previous edition of the Vaal River City Marathon was plagued by organisational issues , which would have impacted their 2022 figures .
The decline of over 3000 runners at Kaapsehoop ( one of the last marathons in the year ) is worrying , and indicates that the drop in marathon finishers may indeed be more about economics than post-COVID fitness levels . Kaapsehoop and Soweto are always on the same weekend , so we ’ ve gone from a combined 14,000 to just 5000 marathon finishers on the first weekend of November preand post-COVID . benefitted from the cancellation of Loskop , as well as Irene moving from a single to a triple-lap route .
Three events ended 2022 exactly on par : Umgeni Water , Hippo Richards Bay and Tronox . Personally , I am happy to see that my participation in Empangeni ’ s Tronox Marathon last May ensured that they did not finish in the red . That was the last official standard marathon I ’ ve run , but I am hoping to be back on the road , making a positive difference on 2023 ’ s marathon numbers , in February or March . Hope to see many of you out there on the road , too .
The Biggest Winners
The good news is that there were 19 events that finished 2022 in the black – although only eight had triple figure gains . Benoni Northerns was the biggest winner , and the only event to attract more than 1000 additional finishers . The organisers benefitted from ‘ timing ’ their race to be just as the COVID field size restrictions were lifted , added to the fact their race has also been consistently well organised over the years .
Once again , the biggest surprise on the list is the sponsorless Om Die Dam 50km , which was just under the triple figure mark , despite being the secondmost expensive Rand per kilometre event in the country . The organisers have made some changes to alleviate race day traffic , and would also have
About the Author
The Running Mann has run over 240 marathons and ultras around the world , and his current mission is to run every marathon in South Africa , so he is particularly looking forward to running the 45k Timbavati Traverse on 9 July . If you ’ d like him to run your race or talk at your event , email therunningmann @ gmail . com . You can follow his adventures on Twitter , Facebook or Instagram , and on his popular blog .
The author after his run at the 2022 Tronox Marathon in KZN
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