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Race Results
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Nedbank athletes dominate South African Cross Country Championships.
The South African Cross Country championships was dominated by Nedbank Running Club athletes despite the fact that eight of their main stars were not in attendance. They were out the country as members of the South African team dominating the results in Malawi for the Southern Region half marathon championships.
At the cross country, the 4 km senior gold medal was won by Nedbank Green Dream Team athlete and track star Juan Van Deventer in 12 minutes 4 seconds.
The under 21 gold medal went to Enoch Manyandi, a Nedbank Soweto athlete from the development Mzansi squad that is run by Mark Struwig in CGA.
Joel Mmone from the Nedbank Central North West development club of Pio Mpolokeng, took the bronze medal in the junior 8km category
Vincent Kutuane of the Nedbank Running Club in Soweto won the gold medal in the 8km for the men 30 years plus category. Over the same distance, Enoch Skosana took gold for his Nedbank Running Club Gauteng North in the men 35 years plus category. Piet Mosebedi of the Nedbank Running Club Gauteng North took silver in the 8km men 40 years plus.
Marietjie Ceronio of the Nedbank Running Club in the Vaal Triangle won the gold medal in the 4km for women 50 plus. Previous Comrades winner Francis Van Blerk from the Nedbank Running Club in Gauteng North took gold over the same distance for women 55 years plus.
In the main race of the day the 12km for senior men, athletes from Nedbank Running club finished 2nd and 3rd respectively; Kgosi Tsotsane 38:03 and Xolisa Tyali 38:09, although the latter claimed the SA championship silver medal as Tsotsane was entered as a club runner and only provincial athletes were eligible for championship places..
Nedbank Green Dream team runner Annerien Van Schalkwyk just missed a podium position as she finished 4th in the women’s main event over 8km for senior women but was rewarded with the championship Bronze medal, as the overall winner was from Malawi.
Nedbank Green Dream team runners win Southern region 21.1km championships in Malawi
Sibusiso Nzima and Irvette Van Blerk ; both current members of the Nedbank Running Club in Gauteng, won the Southern Region half marathon championships this weekend.Running in the colours of South Africa, the two simply ran away from a star studded field of African neighboring athletes in Malawi. Nzima won the men’s 21.1km race in a time of 65 minutes and 42 seconds, a clear indication that it was not an easy route.
Another Nedbank athlete from the Transkei Club in Bizana, Lungisa Mdedelwa finished in 4th position.
Van Blerk beat her nearest rival by more than 3  minutes when she took the gold medal in a time of 76 minutes and 54 seconds. “That was a very tough route and very difficult conditions” said Irvette after her win.
The women’s podium was completed by Zintle Xiniwe from the Nedbank Running Club in Cape Town in third. Mpho Mabuza from Nedbank RC Soweto was 4th.
Any South African athlete who finished in the top 6 positions in the Southern Region Championships will qualify automatically for the South African team for the world half marathon championships on the 16th October 2010.
Lindile Tokota from Nedbank Running Club in George won the Laingsburg Ultra marathon over 80km
 Lindile Tokota; Nedbank Running Club George, won the Laingsburg 80km in a time of 5:14:44 on Saturday 11 September 2010.
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The veteran Nedbank athlete, Tokota ran a well planned and paced race when he let the lead pack do the work for the first 50km. Soon afterwards he then broke away from them to front run all the way to the finish in his distinctive Nedbank colours.
Defending champion Lucas Nonyana from the Nedbank Vanderbijl Park club could only manage to earn himself a second position this year. Nonyana had just returned from the IAU 50km World Trophy event in Ireland where he finished 5th a mere 3 weeks ago and should surely have been questioning the suitability and wiseness of his move to take on two challenging distance events so close to each other. A born leader, Nonyana may yet learn that a better racing schedule will lead to greater achievements.
 Tokota’s Nedbank Running Club George outfit was well represented at the event and used both the 80km ultra and 21.1km half marathon event as a club outing. Another athlete from the Nedbank Running Club in George Johanna Raubenheimer won the 21.1km in the woman’s category in Laingsburg.
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Looking Ahead
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Energizer Night Relay
Heads up! This is just to let you know that the event has moved to Teak Place in Jhb this year - at the reguest of title sponsor, Energizer.
The 6th Energizer Corporate Adventure Night Relay is set for Friday 15th October. The event has been moved from it’s origins at Hilton College Estate, KZN to an all new and exciting venue at Teak Place in Gauteng (off the Kromdraai road just past Lanseria Airport in Jhb).
The course will cover various trails and terrain within the beautiful Teak Place trail centre. The Energizer Night Relay offers 3 categories of participation and is designed for the social weekend warrior as well as for the racing snakes. So start getting your teams together for the Trail Walk Relay where teams of 3 people each walk 5kms or try the Trail Running Relay where teams of 4 each run 5kms or if you ride a bike try the Mountain Bike Relay where teams of 2 each do a lap of 10kms and then do the 3rd and last lap together.
To ensure maximum safety and control, the bike and running courses will again be completely separate.
for more Info Click Here
Coca-Cola Allan Ferguson Round Naval Hill
Click Here for Race Flyer
Date: 18 September 2010
Time: 07h00
Organisers: Nedbank Bloem Achilles
Distance: 10, 4; ; 4
Province: Free State
Start: Hamilton Park
Aliwal Street
Navalsig
Enquiries:
Contact 1: Race Secretary
(W) 051-4445867
(F) 051-4445867
(Email) bloemachilles@gmail.com
Contact 2: Frikkie Booysen
(W) 051-4012623
(F) 051-4446758
(C) 083-3815874
(Email)booysenf.ekw@ufs.ac.za
Entry Details:
Entries are taken at the start from 06h00.
