Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 100, November 2017 | Page 7

PUBLISHER’S NOTE
Thanks
to All
On behalf of the whole Modern
Athlete team, I’d like to welcome
you to the 100th edition of South
Africa’s Biggest Running Publication. We are
immensely proud of reaching this milestone,
and believe this magazine has come a long
way since we launched it in 2009.
T
he idea for this magazine literally came out of a chat during an early
morning training run, when great friends Mike Bray and Arthur Valasis
both mentioned that they had always thought about starting a running
magazine, because they weren’t finding what they wanted in the magazines then
on the market. That’s all it took, and soon the first edition was being printed and
handed out to great excitement and acclaim at the Comrades Marathon Expo. For
the second edition, a unique distribution method straight to the running community
saw Modern Athlete become an instant favourite all over the Gauteng province,
and that had extended to the rest of the country by the fifth edition.
I joined the team a few years later, and have enjoyed being part of the magazine’s
success, particularly the incredible growth in our digital subscriptions and the long-term
relationships we have built with many clubs, events and sponsors around the country.
Along with the great content, that has been the foundation of the magazine’s success,
and helped us get to our 100 th edition. Now we’re looking forward to the next 100!
On behalf of Mike, Arthur and myself, I would like to thank all our readers,
advertisers, sponsors, partners and clients for your loyal, ongoing support. Without
you, we would not be privileged to be working in such a dream job, with such an
awesome audience. We’d also like to thank all the members of the Modern Athlete
team, past and present, who work so hard not just on the magazine, but all the
other projects and platforms that make up the brand. Most of our team are runners
themselves, and I know how much the Modern Athlete brand means to them. It
really is more than just a job for all of us.
We’ve made some great changes to this edition as we continue to strive to produce
a quality, appealing and relevant magazine for the whole running community of
South Africa, including the smaller ‘fringe codes’ that are nevertheless still part of
the sport. Our goal for the future is to remain SA’s Biggest Running Publication, the
most read magazine in this running-crazy country, and we hope that you have not
only enjoyed run ning with us up to this point, but will keep on running with us.
Craig van der Westhuizen
Mike Bray
Arthur Valasis, Craig van der
Westhuizen & Richard Laskey
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