Online Reporter
Innocent Kurira ,Zimpapers Sports Hub
NINETEEN athletes are set to compete in the final of the Coca-Cola ZITF Four Minute Mile, which will take place on Saturday morning at the ZITF Conference Centre grounds.
Originally, twenty-six athletes had qualified for the semi-finals, which were scheduled for Friday. However, with only nineteen athletes showing up, the semi-finals meant to trim the field to twenty finalists were cancelled, and all present competitors were advanced directly to the final.
The final follows the qualifying rounds held across the country from the start of the year.
Among the top contenders is Defending champion Wellington Varewi, who recorded the fastest qualifying time of four minutes 17.02 seconds. He is not only aiming for victory but is also pursuing a remarkable milestone becoming the only athlete in recent history to win the title four times. In addition, he is edging closer to the long-standing national record of three minutes 58 seconds, set by Gray Mavhera twenty-eight years ago.
Other athletes to watch include Elijah Mabunu, who qualified with a time of four minutes 17.93 seconds, Trust Hove with four minutes 19.03 seconds, and Trust Chidomaya, who posted a time of four minutes 28.71 seconds.
