Road running — of all distances — set for bumper period

Back in 2014, South Africa didn’t have a single road running race which held World Athletics Label status. Now, seven years later, there are five of them.

And while the Covid pandemic saw all events being suspended last year, the 2021 season is closing with a bag full of races in a domestic campaign which has become packed with international events.

Following the return of the Nelson Mandela Bay Half-Marathon in Gqeberha in May, incorporating the SA Half-Marathon Championships, the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon will be held on Sunday, with the event again hosting the national 42km championships.

With organisers of the Cape Town race targeting a place in the top-flight World Marathon Majors series over the next few years, this weekend’s event will not only feature South African stars Stephen Mokoka and Gerda Steyn against a world-class line-up, but will also pave the way for the return of mass participation athletics with a field of 10,000 runners taking part under strict health and safety guidelines.

And with organisers of the Run your City Series having received World Athletics Label status for all three of their events, they announced last week that they would have the backing of Absa in a new deal which will ensure the series has sufficient financial support for the next four years.

Following the Joburg leg of the series last month, the Durban leg will be held later this month, incorporating the SA 10km Championships.

And the Run Your City campaign will close with the popular 12km third leg in Cape Town in November.

For many years, ultra-marathons dominated the domestic road running landscape, and the Comrades and Two Oceans races are still among the most popular in the country.

The emergence of a handful of other events have provided some necessary balance, however, giving elite athletes the chance to focus on shorter distances without having to compete in gruelling ultras to grab their slice of fame and fortune.

And the recognition from global governing body World Athletics is worthy acknowledgement for a nation which has always prided itself on its ability to host world-class mass participation sports events.

“Since the inception of the series, our focus areas have been innovation, inspiration, and fun,” said Run Your City founder Michael Meyer.

“We wanted to create the most accessible and enjoyable mass participation road running events in Africa.”

Every one of SA’s Label races is helping change the face of the sport, for the better, and it can only be good for athletics if they continue to go from strength to strength.