‘I want to go faster’: Mokoka still has SA record in his sights

Distance runner Stephen Mokoka believes the national 42km record is still within his grasp after delivering another superb performance on Sunday to win the Cape Town Marathon.

Mokoka made history by becoming the first man to win the prestigious race for the third time.

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Though he finished outside the race record of 2:08:31, which he set in 2018, he coasted to a convincing victory in 2:09:58, successfully defending the title he won last year.

The 37-year-old athlete, who holds the national half-marathon record and broke the 50km world record earlier this year, holds a personal best of 2:07:40 over the standard marathon distance.

And while his career best was set seven years ago – in one of his four victories at the Shanghai Marathon in China – he remained confident of targeting the SA 42km record of 2:06:33 which was set by Gert Thys in Tokyo in 1999.

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“In future, I would like to run faster. Maybe a 2:06 because I’ve run 2:07 and I think I’m in the prime of my career,” Mokoka said.

“But for now I’m just taking it easy. I think I’m going to take a break after this race and prepare for next season.”