The Remarkable Rebirth of Thabang Mosiako

IN THE UNPREDICTABLE world of athletics, comebacks are stuff of legend. Here in South Africa, few stories are as stirring, as raw, and as triumphant as that of Thabang Mosiako - a man once written off, discarded, and left to navigate the brutal path back to greatness all on his own.

Photo by Athletics SA

Mosiako’s victory at the Foskor Half Marathon, a race incorporating the ASA Half Marathon Championships, is more than just a gold medal moment - it is a roaring statement of resilience. What makes the win particularly poetic is the context: not long ago, Mosiako was dismissed as a “lost cause” by many after his former coach Mike Mbambani unceremoniously kicked him out of the Ikamva Athletics Club’s training camp in Gqeberha for ‘ill-discipline’. For many, that would have been the final blow. But for Mosiako, it was just the start of a new chapter.

“I’ve been down and up, down and up,” Mosiako tells me after he’d crossed the finish line at the Foskor Community Hall grounds in Namakgale, Phalaborwa. “I think I know running now. I know what to do to be fit.”

Training alone is often seen as a last resort - a lonely, mentally draining experience. But for Mosiako, it became a sanctuary. Removed from the noise and the politics, he reconnected with the essence of the sport back home in Potchefstroom.

“In all honesty, it was great. Training alone is a relief,” he admits. “I’ve been through enough to know how to push myself.”

That self-drive was on full display in Namakgale when Mosiako, only recently an afterthought in national conversations, surged to the front of the pack and never looked back.

“I went with Siyabonga, but I saw him slacking. Someone once told me, ‘If you commit a mistake, go with the mistake - you’ll never know how it ends.’ So I kept going… and check now, I won the race.”

The win wasn’t just impressive - it was dominant. Mosiako opened up a gap early on and kept it growing. By the time he passed 10km in under 29 minutes, he knew something special was happening. The course record was attainable.

 “I was like, ‘Yes, I’m still there!’ The gap kept opening, and at 15km I looked at my watch and it was about 43 minutes and I thought, ‘Yeah man, 61 — this is it.’"

He was a little too comfortable though and even started high-fiving the supporters on the route, a move that ate up some seconds and eventually robbed him of the course record, perhaps? When the clock at the finish line went over the 61:55 mark; record holder Ezael Tlhobo punched the air with joy, relieved that his mark remained intact.

Still, Mosiako’s delight at the victory knew no bounds. And to appreciate the magnitude of this feat, one must understand where he was toward the end of last year.

 “I think after 2023 (when he won the title) it was a rough patch for me,” he reflects on the fall-out he had with Mbambani to end up having to leave Gqeberha in a hurry, kicked out as he was from Ikamva along with four other athletes for ill-discipline. “But I’m happy for my comeback. I don’t know if it’s yet a comeback, but I’m really impressed, and I can see the way forward.”

He had struggled a bit in the popular Absa RUN YOUR CITY Series, failing to dip under the 28 minutes mark but is now confident he can get back to being with the top guns.

The rebirth of Mosiako isn’t a solo tale, though. He credits his wife, his close friend Tumisang Monatlala, and Nedbank Running Club manager Nick Bester as well as Coach Pio Mpolokeng whom he says he is yet to fully work with.

“These guys never backed down on me,” he says. “Even my management team at Rosa — they have been there for me and kept calling every day asking: ‘Thabang are you up? Are you training?’ That matters.” This is a man who was forced to bet on himself - and won. Now, with a national title under his belt and automatic qualification for the World Half Marathon Championships at which he previously finished sixth, Mosiako has his sights set on running his second marathon in October.

He made his debut in the 42.2km distance last year, the 30-year-old running an impressive 2:09:14 for an eighth-place finish at the Abu Dhabi Marathon despite not having done proper marathon training.

Photo by Athletics South Africa

“This time around I am really focused on doing my long runs right. The last time, I went in with only two 40kms under my belt,” he says, reflecting on his learning curve. “This time, we’re going to change that. I’m more focused, more experienced.”

Thabang Mosiako’s story isn’t just about a race. It’s about redemption. It’s about rising when others expect you to stay down. It is about finding clarity in solitude and purpose in pain.

He may have been cast aside by those who once coached him. But in the heat of Phalaborwa at the weekend, he proved that he didn’t need permission to be great - just the belief to go it alone.

And now? He runs not just with speed, but with something far more dangerous: nothing to lose, and everything to prove.