A week after veering off course in the island’s first road race of the season, Dennis Mbelenzi stayed on the right path to claim his third PwC Bermuda Marathon title on Sunday.

Mbelenzi hit the finish line at Barr's Bay Park in 2hr 29min 07sec, his fastest time in the race, beating the 2:29:55 he achieved when winning the race for the first time in 2023. His time was 12min 14sec faster than the time Adam Prunty ran in victory last year.

The 44-year-old also clinched the Chubb Bermuda Triangle Full Challenge title after competing in the Butterfield Challenge Mile and Allshores 10K Run.

“I’m very delighted to put the events of last weekend behind me and get a proper start to 2026,” Mbelenzi told The Royal Gazette.

“It was a quick time considering I did the full challenge and I’m actually surprised that I’m recovering fairly quickly, which is a testament to the high volume that I’m doing in training.

“I knew that I was on to some good things right after the mile. I was fresh overnight and in the 10K I felt nice.”

Mbelenzi had Ian Tibbals for company for the better part of the race, with the American finishing second in 2:32:29.

“Ian was just doing the marathon,” the champion said. “He was clicking right around course-record pace.

“We went through the halfway mark and then I noticed that he was starting to breathe heavily, so that’s when I put him away. I was letting him lead because I knew he was fresher than me.

“It wasn’t exactly a competition with Ian, it was more just staying together because I did not know what his credentials were.

“I was just biding my time because it’s a good race and you need to be paying attention to your competition. As soon as he started to breathe heavily, I knew that was the cue and I was gone.”

After securing his third victory, Mbelenzi has now set his sights on the course record of 2:28:52, set by American Bryan Morseman in 2020.

“It’s a tough course and the one thing that motivates me is the course record because it’s still out there,” he said.

“I thought I had it all the way through the second half and to almost 35K. I could tell by my GPS that I was right around the course record. If I’m going to do it again, it’s probably to target the course record, but we’ll see next year.

“The reason I do the full challenge is when I’m not in shape for the course record. Then I don’t want to just do the marathon, I’d rather do the full challenge because I’m unlikely to get a quick challenge.

“But if training goes great and there’s indication that I’m sub 2:28, then I may just register for the marathon and see what happens. I’ve gone faster than the course record, but on easier courses. It’s something I’m thinking about, but then again I’m also going 45 soon.

The marathon winner spoke of how he got over the misfortune of getting lost a week before such a big race.

“It was more about mindset,” the Bermuda resident added.

“Last weekend, it was just an unfortunate incident and entirely my fault because I should have known the course.

“Luckily, it wasn’t a high-profile race, so it was more fun than disappointment. We also gave the island something to laugh about and I saw a cartoon in The Royal Gazette that I found quite humorous and I’m pleased with that.

“I knew that I needed to put this one right and I went out there with a mindset to execute and execute properly.

“I wasn’t going to get lost this time around. Right around the trail coming to Ice Queen, that’s where if anybody’s going to miss the course, that’s the point, and I’ve been through that twice, so I knew I needed to get this part right.”

Natasha Harvey won the women’s race in 3:26:32, with her time placing her thirteenth overall. She also took the top female prize in the Full Challenge.

“It was hard work, so I’m really pleased to win,” Harvey said.

“Other runners from the island told me you need to add a chunk to account for the heat, humidity and the wind. I’m from England, so I’ve been training in the ice and the snow.

“This is slightly different conditions and we don’t have this humidity in the UK. Where I train, it was -5C in ice, so this is the opposite, but it was great.

“I started off in fourth position and I just tried to pace it sensibly because I knew it would get me in the second half. I thought I was first because I had the motorbike, but I didn't think it was a given because it’s such a tough course at the end.”

Running for the first time in Bermuda, Harvey was awed by what she saw along the course, with the British runner considering coming back to race on the island.

“I’ll definitely be back if I can,” the women’s marathon winner said.

“It’s so beautiful here and it was such a joy for the eyes, if not quite for the legs,” she said.

“I enjoyed the fact that it still feels like a small local marathon with a personal touch. The race director is great and the hospitality here is incredible with all of the food and the drinks.

“The marathon itself is an absolutely stunning race, starting at Dockyard and finishing here in Hamilton. It’s a beautiful day, but I’m really glad we started at 7am.”

Ciaran McGonagle clocked 2:52:52 to finish third in the men’s marathon. The Irishman also secured second position in the Full Challenge.

“I knew the two boys were strong runners, so I knew to challenge them I had to be in top form and fully fit, which I wasn’t,” McGonagle said.

“I let them go at the start. I knew with my quad issue that I wasn’t going to be able to do the pace that I had hoped, so I held back. I just knew with the injury problems I was having that I was never going to be able to offer any challenge.

“There was great support out there, we had great people cheering us on. It’s a tough course, it is challenging and that heat then too adds to it.

“There were parts now that I found tough that weren’t so enjoyable, but I got through them and I’d say it was a well-supported and well-run event.”