Callistus Kolantsho
26 June 2009
Selebi-Phikwe — The annual Cresta Bosele Phikwe Marathon bursts to life in the mining town tomorrow morning with at least 1,000 athletes expected to sweat it out for the huge cash prize. The marathon is expected to attract international athletes for the first time in its 24-year history.
The organising committee told a media briefing on Wednesday that the winner of the men's 42.2kilometre race is guaranteed P20,000, by far the biggest prize in local athletics.
The runner-up will walk away with P10,000, while a third place finish guarantees P5,500. The runner who finishes fourth will get P3,000 with number five pocketing P2, 000. The winner in the 42.2km senior women category will get P10,000 while the runner-up walks away with P5,000. A third place finish earns P2,500, fourth P1, 500 and fifth P1,000. The winner of the 15km junior men's race category will walk away with a television set and a DVD player.
The winner of the junior women's 15km race will get a microwave and a DVD player. In the veterans' category (men), the top athlete will take home P2,000, the winner in the women event earns P1,500.
The 1,000 athletes expected at this year's event falls short of the target of 5,000. But still this is a massive leap from the 2008 figure of 550. Defending champion, Keineetse Moswasi of Kgale View Sports Club leads a star-studded line-up expected at this year's event. In the last race, Moswasi emerged victorious in a time of 2:21:52 hours, well below the record of 2:14:57 hours achieved by James John in 2005. Athletes who complete the race under 2:18:00 are guaranteed a place in the team that will represent the country in the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) World Championships in Berlin, Germany in August.
The organising committee of the Phikwe marathon said as part of a team-building initiative, companies have registered their staff members to take part in the event. Some runners are expected to come from countries such as Zimbabwe and Lesotho. IAAF representative, Norry Williams will be in town to measure the course, as per the federation's requirement for all internationally- recognised races.
Bosele Phikwe Marathon Fact File
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