Khoarahlane Joseph Seutloali raced to a memorable victory in the 2025 Totalsports Two Oceans Marathon, while South Africa’s golden girl Gerda Steyn made it a triumphant double for the ‘purple people’ of Hollywood Athletics Club by recording her sixth straight Two Oceans victory.
Second in the Two Oceans Half Marathon in 2017 and 8th in last year’s ultra, Seutloali learnt his lessons and put it all together in 2025 to claim the biggest win of his career.
The Tokyo Olympian crossed the line in 3 hrs 10 min 46 sec, to win by 31 seconds over Johannesburg-based Entsika runner, Siboniso Sikhakhane, who took second place after an intense last kilometre struggle with debutant, Lucky Mohale of Nedbank.
“I’m ecstatic to win today,” Seutloali reflected. “My coach and I worked together to try and improve on last year’s 8th placed finish and try to win. We went back and fixed what we didn’t get right last year.”
Steyn ran her third fastest Two Oceans time of 3:29:10, crossing the line 8 min 40 sec ahead of Kenyan veteran, Shelmith Muriuki, with Steyn’s Hollywood clubmate and ultra-marathon debutant, Neheng Khatala, close behind in an impressive third place.
“It was once again a fantastic race and I’m very pleased with the win,” said Steyn. “I’m just so proud to be here and to use my God-given talent and enjoy it in the way I do is nothing but a blessing.”
Conditions were deceptively difficult. While the wind was largely absent, heat and humidity sapped runners’ energy and Seutloali’s was the slowest winning time since Zimbabwe’s Mike Fokoroni’s 3:13:33 win in 2016, while Steyn was more than two minutes off her record time of last year.
Forty-nine years after the late great Gabashane Vincent Rakabaele became the first Lesotho athlete to win the Two Oceans Marathon, Seutloali became the fifth athlete from the ‘Mountain Kingdom’ to win Cape Town’s great ultra, crossing the line in 3:10:46, 31 seconds ahead of Johannesburg-based Siboniso Sikhakhane. Nedbank’s Lucky Mohlale was third.
After Rakabaele, Mabuthile Lebopo (fastest time by a Lesotho athlete of 3:06:18 in 2010), Lebenya Nkoko (2014) and Motlokoa Nkhabutlane (2015) flew the Lesotho flag high at Oceans and Seutloali paid tribute to that heritage.
“I’m proud of our running history,” Seutloali said. “The last Lesotho athlete to win was Motlokoa Nkhabutlane. We share the same coach (Andrew Booyens) and he gave good advice before the race. Motlokoa helped me to win today.
“When we climbed Constantia Nek we were a big group. Lesotho is very hilly so I knew I could climb that hill well. I said to myself I must at least be in the top three at the top of the climb and that’s what happened.”
Earlier, two of the race favourites featured prominently as teammates Mokoka and Nkosikhona Mhlakwana opened a gap shortly after the start, only to be caught by a pack of some thirty runners before the 5km mark.
“In the past few years athletes have been going more slowly at the start, not according to their finishing speed,” reflected Mhlakwana. “So this year I had a different plan. I was happy at how it went with me and Stephen.
“It was very relaxed – we were negotiating our pace throughout. Although Stephen is still learning to run the distance, he is my mentor and has contributed such a lot to South African running.”
Having reeled in the two athletes judged race threats, the pack was happy to allow veteran runner Xolisa Ndlubini from Charlo Club freedom to lead, but his long spell out in front was never going to last beyond sunrise.
Another Hollywood athlete, Lindelani Mjwara, caught Ndlubini shortly before halfway, where he led in 1:35:00, 5 seconds clear of Ndlubini, who impressively stayed in contention to near the top of the Chappies climb, and half a minute clear of the pack.
The pack hauled in Mjwara before the top of the climb, and stayed together through Hout Bay with sixteen through the marathon mark in a relatively pedestrian 2:24:32.
Year on year, Constantia Nek separates the men from the boys and at the summit at 46km, just five men were left in contention – three from South Africa (Sikhakhane, Mohale – in his Ultra-marathon debut – and Mkhlakwana) and two from Lesotho (Lebello Mopanyane and Lebenya Nkoka), with defending champion, Onalenna Khonkhobe hanging on by a thread some 15m back.
