Record sponsorship for Navachab Half Marathon

THE fifth Navachab Half Marathon will take place in Karibib on Saturday with a record sponsorship of more than N$100 000 having been secured.

At a press conference in Windhoek on Tuesday, race organiser Bethold Karumendu said that numerous companies had come on board to push the total sponsorship of the event to N$105 000.

“Of this amount, N$70 000 will go towards prize money and the rest to logistical and administrative expenses,” he said.

It’s a huge increase since the event started five years ago with a total sponsorship of N$45 000, while it has also become a major event on the Namibian sporting calendar.

The inaugural event five years ago drew about 250 athletes, but according to Karumendu that number could be doubled on Saturday.

“We expect close to 500 athletes on Saturday and Karibib is going to be overcrowded,” he said.

The CEO of the Karibib Town Council, Lesley Goraseb said the event had put Karibib on the map.

“This is also my fifth year as CEO of the Karibib Town Council, while we recently had the annual Karibib Travel and Tourism Fair for the fifth year, so it’s really a privilege that events of this magnitude are happening in our town,” he said.

The Karibib Town Council had also become a sponsor of the Navachab Half Marathon over the years and increased their sponsorship to N$10 000 this year.

“We hope to increase our sponsorship next year, while I hope the marathon will attract international athletes in future from as far afield as Kenya,” Goraseb said.

Hendrik Mapele of the Ministry of Youth, Sport and National Service commended Karumendu on his initiative.

“It’s not easy getting sponsorships for sporting events so we would like to thank Karumendu for his hard work.”

According to Karumendu, registration for the race takes place on Friday till late, and will continue on Saturday morning before the race, from 06h00 while the race starts at 07h30.

The winning senior male and female athletes will each receive N$7 000, while the second placed athletes will each receive N$2 500 and the third placed athletes N$1 500.

The fourth to seventh placed athletes will also receive prize money, ranging from N$1 000 to N$300.

The first five athletes in the junior male and female categories will receive prize money ranging from N$2 500 to N$300; the first three male and female veterans will receive prize money ranging from N$2 000 to N$700; and the first masters male and female athletes will receive prize money ranging from N$1 500 to N$500.

There will also be a 5km fun run or walk category for social athletes with the senior winners receiving N$1 000 each and the junior winners N$500 each.

Karumendu said he hoped that some of Namibia’s top marathon athletes will be in action, although he conceded that the Navachab date clashed with the Cape Town Marathon the following week.

“This is not a qualifying event for international races, but it’s an important race for the athletes to stay in shape. The following week, though, some of our top athletes will compete in the Cape Town Marathon, to try and qualify for the World Marathon Championships in Doha next year,” he said.

South African athlete Joel Mmone set the course record of one hour, three minutes and one second (1:03:01) when he won the race last year, while Namibia’s Lavinia Haitope won the senior women’s race in 1:14:01 last year.

Some of the other sponsors who have come on board for this year’s event include FNB Namibia, OK Foods, Namagra Marble and Desert Lion Energy, while Coca-Cola will be the soft drinks sponsor and the Ministry of Youth and Sport will assist with the transportation of the athletes.

More information can be obtained from Karumendu at 081 3118489.