Glenrose Xaba Targets Historic Third Spar Grand Prix Title As Cape Town Race Kicks Off Series

The country's premier women's road racing challenge kicks off Sunday morning at the Greenpoint Sports Complex with a whopping R200 000 the carrot for the competitors to give their all.

The SPAR Grand Prix Series a 10km challenge of five races around the country has grown in leaps in bounds over the years to become the most coveted honour for not only South Africas elite runners but even the best from the continent. That Glenrose Xaba is the household name she is has a lot to do with her stellar performances in the Series which she has won twice already.

Winning the SPAR Grand Prix has been a dream and a goal that Ive had for many years, said Xaba. 'And to have won it twice is a career highlight for sure. To be referred to as a defending champion is surreal. This year, I aim to remain injury free and have a healthy season. I look forward to running the SPAR Grand Prix series again and fighting for that top spot.

The winner of the SPAR Grand Prix will swell her bank account balance by a cool R200 000 with the runner up taking home half of that amount. The third placed athlete will win R75 000. This, of course, is additional to the substantial prize money for each individual race.

There are additional rewards on offer for South African runners as the one with the most SPAR Grand Prix points will receive an additional R100 000. The second-placed local athlete will take home R70 000 and R50 000 is reserved for the third placed South African.