Bathurst Athletics Club’s Melikhaya Dyubule (right) representing EP Athletics (third) poses with fellow EP athlete Sanuse Mboneni after the 5000m event on day 1 of the South African Masters Athletics 2025 Championships in Oudtshoorn from 1-3 May 2025. Mboneni came second in the M40 category. Picture: SUPPLIED
Melikhaya Dyubule (centre) wins gold in his 800m event at the SA Masters Athletics championships. Picture: SUPPLIED
UPDATE!
Late Friday afternoon we heard the good news that Dyubule had won gold in his 800m event. Details of times and fellow podium athletes weren’s available yet and we’ll add them when they are.
ORIGINAL POST:
Bathurst Athletics Club’s Melikhaya Dyubule secured a bronze medal on the first day of the South African Masters Athletics 2025 Championships this morning. The three-day event at De Jager Stadium in Oudtshoorn ends on Saturday May 3. There are 34 athletes in the EP Athletics Masters team.
In a cold and rainy conditions on day 1, Dyubule achieved a time of 19:18:86 in his category, M45 (men 45 years and older). The winner of the M45 event, Quintin Honey from Central Gauteng, ran it in 16:15:82.
“It was tough because it was my 1st 5000m event ever,” Dyubule told Talk of the Town. “But the conditions were good, because it was freezing cold!”
Thursday’s maximum temperature in Oudtshoorn was 16C and for the 5000m athletes’ 7am start it was somewhere around 8 degrees.
“I was running at the back from the beginning of the race and I had to push because I was aiming to run under 29 minutes.”
Dyubule has a full programme over the next few days, with the 800m Friday, and 1500m and 3000m steeplechase on Saturday.
The 5000m was the first event of 197 scheduled for the three-day meet.
The organiser of the inaugural Bathurst Development Challenge hosted at the Bathurst Showgrounds at the end of last year says the Bathurst Athletics Club has requested the date of December 20 for this year’s edition of the ASA-sanctioned race, but hasn’t yet had confirmation from EP Athletics.
