Two nights on a bus, two medals and a national title

DELMAS — Two nights sleeping on a bus, a last-minute change of events and little time to recover could have derailed 17-year-old Gugulethu Thanjekwayo’s biggest week in athletics.

Instead, the Hendrina teenager returned from representing South Africa in Zimbabwe with a bronze medal before travelling to Pretoria and winning the Under-17 6km race at the South African Cross Country Championships.

Thanjekwayo represented South Africa at the COSSASA Games in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, from 31 August to 2 September 2026.

Travelling by bus through Botswana, Thanjekwayo and his teammates were delayed at the border and spent two nights sleeping on the bus.

“We slept two nights in a bus. It was a huge challenge because I remember my body was painful afterwards,” Thanjekwayo says.

He arrived in Zimbabwe only a day before competing and faced another setback. After months of preparing for the 3 000m, he learnt that the event had been removed from the programme and that he would instead compete in the 1 500m.

“The problem was that I had spent months preparing for the 3 000m, not the 1 500m. It affected me a bit because I had not prepared for it. My focus was always on the 3 000m.”

Thanjekwayo finished fourth in the 1 500m before the 3 000m was eventually restored to the programme. He went on to win bronze, earning his first medal while representing South Africa.

There was little time to celebrate as the South African Cross Country Championships in Pretoria awaited him on 5 September.

“I could not prepare for the cross country because I was in Zimbabwe, and when I was there I could not find time to prepare,” he says.

The Nkangala Athletics Academy arranged for him to fly back to South Africa instead of enduring another long bus journey, giving him time to recover.

Despite the demanding week, Thanjekwayo won the Under-17 6km race to become the 2026 South African Cross Country Champion.

“It means a lot to me that I represented South Africa for the first time and came back with a medal,” he says.

His coach and Nkangala Athletics Academy CEO, Emmanuel Shaper Mabaso, says the achievement is the result of a journey that started years earlier.

“Three years back, running cross-country championships, he could push but was holding back too much and giving too much respect to competitors,” Mabaso says.

The academy began laying the foundation for the season during a training camp in December, while league competitions and the Mpumalanga Championships helped measure Thanjekwayo’s progress.

“COSSASA came as a surprise to us, so our preparation was the ASA Cross Country Championships,” Mabaso says.

“That is why we booked a flight back to compete because we knew he was ready for them. His performance from the leagues and Mpumalanga Championships gave us a better analysis.”

Mabaso says they expected Thanjekwayo to challenge for a podium position in Pretoria.

“We knew he would come with a podium finish, but winning is a bonus for us,” he says.

Behind the medals, however, are challenges faced by the young athlete. Mabaso says Thanjekwayo lives in a rural area and travels long distances to train with the academy.

“Athletics is very expensive. He lives in rural areas and has to travel long distances to join the crew for training,” Mabaso says.

“We need proper training facilities and financial support for travelling, race fees, clothing and nutrition.”

Thanjekwayo says the difficult journey has strengthened his approach to competition.

“When it’s tough, I like to push myself harder because I don’t like to give up,” he says.

The academy is now focusing on the Schools National Cross Country Championships and trials for the World Cross Country Championships.

Thanjekwayo has one year left with the academy before completing matric, after which university could take him elsewhere.

Mabaso hopes his journey will eventually reach an even bigger stage.

“We would like to see him representing the country at the Olympics and prospering in his studies. He must grow and not look back,” he says.

From a young Hendrina runner who once held back against his competitors to overcoming a gruelling journey and standing on top of the national podium, Thanjekwayo’s story is becoming one of persistence.