Cape Town marathon photos!

Wigan 3 - 1 Chelsea Wigan produced a massive shock with a victory over 10-man Chelsea which ended the Blues' 100% record and knocked them off the top of the Premier League.

George Mofokeng made a drastic come back in the marathon circles

George Mofokeng made his come back into the top class, when he took the tape in Nedbank Cape Town City event to record a time 2:14:20 seconds. Early leader Odwa Tunyiswa used the ideal racing conditions to pull a large bunch through the first 10km in 32 minutes 27 minutes. The sustained pace saw the pack whittled down to six including Tunyiswa, George Mofokeng, Mike Fokoroni, and David Ngakane by half way which they completed in 1:08. At this stage the defending Champion Motlokoa Nkhabutlane and his Lesotho colleagues remained in the chasing pack. As the pace eased Mofokeng and Zongamele Dyubeni, a training partner of Hendrick Ramaala, put in a series of surges to break free as the race headed back towards the Salt River circle. Sensing an opportunity to take the race by the scruff of the neck, Mofokeng prized free on the way through the City centre and opened a lead of 200 metres over Dyubeni as he went through the Waterfront. Nkhabutlane initiated his typical late charge from 31 kilometres putting Mofokeng’s one and a half minutes under pressure from the hard chasing Lesotho athlete. Fokoroni, who had caught Dyubeni with five kilometres left, was unable to hold off the rampaging Nkgabutlane who finished only 31 seconds adrift and bettered his 2008 winning time by 18 seconds. Whereas previous years had been dominated by foreign athletes, Nkgabutlane was the only non South African to make the top ten which was closed in under two hours 19 minutes. “I’m very pleased. The last two years I’ve struggled with injury, the new training has paid off,” said Mofokeng explaining, “I’m a front runner, when the pace eased I knew if I took the lead they would not catch me.” “We will definitely be inviting George to join the performance squad in the preparation for the 2012 Olympics,” said Molatelo Malehopo the ASA General Manager following Mofokeng’s victory.

 

Sharon Tavengwa defended her title but not without a few anxious moments. The Zimbabwean was the main instigator in the large group that opened their racing on a two hour 40 minute schedule. Despite a slowing in pace many were shed from the pack leaving only six to go through half way in a more realistic one hour 24 minutes. By Salt River, Tavengwa and Powerade’s Mpho Mabuza were replicating the men’s stratgey to ease away from the competition going through the 27km mark. The Zimbabwean had the lead by the Waterfront and seemed to have it sewn up, but the fast early pace came back to haunt her as the covered the final four kilometres. Nedbank’s Tshifhiwa Mundalamo first overhauled Mabuza before upping her pace to hunt down Tavengwa who was forced to checked behind as her lead was being etched away. A dogged kick for the line secured the Zimbabwean her title in two hours 47 minutes and eight seconds, nearly five minutes slower than her 2008 win while Mundalamo simply ran out of distance to finish only 16 seconds later. To the local crowd’s pleasure Bulelwa Mtshagi from the Celtic Harriers club secured third in 2:47:38, with Mabuza hanging on for fourth nine seconds later. “The incentives are there to assist South Africans improve their performance. Clearly this is having an effect” continued Malehopo in regards to the top performances which saw all the top ten women finish under two hours 55 minutes. The Cape Town event attracted just under 3000 runners including Germans, Japanese and a group of more than 40 businessmen from Rotterdam Running Ambassadors.

RESULTS MARATHON Men 1 George Mofokeng (South Africa) 2:14:20; 2 Motlokoa Nkhabutlane (Lesotho) 2:14:51; 3 Mike Fokoroni (Zimbabwe) 2:15:12; 4 Raphael Segodi (South Africa) 2:16.58; 5 Thanduluntu Magqaza (South Africa) 2:17:22; 6 Vincent Sang (Kenya) 2:17:29; 7 Gilbert Mutandiro (Zimbabwe) 2:17:33; 8 Wellington Chidodo (Zimbabwe) 2:18:12; 9 David Ngakane (South Africa) 2:18:22; 10 Molanlehi Bokaako (South Africa) 2:18:28 Women 1 Sharon Tavengwa (Zimbabwe) 2:47:08; 2 Tshifhiwe Mundalamo (South Africa) 2:47:24; 3 Bulelwa Mtshagi (South Africa) 2:47:38; 4 Mpho Mabuza (South Africa) 2:47:47; 5 Paulina Njeya (South Africa) 2:48:20: 6 Dineo Lebotha (South Africa) 2:50:59; 7 Nodofhiwa Mandiwana (South Africa) 2:51:14; 9 Puseletso Maema (South Africa) 2:52:22; 10 Annelie Roffey (South Africa) 2:54:05 10 KILOMETRES Men 1Sibusiso Nzima (South Africa) 29:18; 2 Coolboy Ngamole (South Africa) 29:31; 23 Lukets Swartbooi (Namibia) 29:38; 4 Shaun Zuzani (South Africa) 30:13; 5 Peter Tsawayo (Zimbabwe) 30:20; 6 Folavio Sehohle (South Africa) 30:28; 7 Antony Godongwana (South Africa) 30:30; 8 Unathi Phezolo (South Africa) 30:48; 9 Tom Lusaseni (South Africa) 30:50; 10 Dicardo Jackobs (South Africa) 30:58; Women 1 Lebo Phalula (South Africa) 33:08; 2 Annerine van Schalkwyk (South Africa) 33:29; 3 Lebogang Phalula (South Africa) 34:33; 4 Tebogo Masehla (South Africa) 35:14; 5 Thozama April (South Africa) 35:44; 6 Nandipha Dywili (South Africa) 36:15; 7 Lusanda Bomvana (South Africa) 37:32; 8 Rene de Bruin (South Africa) 38:31; 9 Lemo Chaka (South Africa) 39:14; 10 Nomsa Ntselthe (South Africa) 39:38

