'We can do even better with support' - Athletics Transkei Steeplechase king Nkonyeni reflects on 2025 & eyes PB's in 2026

Reflecting on the most inspiring performances of 2025, one cannot but marvel at the emergence of Aphelele Nkonyeni as South Africa’s pre-eminent 3000m steeplechase force. The 27-year-old set a personal best 8:35.43 to win the Cape Milers/Endurocad Middle Distance Invitational Continental Tour Challenger Meet at the Green Point Stadium in Cape Town on 4 April and then dethroned steeplechase king Siboniso Soldaka three weeks later to win a first national title and return as Athletics Transkei’s only medalist at the ASA Senior Track & Field Championships in Potchefstroom.

SA Champ Nkonyeni hopes for more competition opportunities in 2026 so he can top the excellent 2025 season he enjoyed. Photo Credit: Supplied.

"I'm happy. I'm so happy," said the man who trains alongside Mongezi Ngobe who took fourth position in that national championship race at the Ken McArthur Stadium. "I'm particularly happy because we are from a poor area and poor families. We love sport and we keep pushing and trying to improve our times because athletics is the only tool to change our lives."

Nkonyeni and Ngobe hail from Mount Ayliff, a small rural town roughly 40km south of Kokstad on the border of KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. Competition opportunities are non-existent in that part of the world meaning that they must travel to Cape Town, Durban or Gauteng to test themselves against the best. As a result the pair ran their final race of the season as early as the 24th of April at the ASA Champs because of the prohibitive cost of travelling to the big cities. 

Nkonyeni and training partner Ngobe pictured on their training ground in rural Eastern Cape. Photo Credit: Supplied.

Those challenges notwithstanding, Nkonyeni and Ngobe who are coached by Clinton Gunkel, are grateful for the support they receive from the Eastern Cape Academy of Sport whose mandate is to develop excellence across SA's second largest province. It means that the pair must compete for funding with scores of athletes from bigger sporting codes.

"It's difficult. For example we train on an open ground that is uneven. We don't have equipment and our nutrition is sometimes lacking. But we must thank the Eastern Cape Academy of Sport who have supported us by helping us to get to competitions like the Cape Milers event. They arranged for our transport to Cape Town after our coach motivated to the academy that we receive assistance," he told #TheTopRunner.

Nkonyeni and coach Gunkel pose for a photo with Athletics Tranksei's only medal (gold) at the ASA Senior Track and Field Championships in Potchefstroom. Photo Credit: Supplied.

And after triumphing against the odds to succeed in 2025, Nkonyeni is hopeful that 2026 will bring more high level competition opportunities to allow him to produce the sort of time that would earn him maiden selection to a South African team to compete at a major global competition such as the CAA African Championships or Commonwealth Games.

"If we can get support we can do even better than this because we only get to compete a few times a year at major events like the SA Champs. We can do it. For example in 2023 I ran 8:56, then last year my PB went down to 8:48 and this year I ran 8:35. I see the improvement. I believe that we can get closer to a time of 8:15 or at least 8:20. The most important thing is discipline. We have faith that our situation will change because we believe that there is no better sport than athletics to make us household names."