Two Oceans organisers call for more support to keep race’s legacy alive

The Two Oceans Marathon board says it needs more resources to be able to put together the world-class event participants have come to expect.

The organisers have perhaps received more criticism this year than any previous edition of the popular annual road running event, which was launched in 1970, with participants heading to social media to vent their frustration after the 54th edition of the race was held in Cape Town earlier this month.

Runners have lashed out at the organisers for (among other things) running out of medals, not having sufficient markings in the trail races, and not providing enough items in the goodie bags.

The organisers have also been widely criticised for accepting more entries than they were allowed by the City of Cape Town.

Resolving issues

According to race director Hilton Kearns, they overcompensated in predicting the number of silver medallists they expected and did not have enough bronze medals, and he was still in discussions with a service provider regarding route markings in the trail races.

“We’re in the process of resolving these issues,” Kearns said on Monday.

It was acknowledged, however, that there had been an oversight in terms of how many people were allowed on the route and at the finish venue during the half-marathon, which was a safety concern and could see the race (and others in the Western Cape) facing sanctions or stricter limits in future.

In reaction, race founder Celtic Harriers (a club which still receives royalties from the Two Oceans brand but is no longer involved in the organisation) has said it wants to meet with the Two Oceans board out of concern for the future of the race.

More money required

According to Two Oceans chairperson Toni Cavanagh, the race had struggled to rope in enough sponsors since emerging from the Covid pandemic a few years ago, and while they appreciated the support from headline sponsor Totalsports and the runners who paid entry fees, they were falling short of the nearly R27-million required to organise the event.

“We do have other valuable partners but they provide sponsorships in kind. We need a stronger sponsorship portfolio because our team is overwhelmed and we have a shortage of resources to assist our race director (Kearns),” Cavanagh said.

“This event belongs to the runners and the local community, and we need to protect the vision of the founders, and we will continue to strive to achieve this.”