Stephen Mokoka welcomes Absa Run Your City 10km prize money increase

The organisers of the popular series, which is staged across five cities — Cape Town, Gqeberha, Durban, Tshwane and Johannesburg — have announced a total prize purse of R1.68 million for the 2026 season, spread across various age categories.

Mokoka, who has confirmed his participation in the opening race in Gqeberha on 1 March, says the announcement has added excitement ahead of the start of a series that consistently attracts some of the continent’s top athletes.

Last year, the elite men’s and women’s winners received R30 000, but this has now been increased by R3 000, taking the winner’s cheque to R33 000.

Each of the five events will offer a total prize allocation of R337 200, with R267 200 reserved for the Open Category. This includes R133 600 for the top 10 Open Men and R133 600 for the top 10 Open Women.

In each city, the winner will earn R33 000, second place R24 000 and third place R21 000, making the series the highest-paying 10km road running event in the country.

“It’s good to see the prize money increasing,” said Mokoka. “When you look at how the organisers have structured it, especially with the bonuses, it creates healthy competition and gives athletes something extra to chase. It motivates runners to pull up their socks.”

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Mokoka added that performance incentives have always played a key role in pushing athletes to new limits.

“We used to earn between R80 000 and R100 000 for running sub-28 minutes as a bonus, so initiatives like this are important. My wish is to see more runners going under 28 minutes. I believe the series is building the sport nicely, and I hope more companies can come on board so that we can have more quality shorter races,” he told SABC Sport.

Multiple national record holder Adriaan Wildschutt is among the leading local athletes who have already confirmed their participation in the Gqeberha race, alongside women’s 10km national record holder Glenrose Xaba.

“Wildschutt broke the national record here, and Glenrose Xaba smashed the 10km record in this series,” Mokoka added. “With the bonuses on offer, these runners will be challenged to go after even more records.”