East London runner Jono Kruger turns endurance running into a powerful tool for youth upliftment.
South Africa (15 December 2025) – Long before dawn each day, Jono Kruger was already on the road. For 25 consecutive days, the East London-based social upliftment advocate ran from Cape Town to Buffalo City, covering nearly 1,200 kilometres. This is the equivalent of 27 marathons, all in the name of youth empowerment.
The journey, known as the Vula Mdantsane Run for Sports Education and Youth Empowerment, was backed by SPAR South Africa and took Jono through towns and cities across the Western and Eastern Cape. Along the way, he stopped at SPAR stores, not just to refuel, but to connect.
At each store, the owner or manager was asked to read one of more than 300 letters written by schoolchildren from Mdantsane. At the end of the run, those letters were formally handed over to Buffalo City Mayor Princess Faku, giving young voices a platform far beyond their classrooms.
While the physical challenge was extraordinary, Jono insists the run was about far more than kilometres and endurance.
“It was to connect with all the stores [on my route] in the Western and Eastern Cape.”
As the founder of EduSport and co-founder of Sport for Lives, two organisations working at the intersection of sport, education and social change, this was clearly personal for him.
EduSport’s flagship Coach-in-a-Box programme equips unemployed young people with rugby and netball coaching skills, before placing them at schools where they mentor learners in exchange for a stipend.
The run officially began at KWIKSPAR on Kloof in Cape Town’s CBD on 1 November and ended at East London City Hall on 25 November. Every day started at 2 am. His support crew consisted of a driver and a videographer, who documented the journey across YouTube and social media platforms.
Their transport was a customised school bus donated by Selborne College, stripped of seats to create sleeping space and fitted with an air fryer, fridge and Wi-Fi.
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“Not many organisations would fund you before a single step has been taken.”
Although the 43-year-old is not an elite athlete, he has taken running seriously over the past three years and completed his first Comrades Marathon earlier this year.
Beyond fundraising, Jono hopes to see long-term partnerships emerge, where businesses “adopt” schools and support Coach-in-a-Box initiatives.
After pushing his body to the limit for nearly a month, he alludes to the possibility that another gruelling campaign could be on the horizon.
Sources: Supplied
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