Cape Town Marathon hit by mass late withdrawals

While next weekend’s Cape Town Marathon may still boast an impressive field, it’s been hard hit by a number of late withdrawals of elite runners.

The race will take place on Sunday, 24 May.

In a social media post on Friday morning, race organisers stated: “Sport is unpredictable, and sadly a number of athletes who we were excited to welcome to the start line will no longer be competing at the 2026 Sanlam Cape Town Marathon.

“We wish them well and hope to see them back on the blue carpet soon.”

Full list

The list of elites who have pulled out of the race reads: Elroy Gelant, Emma Pallant-Browne, Kane Reilly, Nadeel Wildschutt, Precious Mashele, Stephen Kiprop, Shuko Genemo and Thabang Mosiako.

In terms of fastest times ever run, Kiprop is the biggest loss. He ran 2:03:37 in Berlin in 2024.

Gelant holds the South African marathon record of 2:05:36, while Wildschutt (2:09:30) and Mosiako (2:10:49) had outside chances at a podium finish.

Mashele and Reilly were due to run their debut marathons.

In the women’s race, Genemo held the ninth-fastest entry time of 2:21:35, while Pallant-Browne was due to make her marathon debut.

‘Disappointment’

Elroy Gelant commented on his withdrawal, saying: “It’s with disappointment that I share I won’t be lining up at this year’s Sanlam Cape Town Marathon due to a recurring injury.

“Wishing all the runners the very best on race day, and to everyone visiting the beautiful city of Cape Town, may your enjoy every moment ad embrace the incredible experience on the road to Africa’s first Abbot World Marathon Major.

“A sincere thank you to the organisers for your care, understanding, and support during this time, it is truly appreciated.”

Race organisers added: “While we are saddened to see these athletes unable to compete, the 2026 Sanlam Cape Town Marathon elite field remains one of the deepest and most exciting we have ever assembled.

“From Eliud Kipchoge to Edna Kiplagate, the start lines across race weekend are still stacked with world class talent, and we cannot wait to see them take part on the blue carpet.”

Increased prize money

Elite athletes will be racing not only for line honours in the 15th edition of Africa’s premier marathon, but also for a share of the significantly increased prize purse, with the total prize purse for the event, including the marathon, wheelchair race, 10km Peace Run and three Trail Runs, having climbed 37% from R3 554 500 to R4 862 500.

When all the record incentives are added, the total prize purse on offer amounts to a massive R6 602 500.

Records broken?

Given the stacked fields in both men’s and women’s races, the event organisers feel confident that both the course records will be under threat this year, and this would once again see the Cape Town Marathon produce the fastest marathon times ever run on African soil.

The best times to date in the event were both posted in the 2024 edition.

Ethiopian Abdisa Tola won the men’s race in 2:08:16, while South Africa’s Glenrose Xaba set both the women’s course record and a new SA record when she crossed the line in 2:22:22.

Star Power in Cape Town

The 2026 race will see more than 27 000 marathon runners lining up, with many not just chasing fast times on the super-fast course but also incentivised to earn an Abbott World Marathon Majors (AbbottWMM) finisher’s star.

The race is currently a candidate for AbbottWMM status, and the AbbottWMM team has announced that athletes who complete the 2026 edition of the Mother City race will be awarded provisional finisher’s stars, which will then be officially recognised if Cape Town achieves its second evaluation pass in 2026 and becomes Africa’s first Major.

Added to this, a first for this year’s race is Cape Town playing host to the AbbottWMM Marathon Tours & Travel Age Group World Championship.

This will see 1 800 of the world’s leading age-group marathoners competing for global titles in five-year age categories from 40-44 to over 80 years – and will bring even more international visitors to enjoy the biggest marathon experience on the African continent.

Incredible Depth in Men’s Field

All eyes will be on Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge, the former world record-holder, two-time Olympic champion and the only man ever to run a sub-2-hour marathon (1:59:40 in the INEOS Challenge, but not a World Record).

On paper, he is the fastest man in the field, with a personal best of 2:01:09, which set a (then) world record in 2022.

At 41, he is still posting world-class times, having clocked 2:05:25 in London last year, which still makes him one of the fastest runners in the field for Cape Town in terms of recent best times.