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Three-time reigning champion Tadese set to defend titles in Birmingham – World Half Marathon Monte-Carlo – Heading the Entry List for the IAAF / EDF Energy World Half Marathon Championships which take place in Birmingham, UK on 11 October 2009, is three-time reigning champion Zersenay Tadese of Eritrea. The World Half Marathon is the fifth and final IAAF World Athletics Series competition of 2009, and will bring together many of the world’s best road runners to contest this annual event. Tadese won the first of his titles in Debrecen, Hungary in 2007, at the briefly (for two years) renamed World Road Running Championship, over the distance of 20km. He repeated his success the following year over the half marathon in the northern Italian town of Udine setting his personal best of 58:59 which still stands as the seventh quickest run of all time on courses applicable for record purposes. The manner of the Eritrean’s third victory last year in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was a picture of brilliance. Tadese’s run was a solo venture of athletics magnitude, breaking away from a quality field after just 5km to win the first prize of US$30,000 in a time of 59:56, nearly two minutes ahead of his closest challenger, Patrick Makau Musyoki (1:01:54) who had also been a silver medallist in 2007. Makau, the world’s fastest in 2009, is not in the Kenyan line-up this time but in the shape of Sammy Kitwara the winner of the Rotterdam Half Marathon in a PB of 58:58, the second fastest time of 2009, they still have a man more than capable of giving Tadese a run for his money in Birmingham. Kenyan men have won nine of the 17 individual titles so far contested including victory at the inaugural World Half Marathon Championships which were also hosted in the UK on Tyneside in 1992. Tadese, the former World Cross Country champion, has had a bit of an up and down year with his bronze medal finish at the World Cross in Amman in March followed up by the disappointment of his ‘did not finish’ in what was his marathon debut in London in April, and back up again to the elation of his World Championships silver medal over 10,000m (26:50.12) behind Kenenisa Bekele in Berlin. Already the only three-time male winner of the World Half Marathon title, can Tadese make it number four on 11 October in Birmingham? Chris Turner for the IAAF 

Athletics SA loses road-running sponsor Athletics South Africa (ASA) plunged further into turmoil on Thursday when Nedbank pulled its sponsorship of the annual Matha Series races, the backbone of road running in the country. The bank sponsors 10 races on the ASA calendar -- which incorporate the national marathon, half-marathon and 10km championships -- and has played a massive role in raising the profile of the sport in South Africa. But with ASA boss Leonard Chuene and the rest of the board in hot water over their handling of the Caster Semenya gender controversy, the bank has opted to distance itself from the federation. Nedbank said in a statement that it had terminated the five-year sponsorship deal a year early "in agreement" with ASA. The sponsorship deals will stand for the last two remaining races this season -- the Matha Series half-marathon in Polokwane on Saturday and the Soweto marathon on November 1 -- but next year ASA will need to find a replacement, which is likely to be a difficult task considering the problems with which the federation is currently faced. "Nedbank's dissatisfaction with the quality of delivery by ASA of some events in the City Marathon and Matha Series over the past years is well known and the negotiations to end the contract had commenced well before the start of the current controversy surrounding ASA," the bank said in a statement. "The decision for an early termination was further compounded by the disrupted sporting calendar and logistical challenges facing South Africa during 2010. "Nedbank takes great pride in the delivery and quality of its selected sponsorship properties and felt that the unfortunate negative situation that ASA has recently placed itself in could result in substantial reputational risk on the Nedbank brand. It is inappropriate for us as sponsors to continue with our partnership with ASA in the current climate. "We will monitor the situation closely though for the time being all talks of Nedbank's continued support of road running through ASA beyond 2009 have been suspended." Andy Scott, head of Nedbank Group Sponsorships, said the bank would, however, continue to support road running in South Africa through the Nedbank Running Club, which has produced some of the country's leading athletes since its inception in 2007. "As a bank that strives to be highly involved in the communities in which we operate Nedbank remains committed to road running at large in South Africa," said Scott. -- Sapa

 

Athletes set to turn on ASA and Chuene The country’s athletes and athletics clubs are set to speak out against Athletics South Africa and its embattled president Leonard Chuene for the handling of the Caster Semenya saga.

