Stage set for Beitbridge Mayor’s marathon

Thupeyo Muleya-Beitbridge Bureau

It’s all systems go for the 9th edition of the Beitbridge Mayor’s anti-litter half marathon set for Saturday morning along the Beitbridge-Bulawayo highway.

The race is being held to raise awareness on littering in the town which produces at least 1 000 tonnes of solid waste every month.

At the moment, the council is only able to collect at least 700 tonnes of solid waste every month.

Race spokesperson, Raniel Ndou said they have covered a lot of ground in preparing for the event.

He said the event will be held under the theme “Beitbridge My Home, My Smart City: Running Against Litter”.

“The race registration fee is US$5 or the equivalent at the bank rate of the day. Preparations are advanced and we hope to reach our target of 500 athletes,” said Ndou.

Residents running against litter in the previous Beitbridge mayor’s marathon.

“We are going to maintain our route along the Beitbridge-Bulawayo highway since there is less traffic. We will have three main races – the 21.1km, 10km and 5km powerwalk. The 5km race is only for the 16-19 years category.”

The power walk starts at the roundabout separating the highways going to Bulawayo and Harare and passes through Tshitaudze and Dulivhadzimu suburbs.

Ndou said they had also invited mayors and councillors from other towns to participate and witness the race.

He said they are receiving overwhelming support from the community and were looking forward to a successful event.

“A clean-up will be carried out on Friday June 21 along the marathon route. We shall go a step further and livestream the event this year.”