Ricky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
ORGANISERS of the PPC Matopos 33-Miler (about 53KM) Ultra-Marathon that will be held on April 3 have increased this year’s sponsorship package from $10,000 to $13,000. PPC Zimbabwe managing director Kelibone Masiyane said they expect at least 1,000 athletes to run the race, whose theme is “A healthy body is a healthy mind and a healthy mind builds a healthy nation”.
Lyno Muchena from the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services team is the men’s defending champion and he ran the distance in three hours 13 minutes 59 seconds.
Veteran roadrunner Lizzie Chikore won last year’s women’s race in three hours 52 minutes 22 seconds. They each took home $750.
The PPC 33-Miler Ultra-Marathon course has been measured and certified by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) and this has raised the status of the competition to a qualifying event for international races, including South Africa’s gruelling Comrades Marathon.
Pre-registration for the race has opened online.
For one to take part, a fee of $10 for the Ultra-Marathon, $50 for relays and $5 for the 5KM Fun Run has to be paid.