Top current and former athletes are meeting about the matter in Pretoria on Saturday. No ASA officials will be allowed at the meeting. A Johannesburg athletics club is also planning a motion of no confidence against Central Gauteng Athletics (CGA) as the union’s representatives did not have a mandate from the clubs to support Chuene. CGA is the biggest athletics province in the country. Geraldine Pillay, a former Olympic and Commonwealth Games athlete, is one of the organisers of the meeting. She took the gloves off on Tuesday and called on athletes that have represented South Africa since 1994 to attend the meeting. She said that the athletes would issue a statement after the meeting. It will be sent to ASA, Government and the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). “If the athletes tell us they are happy with how Chuene and the management of ASA handled the issue, that is what we will write in the statement,” said Pillay. Another athlete, who preferred to remain anonymous, noted that everyone except Semenya herself had had something to say about the issue. Pillay did not hold back on ASA. “Athletics is about athletes. Athletes are supposed to be ASA’s biggest asset, but they are not,” she said. She first realised as an athlete and later as a TV commentator that “for most of ASA’s management everything is just about the party”. “They hang out all day in the VIP tent, where nothing but eating and drinking is done. A world record can be set, but they will only learn about it later on TV news,” said Pillay. “I struggle to believe Chuene that he had Semenya’s interests at heart.” Beeld has learned that the only people who stood up against Chuene at the ASA meeting was former Olympic athlete Arnaud Malherbe and Western Province athletics boss adv. James Evans. Malherbe, a former captain of the South African athletics team, wanted the meeting to discuss the Semenya saga, but it was not allowed. Chuene chaired the meeting. Richard Mayer, chair of Johannesburg athletics club Lydiard, wants to bring the motion against CGA. Mayer, who is an attorney, wants CGA to explain to clubs how they can support “the lies and dishonest actions of ASA”. There is also unhappiness in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng North about why representatives did not stand up against Chuene. Ockert Cilliers, one of the country’s top 400m hurdles athletes, said the actions by Chuene and ASA management would make it a “big embarrassment to pull over a green and gold vest” again. Llewellyn Herbert, a former Olympic bronze medallist in this event, said that Chuene should be sacked.

Ramaala bemoans sponsor pull-out South Africa's leading road runner, Hendrick Ramaala, said he was "upset" on Thursday after Nedbank withdrew its sponsorship of the Matha Series, but added that he couldn't blame the sponsor.

The bank said in a statement that it would pull its five-year sponsorship of 10 races on the Athletics South Africa (ASA) calendar a year early, although it would finance the last two races of the season, a half-marathon in Polokwane on Saturday and the Soweto Marathon on November 1. ASA are embroiled in a gender controversy surrounding world 800-metre champion Caster Semenya and the bank said it wanted to distance itself from the federation while calls are made for ASA president Leonard Chuene's head. "I'm surprised, I thought (Nedbank) might wait until this issue was sorted out," Ramaala said on Thursday. "But you can't blame the sponsor. Nobody wants to be associated with negative publicity. "And you know who gets hurt in the end? The athletes. We always get hurt in these sutuations. "For me it's just sad because this whole situation could have been handled better." Ramaala, who will line up for the New York marathon on November 1 in an attempt to regain the title he won in 2004, said the drama surrounding Semenya had negatively affected athletics in the country. "I'm concerned about the sport. This Caster Semenya issue has taken over athletics," Ramaala said. "The testing on her should have been done in private, in secret with the stakeholders - the stakeholders being Semenya, ASA and the IAAF, and perhaps Sascoc and other sports federations. "This should never have come out in the public eye and it is time for this situation to be sorted out. "People need to make decisions. We can't afford to wait because the sport needs to move on and grow. "We need sponsorships coming into athletics, not going out, and I think ASA need to focus on what they are there for - to develop the sport. "This has become about politics and egos, it's no longer about the issue itself, and the sport doesn't count anymore." Ramaala, a qualified lawyer, said he had no intention of getting involved in ASA's current debacle, but slammed administrators for dragging him into it. "This issue had nothing to do with me, but now that Nedbank has dropped its sponsorship, they have made it personal. "The athletes do everything we can and we train very hard. We've done nothing wrong, and Semenya has done nothing wrong. "If people had admitted their mistakes in the beginning, this would all have been sorted out by now, but nobody wants to take the blame and it's always the athletes who get hurt."

Goodbye Readers by Kari Peters Thanks for your support, dedication and passion for running. Today is my last day at Runner's World and I can't believe that this term is about to come to an end. It was almost a year ago that Mike Finch called me to let me know that I had gotten this job. And what a job it has been. Imagine working in a field that you love, on a brand that you're passionate about, with a team that you admire. So why am I venturing off? I follow Zoe Koplowitz's saying, "Have a dream, make a plan, go for it. You'll get there, I promise." Who is Zoe? An Achilles Track Club member with multiple sclerosis. My dream was to work on many different websites, primarily looking at their usability, and from tomorrow I will be living my dream. I studied it, I went for it and I got it! So today I bid you all a fond farewell and urge all of you to remember Zoe's words - in your running and in your life. Have a dream. Make a plan. Go for it. You'll get there!