Walkers are Welcome
Route Description:
Route Type: Circular
This is a moderate and open course run around the base of Naval Hill. It is a good one to do for your first 10-kilometre event, and you will find it a fast course.
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National Stories
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Kerry Koen, star KwaZulu-Natal athlete breaks Mont-Aux-Sources record
Kerry Koen finished 7th overall this weekend in the Mont-Aux-Sources 50km Challenge trail run in a time of 5 hours and 27 minutes and in the process won the women’s race in a new record time, eclipsing her own previous record by 13 minutes.
 “The weather was not playing along and it was bitterly cold but I just pushed on and was concentrating to break the record” said Koen after her brilliant performance.
She added this in her own words:
“The Mont-Aux-Sources Challenge took place on Saturday, 11 September in cold, wet and misty conditions. Although the rain had stopped a few hours prior to the start, the pathways were muddy and rocks slippery. This however did not hamper the enthusiasm and determination of the entrants as they gathered at the start in their warm running gear.
Four different batches with a staggered start made running along the paths a lot more pleasurable as there was little congestion and bottle-necking en route. A-batch pace, as expected was fast, and soon groups broke up into a pace manageable to endure the grueling, unrelenting 17km or so, climb ahead to reach the contour path on top of the escarpment. A short scramble up the chain ladder and into the highest altitude; the source of the Tugela River. The race saw the extreme conditions playing havoc with some athletes performances - strength and endurance being hindered by the altitude. Along that plateau however, we had broken through the cloud into blueish skies and warmer conditions, allowing us to defrost a bit and gather our strength for the drizzly cloud-belt below on the descent.
The rapid descent down the gully highlighted the different approaches different athletes had to the race, with some being very cautious and wary while tackling the loose rocks underfoot, and others using this section to their advantage and approaching it in a very reckless style - "full speed ahead". I was definately part of the latter group and made up a lot of time in the second part of the race. It was certainly an adrenaline inducing section!!!
The paths on the way down were obviously a lot more muddy, slippery and worn than on the way up, which made things far more technical, but keeping the eyes on the path and concentration sharp, I managed to keep my pace up and competitors at bay.
After a hard 5 hours 27minutes of racing I was welcomed very warmly to the finish as the first woman home, and seventh overall. The second lady finisher was some thirty minutes or so behind. Although I found the 2010 race more tough than that of 2009, my time was thirteen minutes faster this year than last”
Koen’s name appeared on everybody’s lips earlier this year when she finished in a top ten position in the Two Oceans marathon, thereby upsetting for than one or two of the traditional South African top ten performers. After the personal disappointment at Comrades hampered by a stomach ailment on the day; albeit it a respectable 28th position in 7h44, Koen bounced back to win the Rhodes Ultra 52km Trail run in July, also in recorded breaking time.
We are expecting big things for Kerry in the near future. |
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Comrades News
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COMRADES WELCOMES NEW MAJOR SPONSOR
On Monday 6 September the Comrades Marathon Association (CMA) announced the acquisition of a fourth Major Sponsor for the world’s oldest and biggest Ultra race, the Comrades Marathon!
Gary Boshoff, General Manager of the CMA stated: “The CMA is delighted to announce that the Tourism, Hospitality & Sport Education & Training Authority (THETA), one of twenty-three (23) Sector Education & Training Authorities in South Africa and the one responsible for Sport, has joined the Comrades family of sponsors and partners as a Major Sponsor for the next four years, from 2011 to 2014”.
THETA has been involved with the Comrades Marathon since 2008 when the organisation came on board to assist the CMA’s Underprivileged Runner’s Project – a project assisting underprivileged Comrades athletes with travel, accommodation and food. This partnership grew stronger in 2009 and 2010 where the CMA hosted five (5) final year Sport Management students from the Durban University of Technology (DUT) as Interns over a two-month period to gain practical experience in the workplace. The internship program laid the foundation for the present major sponsorship deal.
The importance of training and developing professionally qualified sports professionals has never been more relevant in South Africa than at the present time and the CMA and THETA hope to drive the need for greater investment in the training of sports professionals with this partnership. Through its association with the Comrades Marathon THETA will facilitate in-service training opportunities for sports professionals through the CMA and other major sports events and federations, while at the same time seeking to promote and highlight the need for employers in the sports sector, be it government, public benefit or commercial sports entities, to prioritize training and development in the South African sport industry. This is a prerequisite for sustainable improvement towards excellence and quality delivery.
Mike Tsotetsi, Chief Executive Officer of THETA is excited and enthusiastic about the prospects envisaged through the partnership and he believes that athletes from all sports and all walks of life will eventually benefit from this project. He elaborated on the partnership in the following manner: “The Comrades Marathon Association is renowned for the high standards it consistently maintains in organising an event of the magnitude of the Comrades Marathon. THETA is therefore proud to be associated with the Comrades Marathon and together we will endeavour to spread the important message of skills development, education and training, for the sports industry”.
While the partnership incorporates an extensive financial investment in The Ultimate Human Race by THETA, it is much more than a sponsorship. In fact, added Boshoff: “The projected benefits of the partnership go far beyond the Comrades Marathon; it is aimed at those underprivileged coaches, administrators, technical officials and managers who have been marginalised and excluded from the mainstream and who need support to gain the necessary expertise to be competitive in the modern sport industry”.
The CMA and THETA are committed to excellence in sport and aim to use their respective resources and brands to create opportunities and advance quality delivery in the sport industry.
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COMRADES MARATHON MEDIA RELEASE 2011/2
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