Soweto Marathon back with a bang
JOBURG – Soweto Marathon set to be bigger and better than ever before.
It takes place in an area of the country which has an unrivaled heritage and new race director, Danny Blumberg hopes the Old Mutual Soweto Marathon will become Africa’s version of the New York City Marathon.
A Sandringham resident, Blumberg took over the role of race director for The People’s Race this year.
He rolled up his sleeves and got working on an event that he believes has the potential to become the premium marathon in the country. “We would like this to be the Boston or New York marathon of South Africa and having the start and finish at the iconic stadium [FNB Stadium] will most certainly assist with this,” he said.
For his first year in the job, Blumberg said he would be concentrating on the marathon being operationally sound, and working with sponsors to enhance their offerings and initiatives.
The venue for this year’s event was changed from Nasrec Expo Centre to the FNB Stadium for two reasons according to Blumberg. One, because of the increased attendance figures this year projected to be 25 000 so a bigger venue such as the FNB Stadium was needed and, secondly, the stadium is an iconic venue in Soweto and should be celebrated, he said.
The organisers of the marathon invite athletes to be part of The People’s Race as it encourages South Africans to learn more about Soweto and exposes international runners to one of the most vibrant parts of the country. “The organising committee is working very hard to deliver an extremely successful event,” said Blumberg.
“We are expecting 25 000 runners to take to the streets of Soweto. Runners will experience the FNB Stadium like never before. The start will be just outside the stadium with the finish inside the calabash.”
For the second year running, Old Mutual is throwing its full weight behind the Soweto Marathon to host another unforgettable race that attracts and inspires athletes from all over the world.
Old Mutual head of brand, Karen Thomas said, “We are a very proud title sponsor of this special race and share in the excitement of hosting it at a new venue in 2016.”
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