With a personal best of 2:01:09, Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge is historically the fastest man in the 2026 Sanlam Cape Town Marathon field, and his recent 2:05:25 in London makes him one of the fastest on recent form as well.
While much of the build-up to Sunday’s Sanlam Cape Town Marathon has centred around marathon icon Eliud Kipchoge and arguably the strongest international field ever assembled on African soil, South Africa’s leading runners will arrive carrying quiet belief that another upset could be brewing.
That confidence has only grown after the breakthrough victory of Arthur Jantjies at last month’s Two Oceans Marathon, where the previously little-known ultra specialist stunned a stacked elite field to win one of the country’s most prestigious road races in 3:09:25.
Jantjies is not part of Sunday’s marathon field, but his remarkable victory served as a timely reminder that local runners are still capable of challenging more established international stars on the biggest occasions. The scale of the challenge awaiting South Africa’s marathon hopefuls in Cape Town, however, is immense.
The elite men’s field includes eight athletes who have run faster than 2:05, led by Kipchoge, the former world record-holder and two-time Olympic marathon champion whose 2:01:09 personal best makes him the fastest athlete in the race’s history. Ethiopia’s Mohamed Esa, Israel’s Maru Teferi and a deep contingent of Kenyan and Ethiopian contenders ensure the pace is likely to be relentless from the start.
