Publications
Next weekend, the country will witness the first mass participation on the local sporting calendar in more than a year.
In all, 10 000 runners are expected to participate in the 42km and trail running events under the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon banner on Saturday and Sunday.
The flagship Mother City race returns 18 months after its traditional format was put on hold due to the Covid-19 pandemic, as was the case with many other sports around the world.
The organisers confirmed this week that they were ready to host the races in accordance with their Covid-19 risk mitigation plan.
They said 9 000 marathon runners had entered the 42km race, with 1 000 registered for the trail run.
More than 5 000 local and international athletes will take part in the 5km, 10km and 21km virtual “peace runs”.
Last year’s 42km race was reduced to a virtual and invitation-only competition that was contested by a limited number of elite athletes who ran across Cape Town, Pretoria and Potchefstroom in North West.
The marathon on Sunday will pit the cream of the local crop against an accomplished contingent of runners from east Africa.
Notably, the Kenyans and Ethiopians have claimed a combined nine titles across the men’s and women’s categories since the marathon assumed the financial services group company as title sponsor in 2014.
READ: Langa Marathon offers hopefuls a shot Tokyo
Local star Stephen Mokoka broke the monopoly when he clinched the 2018 race title in a record time of two hours, eight minutes and 31 seconds to break the course record of 2:08:41 set by two-time champion Asefa Mengistu of Ethiopia in 2016.
Still, South African runners have for many years fallen short, as only a handful made the top 10.
At the last event before the Covid-19 outbreak, Elroy Gelant was the local top finisher in fourth place, while Sibusiso Nzima came 10th.
Annie Bothma was the first South Africa woman home in 10th place in the race that was won by Kenyans Edwin Kibet Koech and Celestine Chepchirchir.
In 2018, Benedict Moeng and Desmond Mokgobu completed in fourth and 10th place, respectively, while Nolene Conrad’s eighth place earned the country the only top spot in the women’s contest.
South Africa’s hopes will again rest on 36-year-old Stephen Mokoka, with Gerda Steyn also a local favourite in the women’s competition.
Steyn, the reigning Comrades Marathon champion, will mark her first appearance in the classic marathon on home soil.
Early this year, the 31-year-old set a new South African women’s marathon record when she finished ninth in a time of 2:25:28 at the Xiamen Marathon in Siena, Italy.
Steyn broke the record set by Colleen De Reuck in Berlin, Germany, in 1996, a feat she said gave her confidence that she could excel over the 42km distance.
Despite the country having been recently moved to lockdown level 1 under the Disaster Management Act, the Cape Town Marathon organisers said spectators would still be barred from attending the event, which starts and finishes at the Cape Town Stadium.
“Our Covid risk management procedures were originally created for a ‘best-case scenario’ alert level, and therefore remain unchanged,” race director Renée Jordaan told City Press this week.
“This means that measures remain in place for the safety and wellness of our participants, crew and stakeholders working at the event.
READ: Nare wins again, but Spar title not in the bag yet
“These include compulsory antigen testing at the Cape Town Stadium for anyone involved, a staggered marathon start in small groups and maintaining a spectator-free event.”
Jordaan said entries were capped at 10 000 by the September 17 entry deadline.
The Mother City race is organised as a World Athletics Gold Label Status event – the only marathon in Africa and one of only a select group of marathons in the world to have this prestigious ranking.
Jordaan said a successful race on Sunday would give hope to other local flagship races that were put on hold by the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Our hope is that the community will support our safety adjustments and illustrate that it is possible to stage a safe and responsible event, thereby affording other races the opportunity and confidence to host their own,” she said.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
