By Adnaan Mohamed
George Kusche has conquered the Comrades Marathon. Now the reigning champion wants to find out whether his legs still have enough sting to mix it with the 10km specialists.
Kusche will line up at the sold-out Absa RUN YOUR CITY TSHWANE 10K on 23 August, with Kenya’s Salem Kibet arriving with victory firmly in his sights.
The 28-year-old Kusche has never been a one-distance pony. A sub-four-minute mile and 13:28.95 5000m personal best from his US NCAA days provided the speed foundation for his road-running career.
A 28:56 10km in Gqeberha in 2024 was followed by a 2:20:12 marathon debut in Cape Town and fourth place at last year’s Soweto Marathon.
Then came his Comrades masterpiece.
Kusche clocked 5:15:56 on 14 June to obliterate the Up Run record by more than eight minutes. It was an ultra-marathon performance with a sprinter’s heartbeat underneath it.
Now he wants to put that speed back under the microscope.
“It’s very important for me to run a fast 10km because I train as a marathon athlete year-round and then I switch to Comrades-specific training in March,” Kusche said.
“And if you want to be a good marathoner, you must be able to run a good 10km. So I’m hoping to be able to run a good race at the Absa RUN YOUR CITY TSHWANE 10K. I’d love to see if I can run sub-30 minutes, which should be a good time at altitude. I’m curious to see how well I can do. I’m in decent shape and I’m really looking forward to this.”
A sub-30-minute run could put Kusche in the thick of the action, although Tshwane’s hills have a habit of turning confident runners into humble pedestrians. Only 10 men broke 30 minutes in last year’s race.
Kibet knows the terrain and the pace required.
The Kenyan arrives after running a lifetime-best 27:29 for second behind Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei in Durban last month. He now wants to move one place higher.
“My target is to improve on my performance from Durban and compete for the win,” Kibet said.
“Finishing second in Durban was not easy, especially running alongside a great athlete like Joshua Cheptegei. That experience taught me a lot. I thank God for the opportunity, and I am looking forward to giving my best in Tshwane.”
Stillwater Sports managing director Michael Meyer believes the meeting of Kusche’s endurance and Kibet’s speed could add serious spice to the Pretoria showdown.
“George Kusche’s decision to test himself over 10km against a field of established specialists adds another fascinating dimension to what is shaping up to be a highly competitive Absa RUN YOUR CITY TSHWANE 10K,” Meyer said.
“He has already shown that he has the speed and endurance to compete at the highest level, and it will be exciting to see what he can produce over 10km after his record-breaking Comrades victory.”
Kusche brings the endurance. Kibet brings the velocity. Tshwane supplies the hills.
The stopwatch will deliver the verdict.
