THE Nelson Mandela Bay Half Marathon Aims To Test The Skills Of National And International Athletes this June at Pollock Beach.
Speaking at the launch of the race this week, Enoch Skosana, Chairperson of Athletics South Africa (ASA) Road Running, said that the 1.1 km race was a world-class event where not only the South African title will be decided, but valuable world athletics ranking points are also up for grabs.
“We do not take the decision lightly when national events are decided on, which means this event is highly coveted. You are the torch-bearers that others can follow,” Skosana said.
This year the half marathon will be held for the 9th time. Since its start in 2014, the event had grown exponentially with 1500 local, national and international athletes expected at the starting line on Saturday, June 3.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture, Bassie Kamana, said the hosting of the marathon is part of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality’s goal to obtain a greater share of the sports tourism market.
Before the coronavirus outbreak, Tourism South Africa reported that sports, arts and culture contributed R125 billion to the South African economy in 2019.
“We would like to be considered a city of action and the home of champions when it comes to major sporting events.
“By capturing a bigger slice of the sports tourism market share, we will not only increase our contribution to the Eastern Cape Gross Domestic Product, but our local hospitality industry and athletes will also prosper,” MMC Kamana said.
He encouraged local athletes to do their best to keep the title at home, though it will not be an easy feat as an inspired Namakoe Nkhasi from Lesotho crossed the line first last year with a time of 1:01:01, with our very own Melikhaya Frans (1:01:03) hot on his heels.
These two men will have to contend with stiff competition from Kenya’s Kipkemoi Kiprono and Ethiopia’s Dinkalem Ayele for the R80 000 first prize.
Although last year’s women’s champion, Ftaw Zeray from Ethiopia, will not be competing this year, her exceptional performance by leading the race from start to finish, still remains the talk of the town.
Race Director, Mike Mbambani, said the total prize pot for the half marathon is R553 000.
He said the Nelson Mandela Bay Half Marathon is at the epicentre of the road running legacy project with 10 km races in Motherwell, Gelvandale and Uitenhage/Despatch, amongst others, the breeding ground for young talent.
Mbambani whets the appetites of local athletes further by saying the 50km South African Championship is also on its way to Gqebera next year.
Athletes can enter online at www.webtickets.co.za or major sporting goods stores. The closing date for all online and manual entries is Monday, 28 May.
- Issued on behalf of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality
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