Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC Nomusa Dube Ncube has made a clarion call to all athletes wanting to take part in this year's historic Mandela Day Marathon to hurry and register on time as it is exactly two days before the closing deadline date of 31 July 2014.
“This year’s marathon is the first since the passing of the father of our nation Dr Nelson Mandela and is bound to be a thrilling occasion with entrants from across the world making their way to the KwaZulu-Natal Capital City to immortalise the legacy of Madiba, one of our greatest icons to grace planet earth.
“We have received entries from many African countries including Zimbabwe, Malawi and Ethiopia. We have also received entries from many countries outside Africa, including the USA, United Kingdom, Germany and many others,” said MEC Dube-Ncube, whose department together with uMgungundlovu District Municipality are charged with overseeing the preparations for the marathon.
The Marathon will also be an occasion to celebrate the 20 years of Freedom for which Tata Mandela laid a firm foundation.
“As the Province of KwaZulu-Natal we are indeed proud to be associated with this iconic event, which seeks to in a rather sporting way, pay a fitting tribute to one of our greatest living icon. The marathon in a way symbolises the tenacity and dedication of Mandela in his long walk to freedom,” added Dube-Ncube.
The race will take place on the 31 of August 2014 and will also be an occasion to commemorate the 52nd anniversary of President Mandela’s capture. The marathon will be broadcast live on SABC 2 on Sunday the 31st of August 2014. Prizes have doubled to more than R1million from the previous year.
Leading the pack to keep the Mandela Day Marathon gold medal in KZN is the 2014 Comrades Marathon winner Bongumusa Mthembu, who is expected to battle it out with other top international athletes.
Also include is the 5KM VIP Race, 10 KM Race, 21 Kilometre Race and the Flagship 42,2 main event.
The marathon is expected to bring key moments of success and triumph as well as a rich collection of humorous moments that are often associated with a race of this magnitude.
Dube- Ncube says government will unceasingly promote sport for both social cohesion and nation building to be attained.
“This is what Madiba was about. We want to remind everyone in the world of the lengthy marathon that Madiba had to endure for this country to be a rainbow- nation.”
For more information:
Lennox Mabaso
KZN COGTA spokesperson
Cell: 082 884 2403
Msawakhe Mayisela
Cell: 084 602 8037
Mbeko
Cell: 074 312 9933
