More than 24,000 runners were stunned awake early Sunday morning to devastating news: the 2025 Sanlam Cape Town Marathon had been cancelled just 90 minutes before its scheduled start due to dangerous high winds.
What was meant to be a climactic year in the race’s campaign to become Africa’s first World Marathon Major (WMM) instead ended with disbelief, tears, and lingering uncertainty about what comes next.
Runners Alerted Just Before Dawn
At 4:45 a.m., race organizers made the call to cancel the event, citing infrastructure damage and unsafe wind gusts across the Green Point start area and much of the 42.195km course.
Runners were notified by 5:00 a.m. via WhatsApp and club captain groups not to report to the start line. Many, including elites like Gerda Steyn, were already en route or warming up when the message came through.
“The winds, with gusts starting around 1 a.m., were beyond our control,” said race CEO Clark Gardner. “Our priority is the safety of our participants, volunteers, and staff. We had no choice but to call off the race.”
Emergency meetings between the organizing committee and the Joint Operations Committee (JOC), which includes SAPS, Cape Town Disaster Risk Management, and city safety officials, confirmed extensive wind damage to marquees, scaffolding, and branding.
“The route is unsafe, as the wind is constantly gusting in Woodstock, and the infrastructure at the start and finish venue has been compromised,” said Colonel Christo Engelbrecht of SAPS.
No Refunds, No Rollovers, and Plenty of Disappointment
What’s made the cancellation even harder for runners to swallow is the race’s strict no-refund policy. The 2025 entry fees, often bundled with travel, accommodation, and gear costs, will not be reimbursed or carried over to the postponed 2026 race.
“We regret that our no-refunds policy stands,” said media manager Renata Bossi. “Unfortunately, 2025 entries will not be carried over to 2026.”
This stance has provoked frustration.
“It is very disappointing. One would have thought the least they could have done is a refund, or at least allowed this entry to go to 2026,” said Rowan Abrahams, a runner from Athlone. “I ran with some friends this morning anyway. It wasn’t even that windy where we were.”
Others found solace in community. Images from local papers showed runners tearfully embracing, some singing songs of perseverance, others simply lacing up and logging long runs in solidarity.
World Marathon Major Status in Question?
This year’s edition was the final event in Cape Town’s multi-year evaluation to become a World Marathon Major in 2026. The race had adopted the slogan “Towards Africa’s 1st Major” and spent years adjusting its elite field quality, broadcast reach, and organizational standards to meet the rigorous criteria set by the Abbott World Marathon Majors (AbbottWMM) series.
AbbottWMM CEO Dawna Stone, who was in Cape Town for the event, responded shortly after the cancellation: “Our heart goes out to the Sanlam Cape Town team. I know they are just devastated. But the safety of the runners, volunteers, and everybody working here comes first. They made the right call.”
Still, behind the scenes, questions are already being asked. It’s unclear how keen Abbott will be to move forward with WMM accreditation if there’s a perceived risk of another last-minute cancellation. Travel-dependent events, particularly those with tens of thousands of international participants, depend on logistical certainty.
The Cape Town race director echoed this tension in an Instagram reel earlier in the week, detailing how much work had gone into preparing for the event knowing it was the final step in the WMM journey. “It’s heartbreaking,” he said.
Elites Left in Limbo
The 2025 elite field was stacked: eight Platinum Label athletes and ten Gold Label athletes were slated to race, making it arguably the strongest elite start list in the marathon’s history. With major Olympic implications and points on the line for various tours and rankings, many of these athletes now face scrambling to find alternate marathons before the end of the year.
Gerda Steyn, South Africa’s marathon record holder, had been one of the big home names set to headline. Many runners had specifically chosen Cape Town as their fall goal race and now must quickly pivot, often without the support of refunds or travel flexibility.
A Windy Weekend All Around
Wind conditions had already disrupted the marathon weekend. Saturday’s 10K event featured stiff headwinds, with several elites complaining about the difficulty. Forecasters had warned of wind speeds exceeding 50km/h for Sunday, and overnight gusts ripped through the venue beginning around 1 a.m.
By sunrise, tents had been shredded, scaffolding loosened, and barriers displaced, rendering the course and start/finish zones unusable under international safety standards.
“Cape Town is committed to hosting events of the highest global standards, and that includes sometimes making difficult calls like this,” said Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis.
Next Steps: May 2026 and WMM Uncertainty
The marathon’s next edition is scheduled for May 2026, a seasonal move aimed at avoiding Cape Town’s notoriously windy spring conditions. While organizers will regroup for that event, there’s no clear word on whether their WMM accreditation process will be extended, reset, or revoked due to this year’s forced cancellation.
“We’re not thinking of money right now,” said Bossi. “Our team is devastated.”
But for runners, some of whom flew halfway around the world, the feelings of frustration, heartbreak, and financial loss are hard to ignore.
Whether AbbottWMM deems the situation a one-off or a red flag remains to be seen, but for now, Africa’s long-awaited entry into the major marathon club could be on hold.
