Kasambabezi Marathon lights up Binga
Yashe Hloka
BINGA – Sleepy Binga came alive as the annual Binga Kasambabezi Marathon roared to life on Saturday last week. The marathon was designed to raise awareness of human-wildlife conflict while encouraging coexistence through sport.
This year’s edition of the marathon saw 600 athletes from across the country participating in various categories such the 5km, 10km, 21km, 42km races as well as the the 10km wheelchair race.
Kasambabezi Marathon Chairperson, Recent Ncube said the event which ran under the theme ‘Mitigating human-wildlife conflict through sport,’ was meant to create awareness and foster coexistence.
“This year’s event is meant to raise awareness on human-wildlife conflict which is rife in Binga. We are also using sport to encourage coexistence between wildlife and communities. This is our 4th year running and this time around 600 participants from different parts of the country converged in Binga,” said Ncube.
He said Kasambabezi had partnered with various stakeholders within the corporate sector to successfully hold the marathon whose main sponsors are AFC Holdings and World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
Speaking at the handover of prizes to the winners, AFC Holdings Head of Strategy and Marketing, Joseph Mverecha said, “As AFC Holdings, the group and its subsidiaries is proud to be this year’s major sponsor having also partnered in the two previous editions.”
He added: “Binga is endowed with natural resources such as surface and underground water, forests and wildlife. It is in this regard that we need to protect and live in harmony with our wildlife. We would like to salute government for setting up laws and regulations that protect our national resources and wildlife. This is a show of appreciation for the support we are getting as a bank from the Binga community. It is my wish and appeal that this annual event of sporting excellence grows from strength to strength, year after year to international level.”
WWF Project Manager, Itai Chibaya said his organization had partnered to be part of the event to enhance capacity in raising awareness on wildlife conservation and coexistence.
“As part of our mandate we support communities who live adjacent to national parks in their coexistence with wildlife. This year’s theme speaks to exploring ways to mitigate the human-wildlife conflict prevalent in such areas. That’s why we are an integral part of this marathon,” he said.
A highlight of this year’s event was was an increased number of female participants while the elderly also had a fair share of representation.
Calvin Pangiso of ZRP Harare clocked 1 hour and 6 minutes to win gold in the men’s 42km race.
In the female category his counterpart from Bulawayo, Faith Sanyika raced to the finish line clocking 3 hours 15 minutes. They both walked away with USD300 each.
In the 21km race, female athlete, Muchaneta Gwata of Black Rhinos scooped a gold medal and prize money to the tune of USD 170 while club mate, Moses Tarakinya also clinched first place. Meanwhile, Isaac Mpofu of Binga ZRP came second to settle for the silver medal. Moleen Majoni walked away with USD 50 after winning the 10km wheelchair race. 12 year old, Chonzyo Munkuli was the star of the marathon as she outpaced adult contenders to win the 5km race under the girls category.