Mhlakwana fell off the pace, leaving the remaining quartet through 50km in 2:51:56 before Seutloali accelerated down the descent past Kirstenbosch. Only Sikhakhane was able to follow.
Mohale fought back as Mhlakwana also rejoined the party and just 3km from the finish nothing could separate the leading foursome.
Mhlakwana and then Mohale unable to keep pace and Sikhakhane and Seutloali were in front as they turned for home, matching each other stride for stride.
In a race where the margins are so fine, it’s the small things which matter and the race was won and lost as the pair approached the final aid station near the top of ‘Chet’s Hill’ 3km from the finish..
Seutloali drew strength from the station, adorned in the colours of his Hollywood Athletics Club, and used his last gel, given to him earlier by his teammate, Mhlakwana.
Sikhakhane conceded the unequal struggle as Seutloali disappeared into the distance to race home to an impressive victory, leaving Sikhakhane and Mohale to contest the minor positions.
Mohale moved into second as Sikhakhane slowed to a walk up the final slight uphill gradient, just 500m out, but the Entsika athlete regathered his strength for a final burst past Mohale to cross the line in second, one better than his third position in 2022.
Mhlakwana missed the podium by just 26 seconds in 4th, coming in 16 seconds clear of Malawian Mphatso Nadolo.
Lesotho bagged three more golds, with Mopenyane, Nkoka and Lekhotla Pulinyana taking positions 6 to 8 with South Africans Sithembiso Mqhele and Pule Sibeko rounding out a tightly contested top ten in 3:14:56.
The women’s race was less uncertain, with Steyn looking a champion every inch of the way, although she met surprisingly strong opposition from Kenyan veteran, Shelmith Muriuki.
Like Mhlakwana and Mokoka, Steyn went out hard “to ensure the others all had to pay tax” Steyn joked. “Today I decided to go a bit tactical, going out fast in the beginning (1:30 up on last year at halfway) and it worked out well. It was tough for me but also for everyone else.”
She went through halfway 90 seconds quicker than last year, but was surprised that Muriuki was still in contention.
Running in an ever-decreasing pack of male athletes, spearheaded by two RCS Gugs runners, Simphiwe Vellem, in his definitive hemp hat, and Siphosoxolo Moyeni, Steyn made her move at an aid station shortly before halfway, as Muriuki battled to locate her bottle.
“You are a lucky runner,” Muriuki joked to Steyn at the post-race media conference. “You got away at that aid station. Next time you won’t be so lucky!”
Steyn led though halfway in 1:40:50, just over five minutes behind the leading men, before opening a gap on the Chappies climb which grew larger as the race unfolded to the finish.
The heat, humidity and early pace inevitability impacted Steyn, who slowed on the ascent to Constantia Nek, before regaining her mojo on the run for home to race to victory. At 35 years Steyn looks good for another six.
Muriuki’s time of 3:37:50 in second place would have won many Two Oceans in the past and but for coming up against the world’s best ultra-marathon athlete would have made her mark as a Two Oceans Champion.
Khatala ran consistently, moving up from 5th to 3rd through halfway, where she remained to finish three minutes clear of her Hollywood clubmate, Carla Molinaro. A former world 100km champion for Great Britain, Molinaro moved steadily through the field from 10th to 4th to finish in an impressive 3:43:44.
A second athlete from Lesotho, Dikeledi Majara finished fifth ahead of Zimbabwe-born Buhle Tshuma.
Ethiopia claimed the next two gold medals, with Worke Amena and the highly-rated Mesert Biru finishing in 7th and 8th, while renowned trail athlete, Landie Greyling, and Deanne Laubscher, both representing Nedbank, rounded out the gold medal positions.
Tipped by Bruce Fordyce as a winner this year, Stephen Mokoka was competitive, staying with the lead pack until shortly before the summit at Constantia Nek. But severe leg cramps as he summited Constantia Nek, 46km into the race, proved his nemesis.
Most elite athletes would have quit the race, but Mokoka discovered instead the spirit of the ultra-marathon.
“I stopped there for 20 minutes and walked all the way back to the finish,” Mokoka explained. “I decided to finish because I can’t have another DNF. I received a lot of support on the road and runners kept encouraging me. Some even asked for pictures and videos!”
The three-time winner of the Cape Town Marathon crossed the finish line in 4:51 to claim a Sainsbury medal, losing a massive 1 hr 40 min on the leaders.
Results
Men
Women
