Run Your City series could head to Polokwane, Mbombela

Volumes, logistics will play part in adding cities to 10-kilometre event

Following the extensions of the Absa Run Your City by two cities – Tshwane and Gqeberha – from next year, the sponsors are also planning to add Polokwane and Mbombela in the future.

One of the country’s most loved road running events, the 10km race will now be run in five different cities, starting with Gqeberha on April 2, Cape Town on May 14, Durban on July 9, Tshwane on August 27 and Johannesburg on September 24.

Speaking in Alexandra yesterday during the handover of R125,000 to Run Alex Athletics club that was raised through the Run Your City Joburg 10k in September, group head of SME at Absa Ronnie Mbatsane said they would assess next year if they could add the other cities.

“We’ve added the two cities, so we will do five next year,” he told the media yesterday.

“The plan is not only to limit ourselves to the cities we chose obviously, but we also look at volumes and logistics and what is practically possible where you can get enough people that can participate.

“That’s why the three cities were easy and we extend and explore the two cities and we will look if there is a chance to go to Limpopo and Mpumalanga.”

Mbatsane added the reason they handed over the amount to the Run Alex Athletics club was that they had been struggling financially to sustain themselves in the past years.

“We intend to boost the ones that we feel need the help, there are different categories of clubs and if we had unlimited resources, we were going to give all of them,” he said.

“But I think this is the first and every year we will be giving to different clubs. So, Alex is the beneficiary of the responsibility we have in extending a hand to clubs like this one that are probably having some level of financial problems to run their clubs.”