Sithembinkosi L. Jiyane
Sports Reporter
www.zimgbcnews.co.zw<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u200eThe Highlanders Athletics Club will host its inaugural half marathon this Sunday, 5 October 2025, at the Highlanders Sports Club at 6am.
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\u200eThe event is part of efforts to promote healthy living in the community, with organisers partnering ZimbosAbantu to provide free health checks for participants.
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At the Press conference, \u200eClub chairman Lawrence Phiri said the expansion of the event reflects the club\u2019s growing commitment to athletics.
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\u200e \u201cThis year we have introduced a 21km half marathon for seasoned runners alongside the 5km run\/walk and 10km race. We are delighted with the positive responses we\u2019ve received so far, with participants confirming attendance from as far as Kwekwe,\u201d Phiri said.
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\u200eLast year\u2019s fun run drew about 150 participants, and this year organisers are targeting to double the number. All entrants will receive medals and race shirts, while winners will walk away with prizes to be confirmed once sponsorship negotiations are finalised.
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\u200eThe races will start and finish at the clubhouse, using Queens Drive and Airport Road as the main routes. Runners in the 21km half marathon will turn back at the 10.5km mark, while 10km and 5km participants will turn at their respective halfway points.
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\u200eSeveral corporates have pledged support by entering employees, including CBZ, First Mutual, Zimparks, NSSA, and Nyaradzo. Event partners include Schweppes, Sila Health, John Landa Nkomo Memorial Trust, Econet, ZimbosAbantu, and Itel.
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\u200eThe race also ties into the Highlanders Football Club\u2019s \u201cROAD to 100 years\u201d campaign, which marks the institution\u2019s upcoming centenary in 2026.
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\u200eMeanwhile, the event has received a ringing endorsement from the Bulawayo Athletics Board. Chairperson Watson Madanyika praised the marathon for its role in grooming athletes for bigger stages.
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\u200e \u201cIt is events like this one that prepare our provincial and international athletes to qualify for regional and international competitions,\u201d Madanyika said.
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\u200eHe cited marathon runner Isaac Mpofu as an example of local athletes making a mark globally.
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\u200e \u201cOne of our athletes, Isaac Mpofu, participated in the marathon in Japan and finished in 10th position. He has also promised to be part of this coming marathon,\u201d Madanyika explained.
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\u200eMadanyika urged the organisers to meet standards set by the National Athletics Association to attract more elite athletes.
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\u200e \u201cAs Highlanders, we request that you meet the National Athletics Association standards for hosting a half marathon so that we can attract more runners and professional athletes,\u201d he said.
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\u200eHe further encouraged other companies to emulate Highlanders by supporting athletics development.
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\u200e \u201cWe are also encouraging other companies to do likewise so that we have more competitions and more half marathons in the province,\u201d Madanyika noted.
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\u200eMadanyika also stressed inclusivity, assuring that the event will cater for all, including people with disabilities.
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\u200e\u201cWe are leaving no one behind. Even people with disabilities are encouraged to participate, and there will be wheelchairs available,\u201d he said.
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\u200e\u201cAs Bulawayo Athletics, we are happy, and we encourage all runners in Bulawayo to participate in this Sunday\u2019s event,\u201d he added.
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\u200eWith strong backing from corporates, community partners, and athletics authorities, the Highlanders Half Marathon is shaping up to be more than just a race, it is a celebration of health, inclusivity, and sporting excellence.
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\u200e The debut event is expected to set the tone for future editions and strengthen Bulawayo\u2019s place on the athletics map.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Follow Zim GBC News for Updates Sithembinkosi L. JiyaneSports Reporterwww.zimgbcnews.co.zw \u200eThe Highlanders Athletics Club will host its inaugural half marathon this Sunday, 5 October 2025, at the Highlanders Sports Club at 6am.\u200e\u200eThe event is part of… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9764,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9763","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9763","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9763"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9763\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9765,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9763\/revisions\/9765"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9764"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9763"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9763"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9763"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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