3rd in the Boys' U15 in 12:48, and Zarah Lewis claimed 3rd in the Girls' U16 in 15:26.

Several of the Western Province Masters were honoured off the track, with Anthony Grendon, Kobie Griffiths, Rolandi Schutte and Shaun Simpson all recognised at the WPA Masters Track & Field Awards 2026 evening.

NRC EASTERN PROVINCE (EPA)

Nedbank's Eastern Province athletes turned Strelitzia Park green on Saturday, filling podium positions across almost every age category on offer at EPA Cross Country League 3.

On the men's side, Andile Motwani finished 3rd in the Senior Men's 10km in 32:40, while Mzolisi Makhanda and Thulani Mdlalo went one-two in the 40-49 age group over 8km, clocking 28:14 and 28:51 respectively. Christopher Mabengeza claimed 3rd in the 60-69 category over 6km in 26:14, and Raymond Weitz took the win in the 70-74 division in 30:05. The club's oldest competitors were equally impressive, with Eddie Eades winning the 75+ 4km race in 21:19 ahead of clubmate Don Charles in 21:52. Jeandry Deerling rounded out the men's results with 3rd place in the Senior Men's 4km in 15:27.

The women were every bit as dominant. Refeloe Solomons won both the Senior Women's 10km (41:47) and the Senior Women's 4km (16:19) - a rare double on the day. Liza-Marie Kingston took the honours in the Women's 40-49 4km in 16:46, and Liezl van Zyl added 2nd place in the 50-59 category in 18:18. Christine Claasen won the Women's 60-69 4km outright in 19:24. Among the youngsters, Gabrielle Schweyer finished 3rd in the Girls' Under-9 2km in a rapid 9:44, while Kylie Dorfling took top spot in the Girls' Under-14 category in 16:56.

NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Nedbank Running Club also had representation on the national stage this week, with Rika Rossouw claiming 1st Female Overall at the SA Duathlon Championships 2026 - a superb individual achievement and a proud moment for the club nationally.

CLOSING

From a mother pacing her daughter to a shared finish line in Durban, to sweeping podiums in Pretoria, Johannesburg and Uitenhage, this week's results are a snapshot of everything that makes Nedbank Running Club special - depth across every age group, strength across every region, and a genuine sense of family that shows up in the results as much as it does in the photos afterwards. Congratulations to every athlete who raced this week, and to the coaches, committee members and support crews who make it all possible. Here's to another strong week of running ahead.