June 18, 2003
By Bongani Majola
PERHAPS it is because it coincides with the opening of the Nelson Mandela Bridge - the mammoth development project linking Braamfontein to Newtown - that the 21km Blue IQ Joburg City Challenge half marathon carries the largest prize money for any race of its kind in the country.
The R175 000 prize money each for the first man and first woman to cross the finishing line makes other races across South Africa look pale in comparison. A total of R800 000 in prize money will be paid out to the winners of the various races on 20 July 2003, according to the organisers.
These financial rewards challenge South Africa's two major ultra marathons, the Comrades and the Two Oceans, as well as other rated city marathons. The Joburg City Challenge's first prize beats that of the Comrades by R15 000, while Cape Town's Two Oceans Marathon only pays out R100 000 to the winner. The winner of the Old Mutual Soweto marathon earns R40 000 and the Pretoria-Johannesburg Hyper City to City winner nets R55 000.
"We are paying what the runners are worth," says a statement by race organisers Blue IQ, the Johannesburg Development Agency and the City of Johannesburg. "While most marathon sponsors don't offer such prize money, we want to make sure that even the most junior of winners takes home at least R2 000."
Other events on the day include a 10km road race, a 5km fun run, a 5km wheelchair race, a 400m race for children and a celebrity mile for invited track athletes. The celebrity winner will take home R10 000, while the school with most finishers in the junior category wins R20 000. There is a R2 000 prize each for veterans, masters and grandmasters.
An artist's impression of the Nelson Mandela Bridge
However, the winners in the main 21km race will share the biggest slice of the prize money. Here, the second man and woman to cross the line win R75 000 each, followed by R50 000 each for third position, R25 000 for fourth and R10 000 each for the fifth man and woman.
