Maqonda Ndlovu
Martha Shivolo’s fine form continued as she claimed the 2023 Navachab half-marathon victory by setting a new course record with a time of 01:13:40
on Saturday as Jeremia Shaliaxwe finally triumphed in Karibib.
Fresh from winning last week’s Nedbank Namibia CitiRun, Namibian Correctional Service’s Shivolo beat a strong field of athletes, including Namibia’s representative at the recently concluded World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, Alina Armas, who clocked 01:15:10 for second place.
Third place was taken by Leena Ekandjo of Nampol, who clocked 01:17.30.
Having participated in the competition and finished on the podium twice, Namibian
Police runner Shaliaxwe clocked 01:05:20,
while his teammate and last week’s Nedbank CitiRun winner Simon Matias was second in a time of 01:05:40, and Geson Koper from the
//Kharas region claimed the third position in a time of 01:06:20.
Speaking after the race, Shaliaxwe said the route was challenging, but he enjoyed his race.
“We did not worry about the guy who broke away from us. We just had to follow him and attack him at the turns. I feel great about winning. I had a fantastic race with Matias, I am looking forward to participating in the Sanlam Cape Town marathon. On her part, Shivolo said this was her first time participating in a half marathon.
Shivolo said that while she was not experienced in the marathon, she would love to try a full marathon next year.
“I enjoyed the race, though it was tough. The road was a bit difficult, but I tried my best. I went with the group until the turn, and I made the gateway. I pushed hard without worrying about people behind me; going forward, I would like to set the record here,” she said.
Meanwhile, race organiser Berthold Karumendu told New Era Sport he was happy with the turnout of the athletes and the introduction of the 10km race, but they face a number of challenges, especially the manual verification of the results.
“We collect and collate the results manually, and this is cumbersome. I have engaged the sponsors so that we can hire someone who will be able to do that electronically. However, this is very expensive,” Karumendu explained.
He said that by computerising their system, this will also help attract international athletes.
The ninth edition of the Navachab marathon saw over 810 athletes compete in the 21-kilometre race, the newly introduced 10-kilometre race, and the five-kilometre fun walk and run.
Karumendu said for the 10th anniversary,
they are planning a bigger and better event.