“It is truly special for me to run my first ever marathon on African soil. The Cape Town Marathon represents not only a beautiful and dynamic race, but also a powerful connection to the continent that has shaped so many great athletes,” says Kipchoge.

“I am excited to experience this event for the first time, to feel the energy of the course, and most importantly, to meet and share this moment with the fans. Running has always been about unity, and I look forward to celebrating that spirit together in Cape Town.”

Veteran Women May Hold Sway

The elite women’s race may see the Ethiopian trio of Ruti Aga (2:18:09), Dera Dida (2:18:32) and Mestawat Fikir (2:18:48) play a leading role in determining the pace, but they will need to be wary of two highly experienced and very fast veterans.

The first is Lonah Salpeter, who is the fastest woman in the field on paper, having clocked 2:17:45 when she won the Tokyo Marathon in 2020.

The other is Kenyan Edna Kiplagat (2:19:50), the two-time world marathon champion in 2010 and 2011, and Boston Marathon winner in 2017. Although now 47 years old, she can still compete with the best in the world.

Others to watch will include Bahrain’s Desi Jisa Mokonin (2:20:07) and Ethiopia’s Waganesh Mekasha (2:20:26), who both set their best times last year.

Local flavour will be added by Cape Town-based Fortunate Chidzivo, originally from Zimbabwe and a 2:33 marathoner at her best.

Exciting Wheelchair Field

The wheelchair division should also deliver red hot racing again this year, with 13 men and nine women set to line up in May.

The men’s field includes eight athletes that have posted a career best marathon time between 1:20 and 1:30, including the UK’s David Weir (1:22:00), Dutchmen Jetze Plat (1:24:28) and Geert Schipper (1:26:47), as well as Japan’s Sho Watanabe (1:24:00).

All four have gone sub-1:30 in the past year, as has Japan’s Hiroki Nishida.

Local supporters will also be keeping an eye on South Africa’s Tiaan Bosch, who will be looking to improve on his 1:33:17 career best.

In the women’s wheelchair race, Switzerland’s Manuela Schär will be looking to add the Cape Town title to her list of wins in all the Majors, and her 1:28:17 personal best from 2017 makes her comfortably the fastest athlete in the field.

However, she can expect a strong challenge from the USA’s Christie Dawes, who was second here in 2023 and will be motivated to give it everything in her final race before retirement, as well as Japan’s Tsubasa Nakamine, who has posted a time nearly a minute faster than Schär this year (1:41:20 to 1:42:17), and Deng Yirun of China.

Significantly Increased Prize Purse

Great news for the elite athletes in this year’s race is that the prize purse has been significantly increased, with the total prize purse for the marathon top 10 and age group contenders (male and female combined) climbing by just over R1 million (40%), from R2 578 000 to R3 598 000.

The top 10 men and women (as well as the top five male and female wheelchair athletes) will be paid in US dollars, and the increased prize for the winner is now $35 000 (R595 000, working with an exchange rate of R17/$), up from the $25 000 first prize on offer in 2025.

Second place will now earn $20 000 instead of $15 000, while third place is worth $15 000 instead of $10 000.

The incentive for breaking the men’s or women’s course record has also been increased by 33%, from $15 000 to $20 000, and the organisers have thrown in an extra R250 000 incentive for a new world record.

The wheelchair athletes have also seen their prize purse increased by around 35%, with the total prize purse climbing from R612 000 to R833 000.

The wheelchair winners will now pocket $10 000 instead of $8 000, while second place is up from $4 000 to $5 500, and third is worth $4 500 instead of $3 000.

Local athletes will also have something to race for, with the first three South African men and women claiming R25 000, R12 500 and R7 500, while the first three Western Province athletes will be rewarded with prize money of R3 000, R2 000 and R1 000.

Furthermore, if a South African marathoner can break the SA record, he or she (or both) will pocket a cool $10 000 incentive.

Meanwhile, the 10km Peace Run prize money has been nearly doubled, with the total prize purse climbing from R45 500 to R87 500, including first prize for both men and women going from R10 000 to R20 000.

This race will also offer an incentive for record times, with R10 000 on offer for a course record, and R50 000 as reward for a new SA record.