Tinaye Agere
Online Reporter
ATHLETES from around the world were still trickling in by Friday morning ahead of the Bonaqua Triathlon Cup, which will be held at Troutbeck Resort in Nyanga on Saturday.
This year’s edition is expected to attract triathletes from a number of countries including Mexico, South Africa, Chile and Japan.
Twenty-one men and 12 women are set to battle it out for honours in the competition.
A wider pool of junior athletes is also in camp, with 10 men and nine women set to compete in the Africa Junior Cup.
Six races are on cards, and these include the Elite Under-23 African Triathlon Sprint Cup, African Triathlon Junior Cup, Off-road Triathlon Formats, Adult Age Group, Youth-Mini Triathlon Formats, and the Youth Super Sprint Triathlon.
Event director Rick Fulton said this year’s edition has seen a sharp increase in the number of athletes.
“Some of the athletes are already at the venue, resting, as they prepare for the day,” he said.
“A huge chunk of the athletes arrived yesterday while the final group is expected today (Friday).
“We are expecting 52 athletes from as many as 20 different countries.”
Despite the wider pool of elite athletes, Zimbabwe will not be represented in senior categories.
It has been years since the senior men’s category had a local representative, while the just-retired Greer Wynn fought the lone battle in the women’s group during the last three editions.
It is a different case in the junior categories as Duwan Botha will be part of the 10 junior men, while Matipa Mawere, Nicole Madya and Inkosinomusa Mthethwa will battle it out for a podium finish on the women’s side.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter