Cape Town Marathon Digimag Sanlam Cape Town Marathon | Page 8

The Race
THE MOTHER CITY
WELCOMES YOU!
F
or many runners around the world, being part of a ‘big city’
marathon is the pinnacle of their running dreams, their
ultimate bucket list running goal, and for many years, South
African runners had to travel overseas, at great expense, to get this
running experience. The Sanlam Cape Town Marathon has changed
that, having rapidly grown into a ‘big city’ marathon right here on
South African soil, giving local runners a taste of what it is like to
run the London Marathon or the Tokyo Marathon.
Today this race is Africa’s “must run” iconic city marathon, a bucket
list item for runners throughout South Africa as well as other parts
of the world, and has grown into an exhilarating festival of running
that brings together elite athletes, social joggers and surrounding
communities to enjoy a spring weekend of running through Africa’s
spectacularly beautiful Mother City. The classic 42.2km marathon
takes centre stage on the Sunday, along with the 10km Peace Run,
while two Peace Trail Runs (12km and 22km) and a 5km Peace
Run/Walk take place on the Saturday.
The marathon offers a fast, competitive yet beautiful route,
providing runners with a unique experience that highlights the city’s
natural splendour and top cultural attractions. The field is inclusive
of the world’s elite athletes, local club and non-club runners, visiting
athletes from all over the world, and many social runners and
walkers. Athletes and spectators can enjoy Cape Town’s unique
festive atmosphere at safe, fun supporter zones along the route,
and at the finish in Green Point.
With the phenomenal natural beauty of the event route being a
major drawcard, adherence to green principles and the protection
of the route itself are
critical. In line with
IAAF Road Race Label
classification tradition, an
aspect of the marathon’s key
sustainability drive will be upholding
environmental-practice excellence. In 2017
the marathon won the AIMS Green Award and in 2018 it was again
certified a climate-neutral event, achieving zero waste to landfill.
Also, programmes and initiatives run under the Run4Change
legacy programme aim to achieve R3 million in total fundraising
this year, with the funds due to go to various official charities
affiliated to the event.
GOING FOR MORE THAN GOLD
The excellence of organisation and the fast times run on this course
have seen the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon become the only
marathon on the African continent to earn the coveted IAAF Gold
Label Status, and the event is now hard at work to take the step up
to the newly created IAAF Platinum Label Status. “When you run
in an IAAF Road Race Label event, you get to experience an event
run on truly world-class best-practice principles,” says Olympian
long-distance runner and race ambassador Elana van Zyl-Meyer.
“Our aim has always been to become a member of the newly
formed IAAF Platinum Label-status marathons, and there’s little
reason to believe that an African city marathon can’t be added to
this family of world-class city marathons.”
So welcome to the Mother City, and the 2019 Sanlam Cape
Town Marathon. Whether you’re running the full 42.2km distance
or one of the shorter runs, we hope you will have an incredible
experience from start to finish, and take many great new
memories home with you.
@ctmarathon
www.capetownmarathon.com
#ctmarathon2019 | #run4change | #rungreen
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Sanlam Cape Town Marathon | 14 th & 15 th September 2019