WALVIS BAY – The Rio Tinto Rössing Uranium national marathon, 10km run, team relay and 5km fun walk in aid of the Cancer Association of Namibia is expected to take place this coming Saturday at the athletics stadium in Vineta, Swakopmund.
The running events will kick off at 07h00 and the fun walk at 9h00 from the same starting point at the Vineta stadium. The event is held to promote healthy lifestyles and to underline Rössing’s commitment to create opportunities for communities surrounding the mine to be part of its focus on promoting this ideal. The theme for 2014 is “Champions maintain their health – Keep up the pace!”
This year’s event will include an extra incentive to the athlete, who will break the 22-year-old marathon record of 2:11:23 set by Luketz Swartbooi of Rehoboth in 1992. According to Rössing the marathon record breaker will receive N$1 000 for his or her effort. According to Rössing the first prize in the marathon men’s open and ladies open categories is N$10 000 with development bonuses of N$20 000 also awarded to the winners of the same events to advance their careers beyond the Rössing event. This year’s event is expected to attract a field of around 100 marathon runners and 150 ten-kilometre runners from all parts of the country.
However, East-African runners who realise the event’s importance as a potential qualifier for the bigger South-African marathons later in the year also expressed interest in the marathon.
The popular 5km fun walk with its incredible atmosphere of support for cancer sufferers in Namibia follows one of the most scenic routes of any fun walk in the country, along the beautiful Atlantic ocean. Walkers of all ages are encouraged to participate and stand a chance to win exciting prizes, including a lucky draw. The fun walk competition categories are best costume, most original hat, tallest walker, youngest and oldest walkers and largest group. The entry fee for the fun walk is N$10.
The running events start at 07h00 from the athletics stadium in Vineta. The cut-off time for the marathon is 12h00. Entry fees are N$60 for the marathon (N$100 for international athletes), N$30 for the 10km run (N$50 for international athletes), N$80 per team for the uranium team relay.
Registration for the championship takes place at the Vineta athletics stadium on Friday from 18h00 until 21h00. On Saturday morning registration will take place from 06h00 to 06h30. Participating athletes in the marathon and the 10km run will receive their race numbers and T-shirts at the registration point. All participants must be at the starting line 15 minutes before the start of the race for the race rules announcement.
Entry forms for the event will be available at the venue during registration or are available at www.rossing.com or contact Frank Slabbert of Swakop Striders at tel. 064 405788 (h) / cell 081 240 3383 or Botha Ellis of Rössing at tel. 064 520 2426 (w) / cell 081 286 0456.
By Eveline de Klerk