Two Oceans Marathon chairperson squares off with blogger over ‘defamatory’ articles

In the aftermath of last month’s Two Oceans Marathon, in which the race organisers drew widespread criticism over multiple issues, the chairperson of the marathon, Toni Cavanagh, is dragging one of her loudest critics to court.

Cavanagh has approached the Gauteng Division of the High Court in Johannesburg on an urgent basis. She wants popular running blogger Stuart Mann to rescind claims that he has made on his platform over the last couple of months.

In her affidavit, she said the articles written by Mann were defamatory and contained half-truths to suit a specific narrative, thus disrupting the operations of the Two Oceans Marathon board. She said her health had suffered since Mann zeroed in on her.

On his blog, The Running Mann, Mann wrote articles in which he alleged that Cavanagh (who was elected as Two Oceans chairperson in October 2024) did not attain the position in an honest manner.

Mann’s allegations included the Two Oceans chairperson lying about her running credentials, as well as embellishing her professional CV.

Two Oceans chairperson Toni Cavanagh. (Photo: The Running Mann)

In one of his articles, Mann labelled this year’s Two Oceans “the worst organised” edition of the marathon.

As a direct consequence of accepting more runners than were permitted for the 2025 event, the Two Oceans organisers did not have enough medals to distribute after the race.

Participants also bemoaned the limited number of water tables along the route. Some runners complained of the distance between the tables, which they said were often overcrowded. Mann also highlighted these issues on his platform, with Cavanagh acknowledging to Daily Maverick that she and her colleagues could have done a better job.

Reputational damage

Nevertheless, she said the issues had been blown out of proportion. In her affidavit, she contended that Mann fuelled this furore with his publications.

“This application arises from a series of allegedly defamatory publications authored by the respondent, Stuart Mann, a blogger operating under the alias “The Running Mann”, which the applicants contend constitute a sustained campaign of reputational harm, harassment and character assassination,” she said.

“The publications falsely impugn the first applicant’s personal and professional integrity, question the legitimacy of her leadership and cast aspersions on the governance and ethical standing of the Two Oceans Marathon.

“The applicants submit that the publications violate constitutional rights to dignity and psychological integrity, have caused measurable reputational and medical harm and jeopardise the credibility and sponsorship viability of the Two Oceans.”

Cavanagh is asking the court to force Mann to retract and delete his article, and to issue a public apology in the form of a media statement. The Two Oceans boss also wants Mann to stop writing about her and has asked for an interdict to be granted to this end.

Not backing down

Mann, though, is not backing down and argued that he did not set out to humiliate Cavanagh, but aimed to use his powerful platform to hold Cavanagh and her colleagues accountable for their shortcomings.

In his affidavit, Mann highlighted the injustices within the running community that he has exposed over the years.

This includes him breaking the story of Steven Swarts earlier this year. Swarts was the Athletics Free State president despite being a convicted sex offender serving a suspended sentence. Mann’s writing led to Swarts being removed from his post by Athletics South Africa.

Mann said he had nothing to gain by aimlessly picking on Cavanagh, but wished to preserve the prestige of the Two Oceans Marathon and extend its lifespan.

“I deny that any statements or comments in the articles were defamatory, but are indeed truthful and in the public interest. [They] represent fair comment and criticism,” he said.

“Any attempt by the first applicant to paint me as a sexist is completely unfounded and I submit (with utmost respect) done in an effort to gain sympathy from the court.”

Mann also said whatever criticism Cavanagh and her colleagues had been subjected to was by virtue of their own incompetence. He used the permit breach saga, which cost the Two Oceans Marathon its sponsorship from the City of Cape Town, as an example.

“I am not sure how I can be blamed for this. The City of Cape Town has, on its own accord and completely separate to any of my articles, shown distrust in the second applicant’s leadership as a result of the permit scandal,” Mann said of Cavanagh.

The court case will be heard on Tuesday, 13 May. DM