Lovemore Dube [email protected]
CADENCE Athletics Club runner, Godwin Katakura became the first winner of the just introduced
Kings Half Marathon in Bulawayo yesterday when he finished the race in 1 hour 02 minutes 20 seconds.
He showed no signs of tiring and could have even run a faster time had he had good competition of the filed that entered the 21.1kn event.
KFF’s Andrew Dick was second in 1 hour 03 minutes 40 seconds with Kenyan Isaac Langat who runs for Harare club Mr Pace third in 1 hour 03 minutes 59 seconds.
In the women’s elite category Mercy Chemutayi was the first runner home in 1 hour 16 minutes 23 seconds, a good time considering that most winners of local half marathons have won from 1 hour
17 minutes to 1 hour 22 minutes.
Melody Kaseke of the Zimbabwe Republic Police was second in 1 hours 17 minutes 04 seconds.
Third position went to Evas Nasansira of Uganda in 1 hour 20 minutes 13 seconds.
The women’s wheelchair honours in the 5km were claimed by Stella Jongwe who covered the race in 18 minutes 51 seconds with Molene Muza first too in the 10km in 35 minutes 59 seconds.
Forty nine-yeard-old Margaret Bangajena took the women’s 21.1km wheelchair title in 1 hour 01 minutes 14 seconds while veteran Elford Moyo ws the sole runner in the half marathon.
Nyasha Mharakurwa featured in the 5km wheelchair race and was rewarded with first position in 12 minutes 28 seconds.
Samson Muroyiwa claimed the 10km wheelchair title in 28 minutes 57 seconds.
The morning weather conditions, a sunny environment with a cool breeze from the south-east
promoted ideal temperatures for good times.
All appeared to have gone according to the script with athletes commending organisers and
sponsors of a job well done.
Yesterday was a culmination of four months of organising in which Raeez Lunat and his marketing
colleague Miyako Banda put in several hours of meetings with sponsors and athletics board leader
Watson Madanyika. Everything was on point from start to finish, setting the bar too high not for
themselves but the wider athletics family that has had to do with shoddy races in the past.
Banda, the spokesperson for the sponsors and race organisers Budget Cash and Carry was happy
with the outcome of the race.
“We have over 800 runners who have participated, we have attracted athletes from all over the
country, we have runners from Kenya, Uganda, South Africa and Botswana. It is our first time of
doing it, we have over 50 brands participating in the marathon and some are exhibiting here. We
are opening it up now,” said Banda.
Banda was happy with the response from the athletes who gave them a five star rating and among
those were legendary figures like Tommy Lazarus who ran for the Airforce of Zimbabwe and held
the Matopos 33 Miler record he set in 1984, Nicholas Nyengerayi the 1995 All-Africa marathon gold
medal winner and Brighton Chipere.
“It was a well organised race,” said Chipere.
Nyengerayi praised Bulawayo road race organisers for their professionalism. He says he enjoys
running in the City of Kings and used to in his heydays as well.
