Runners can look forward to unparalleled views of the City , Table Mountain and harbour when they head directly towards the Southern Suburbs via the elevated freeway ’ s N1 / N2 outbound lane . As a result of this revision , runners will only pass City Hall in the 2nd half of the race , at the 30km mark , thereby greeting Madiba ’ s statue from a different direction .
Athletes will run through District Six for the first time , much to the delight of the local community who is eager to bring some extra gees to the party on race day .
And while participants make their way towards the finish along Beach Road with the cold Atlantic to their left , they should take a moment to reflect on the fact that this is the only event on the AbbottWMM calendar – official race or candidate – that finishes next to the ocean .
Jordaan says that the 2023 and 2024 events will need to focus on continued participant growth to be in line with AbbottWMM ’ s expectations . “ The organising team will critically review all the learnings from the 2022 event to make the necessary improvements for the 2023 and 2024 evaluation years . In terms of participation , the goal is to attract some 30,000 runners , including at least 10,000 international runners .”
Significant Impact
In 2019 it was estimated that the AbbottWMM races collectively attracts more than 5-million on-course spectators , more than 250-million television viewers , 300,000 entry applicants and 150,000 participants , generating a combined economic impact of more than $ 400-million . In 2018 alone , New York City Marathon had over 52,000 participants .
Looking at the impact on a single event , the 2018 Chicago Marathon economic impact study showed an impact of approximately R5.6-billion through tourism , job creation , retail and more . To put that in context : If the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon has a similar impact on the City in coming years , it is more than the combined economic impact of the Cape Town ’ s Jewel Events !
“ If this was the impact on Chicago Marathon , just imagine what will happen to Cape Town , a city that is voted one of the most desirable tourism destinations year on year !”
For now , organisers are confident that the dream of becoming an Abbott World Marathon Majors race in 2025 is well within reach . It will be the ultimate opportunity to showcase the event , the Mother City , South Africa and Africa as a major player in the international marathon space .
“ Becoming an AbbottWMM race is akin to hosting a world championship event every single year , with a massive economic impact on its host city , meaning more job opportunities , more international exposure , more tourism and more economic prosperity for our city ,” reflects Jordaan .
“ And while we ’ re leaving no stone unturned to reach this goal , we will always keep the most important people on this journey – our runners – at the heart of every decision we make .”
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