Tzaneen athletes run with a Spring in their step
Whilst the rest of the town slept, those clad in their active wear took to the streets of Tzaneen to compete in 5 km, 10 km and 21 km races last Saturday.
The Spring Opener races took place last Saturday in Tzaneen with the determined and courageous fitness freaks among us taking to Tzaneen Lifestyle Centre for a bright and breezy 07:00 start.
Whilst the rest of the town slept, those clad in their active wear took to the streets of Tzaneen to compete in 5 km, 10 km and 21 km races.
The starting pistol was fired at 07:00 sharp and the army of athletes took off in the direction of Shekinah House. There, the runners split up to take on their different length challenges.
The 5 km event saw many school-going children participate. Little legs were a blur as the mini runners took the challenge seriously and pushed themselves to the finish line, many carrying a balloon with them.
The final water point for all the runners was on the four-way stop outside Oasis Mall. Here, the party vibe was pumping and it gave everyone the boost they needed to tackle Voortrekker Road and reach the finish line back at the Lifestyle Centre.
The winner of the men’s open 10 km went to Phuti Sethowa, a local from Mokgolobotho village. Sethowa also took the top spot for the 21.1 km Tuffy Marathon earlier on in the year.
Second place went to Peu Lesiba and third to Calvin Malatji.
Among the women, the top three placed runners were Jennifer Sithole followed by Joyce Netshitenze and then Anre Maclean of Tzaneen based athletics group, Le-Club.
The winner of the 21 km went to Tlou Peu from Pietersburg Road Runners and he was followed in by Pharson Magangane and then Lucky Mohale.
The top three female finishers in the open category were Gift Ramabele, Jane Mudau and Lesabe Cronje.
Jannie Sacco from Tzaneen Marathon Club was the first placed male finisher in his age class for the 10 km race, for those 60 and upwards.
And among the female runners in the 50-59 age group for the 10 km event, Tzaneen’s Adel Stevens from Le-Club came in second whilst Stella Modjadji from Tzaneen Marathon Club took third position.
Local resident Karia Martin ran her first 10 km at the event and shared her experience with the LETABA HERALD, “It was a really well organised event, the road was clearly marked and the marshals were very helpful. The vibe and music at Oasis Mall with the Panarott’s team was awesome and helped the tired muscles go with the beat! ‘Skuld bult’ made me pay my dues. The runners were all so encouraging of each other, the spectators made you go even though your muscles screamed for you to stop. I will definitely do it again and look forward to bettering my time.”
The main sponsors of the event were Tzaneen Lifestyle Centre, NTT Toyota Tzaneen, Premjee’s Cash & Carry Tzaneen, Panarotti’s Pizza & Pasta Tzaneen, Pam Golding Properties Tzaneen, Letaba Wireless Tzaneen, Mahela Boerdery The Junction, Lombards Outfitters and Stephan van Rensburg Attorneys.
