Mapaseka Makhanya after finishing the Cape Town leg of the SPAR Women’s Challenge, at Greenpoint Stadium in March this year.
Photo: Reg Caldecott
With two SPAR Women’s 10km races to go, Mapaseka Makhanya appears to have one hand on the keys to a new Nissan Micra, which will be awarded to the runner with the most points in the five-race SPAR Grand Prix series.
However, Makhanya will be aware that she still has some work to do to make absolutely sure that the car is hers.
Among those breathing down her neck are last year’s winner, Rene Kalmer, and her sister, Christine. The former was plagued by injury and illness earlier this year, and was not the dominant force she normally is.
She had to withdraw from the Port Elizabeth race due to a calf injury sustained in the Boston Marathon, but says she is back to her best and will try to wrestle the keys away from Makhanya.
“My training is going well, and I’m feeling very good,” said Kalmer. “I lost a bit of ground in the Grand Prix because I couldn’t run in Port Elizabeth, but I am aiming for a top-three Grand Prix finish – and if things go well in Pretoria on Saturday and in Johannesburg in October, who knows what could happen.”
Makhanya currently tops the Grand Prix ladder, with 67 points, followed by nearest rival, Christine Kalmer, with 48.
“Christine is running very well at the moment,” said her sister. “She gives me a good go at training, and she really could challenge for the top spot.
“Mapaseka is running very well, so she’s going to be hard to beat, but Christine has gained so much confidence and she’s a very different athlete from what she was a year ago. She really has a good chance of overturning Mapaseka’s Grand Prix lead on Saturday.”
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