Valley runners take top spots

THE iNanda Trail Running Club was really excited to have three team members achieve podium positions at the recent KZN Trail Running Aloe Wildlife event on Sunday, 6 May.

In the 20km race, Patrick Canham came second and Zolani Mavundla came third. In the 13km race, Mbhasobhi Gumede achieved first place.

The iNanda Trail Running Club is a sports club dedicated to improving sport participation in the community, educational attainment and opportunities for youth and children.

ALSO READ: Villagers make it a hat-trick weekend

The iNanda Trail Running Club is a registered NPO with a dedicated coach, Patrick Canham.

Patrick is an avid athlete and inspiration to the children he coaches and supports them in their development.

Mmeli Ndimande who started the Inanda Trail Running Club approached KZN Trail Running, who agreed to sponsor free entries for this group of young runners to enable them to participate and experience what is one of the fastest growing sports in KZN.

Mmeli’s biggest challenge now is raising roughly R2 000 per event to cover the costs of transporting these young runners to events, as well as sourcing running shoes for these athletes.

ALSO READ: The future is now: Natascha nurtures future rugby players

Many are running barefoot or even in flip flops. Currently the iNanda Trail Running Club has 14 members aged between 12 and 18 years old.

“We would love to see our children and youth of the community having a good relationship with one another through sport and to decrease the crime rate by keeping the youth actively involved in sport. We would like to see our athletes competing nationally and internationally, but most importantly, to ensure they become professional athletes who learn respect,” said Mmeli.

Anyone who wishes to contribute towards transport costs for these children or donate second-hand or new running clothes or shoes to the runners can contact Mmeli Ndimande on 079 798 4367 or deposit the money into the ITRC bank account.

Bank details:

Inanda Trail Running Club. FNB cheque account number: 62750706015.

Pavilion branch: 224-326

Do you want to receive alerts regarding this and other Highway community news via WhatsApp? Send us a WhatsApp message (not an sms) with your name and surname (ONLY) to 060 532 5409.

You can also join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

PLEASE NOTE: If you have signed up for our news alerts you need to save the Highway Mail WhatsApp number as a contact to your phone, otherwise you will not receive our alerts