From right to left: Amna Sabtain, Hina Shawkat, Faysel Shafi, Huma Rehman
Report: Faizan Lakhani Pakistani runners have once again highlighted the name of the Pakistani running community on the global marathon scene with a fine performance in the 2026 Cape Town Marathon.
Faisal Shafi from Karachi and British-Pakistani runner Huma Rehman won the eighth world star by winning the Cape Town Marathon.
Over 27,000 runners from all over the world took part in this marathon under the shadow of the beautiful scenery of Table Mountain, but the highlight for the Pakistani running community was the performance of Faisal Shafi and Huma Rehman.
Faisal Shafi from Karachi completed the 42,195 km race in 3 hours 35 minutes 37 seconds and became the first Pakistani to complete eight World Marathon Stars while in Pakistan.
Faisal Shafi said while talking to Geo after finishing the race, ‘This is my eighth star. In fact, the eighth major was supposed to be held in Cape Town last year, but the marathon was canceled due to bad weather.
The Cape Town Marathon is currently in the candidacy stage for inclusion in the Abbott World Marathon Majors. Organizers announced before the race that all finishers would be awarded a temporary major star, just as the Sydney Marathon was awarded before becoming an official major.
However, if Cape Town receives official approval, it will be the first African race to join the Abbott World Marathon Majors series, which currently includes marathons in Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago, New York and Sydney.
Faisal Shafi said, ‘I completed Pakistan’s first 8-star and I am also the first person to complete 8-star while living in Pakistan. This is a great development for the Pakistani marathon runner as only a few hundred people in the world have done this so far.’
Faisal Shafi completed the half of the race in one hour 39 minutes and 56 seconds and in the first 30 kilometers, he continued for around 4 minutes and 44 to 46 seconds per kilometer.
On the other hand, the British-Pakistani runner Huma Rehman also performed well and finished the marathon in 3 hours 31 minutes and 34 seconds and was the fastest overall in the group of Pakistanis and Pakistanis abroad. Like Faysel Shafi, he also completed 8 stars. He became the first British Pakistani runner to win the eighth world star.
Huma Rehman’s management is cited as an example of good continuity and speed. He completed the distance of 5 km in 25 minutes and 52 seconds, 10 km and 51 minutes and 36 seconds and 15 km in 1 hour and 16 minutes and 45 seconds and passed the half marathon stage in 1 hour and 46 minutes and 43 seconds.
Even in the last stages he maintained a pace of around 5 minutes per kilometer, a sign of endurance and extraordinary experience on the difficult course.
A total of five runners from Pakistan and the Pakistani community abroad participated in this year’s Cape Town Marathon. Hina Shaukat from Karachi completed her race in 4 hours 31 minutes and 23 seconds and Amina Sabtain from Lahore who participated in the marathon for the first time completed her race in 4 hours 44 minutes and 51 seconds. Kashif Zulfiqar also crossed the finish line after a few seconds.
Hina Shaukat from Karachi said the Cape Town Marathon was the third marathon of her life in which she bettered her personal best by 40 minutes.
He said having his family at the finish line made this race even more special for him and it was the best race of his life.
