Soweto Marathon boss defends entry costs

Soweto Marathon boss defends entry costs

The Soweto Marathon are struggling to sell entries ahead of next month™s race due to the expensive prices set by the organisers, SABC Sport has established. 

The 27th edition of the People™s Races consists of 42.2km, 21.1km and 10km distances, with entries for the marathon priced at R550 with a T-shirt and R400 without a T-shirt. 

Runners wishing to enter the half-marathon will be set back R450 with a T-shirt and R300 without, while the 10km costs R350 with a T-shirt and R200 without.

So far, 16 000 entries have been sold, which is nowhere near the 30 000-target set at the launch of the event making a return after two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

But with sponsorship also a struggle for this year's event, Soweto Marathon Trust Chairman Sello Khunou defended the entry cost and insisted that the cost of living, in general, has also risen considerably, given the current state of the economy.

"This is an occasion when the race is coming in its 27th edition, so it is back with a bang. We buy a loaf of bread for R20, and all other things are [now] very, very expensive. What I can say is that the race is not expensive at all," Khunou defended.

"If people are true and fair to themselves, they know what the economy is like [currently] and we must have a stunning race at a level that it will be acceptable and pleasing to the athletes.

"So, the economy is bad - we saw how the petrol went up, even though it's coming down now, it doesn't make that much of a difference because food and all other things are [still expensive]. But money for the entries doesn't even come to half of the budget of the race."

Meanwhile, there could be a TV blackout for South Africans hoping to watch the People™s Race on their TV sets, with Khunou unable to confirm whether this year™s race would be televised. 

By Charles Baloyi