Pascalinah Kabi
MASERU — At least 60 local athletes will battle it out in the 21.1 km Mabaleng half marathon today.
The marathon which begins at Tsereoane, Berea, to Moshoeshoe II is sponsored by Mabaleng, a local newspaper to the tune of M8 000.
The prize money will be divided among the top 10 finalists in both the male and female categories.
Lesotho Athletics Amateur Association (LAAA) spokesperson Sejanamane Maphathe told the Sunday Express the sponsors had promised M15 000 prize money during the launch of the marathon on May 23 but they had since reduced this to M8 000 citing financial constraints.
“The marathon is going on as planned but the only change is that the sponsorship money has decreased to M8 000,” Maphathe said on Friday.
He added that at least 60 athletes had registered to compete in the half marathon “and this is quite a big number considering that the race is sponsored locally”.
“Having 60 athletes participating in the local half marathon is a success given that many athletes are reluctant to compete locally because of low winning prizes.”
The marathon is open to Basotho who are 18 years old and above.
Meanwhile, Maphathe said Mabaleng would use today’s marathon to celebrate its official launch scheduled for today at its office in Moshoeshoe II after the race.
“Mabaleng is celebrating its official launch on June 12 (today) at its offices in Moshoeshoe II and the half marathon is part of its celebrations,” he said.
Comments are closed.