eBusiness Weekly
Abel Ndooka
OVER 1 000 athletes are expected to converge to the border town of Mutare this Sunday where they will battle for top honours in one of the country’s most prestigious races, the Tanganda Half Marathon.
The annual Tanganda Half Marathon which serves as qualifiers for the world half marathon is back after a two year hiatus which was caused by the global pandemic (Covid-19) which forced many sporting codes to be put on hold in 2020 as the country was on lockdown as the rest of the world was battling the pandemic.
Organisers of the marathon, Tanganda Tea Company, said they are excited to be back hosting the annual race which will see runners from different parts of the world battle in the 21km race, 10km and the 5km fun run.
“We are excited to be back hosting runners from different parts of the world this week in the annual Tanganda Half Marathon after two years on lockdown.
“As Tanganda Tea Company this race is a permanent fixture on our calendar every year, so we look forward to hosting our athletes this Sunday in Mutare,” said Tanganda Tea Company operations manager, Farai Garayi.
He said they have been getting enquiries from athletes from as far as Spain and different parts of the world who want to come and participate in the race.
“We expect over 1000 athletes from around the world to come and participate, because we have been getting a lot of enquiries from different athletes who are interested in taking part in this year’s edition,” he said.
National Athletics Association of Zimbabwe (NAAZ) president, Tendai Tagara said the Tanganda Half marathon is one of the most important races in the country and the winner of the 21km will go and represent the nation at the world half marathon in China in October.
“As NAAZ we are happy the Tanganda Half marathon is back as it is one of the most important races in this country. It serves as the qualifier for the world half marathon and the winner this coming Sunday will go and represent the nation in China at the world half marathon,” he said.
2019 winners Misheck Sithole and Olivia Chitate are expected to defend their crowns this coming Sunday.
