Nare holds off Xaba to win Spar GP in Durban

Ethiopian star Tadu Nare emerged triumphant on Sunday after being locked in a thrilling battle with South African favourite Glenrose Xaba for most of the race at the second leg of the 10km Spar Grand Prix Series in Durban.

Competing in ideal conditions, Nare (Nedbank Running Club) and Xaba (Boxer Athletics Club) had some company in the early stages of the 10km contest, but they had shaken off the rest of the field by the halfway mark.

Digging deep in the chase for the line, Nare managed to drop a gutsy Xaba with three kilometres remaining, drawing clear to win back-to-back Durban titles in 31:14

Xaba, who won the opening leg of the Spar Grand Prix Series in Cape Town in March in the absence of two-time series champion Nare, was rewarded for her brave effort by taking second place in 31:57.

"It's wonderful to see the South African runners clearly improving. I was actually surprised because she (Xaba) was neck-and-neck with me all the way to seven kilometres and I was starting to get worried," Nare said.

"I managed to pull away, but it is wonderful to see the growth and development in the way Glenrose is running."

THREE RACES TO GO

Xaba, who extended her lead at the top of the Spar Grand Prix standings with three races to go in the campaign, was delighted with her result.

Despite settling for the runner-up spot behind her fancied Ethiopian opponent, she crossed the finish line just two seconds outside her personal best of 31:55.

"I was glad to be able to keep up with Tadu until seven kilometres. I learn a lot when we race against her because she always pushes us to get better times," said Xaba.

"We always want to achieve more in life and learning from her helps us improve. I'm very happy with how I ran today."

Neheng Khatala of Lesotho (Hollywood Athletics Club) was the best of the rest, taking third position in a lightning-fast race in 32:14. Her compatriot, Blandina Makatisi (Maxed Elite), was fourth in 32:33.

Junior athlete Diniya Abaraya (Nedbank) was fifth overall in 32:40, winning the U-19 division.

"I wanted to execute our training plan and see how far I could go today, so I'm very excited. I'm getting faster, so I'm very proud of myself," said Khatala.

"The ladies pushed the pace, and the course was good. I just got tired around seven kilometres, but it was a good race."

The top nine women all dipped under 34 minutes in a contest which attracted a world-class line-up.

The top 10 finishers included four South Africans, three Ethiopians and three athletes from Lesotho, highlighting the attraction of SA's top women's road running series for elite African runners.

The Durban race boasted an impressive entry of 9653 runners.