NATIONAL NEWS - For the first time in the history of the Old Mutual Two Oceans marathon, limited charity entries will also be available for the iconic ultra marathon.
In 2017, 2 000 charity entries were made available for the half marathon only, but due to demand from runners and charitable organisations, 250 additional charity entries will also be available for the 2018 ultra marathon event.
Various organisations around South Africa applied for entries in October this year, the successful charities were all notified and from 4 December, runners could contact their preferred charity to purchase an entry. There are 67 charities to choose from, ranging from groups that care for animals, youth, mental health, the environment and more.
“The charity entries are an excellent way for runners to enjoy the half marathon and ultra marathon while raising funds for causes closest to their hearts and making an actual difference,” says the Two Oceans Marathon NPC's chairperson Dr David Maralack. “At the 2017 event, 50 charity partners raised over R3.5-million," he added.
The administration portion of the charity entry fee goes towards the Two Oceans Marathon Initiative (Tomi), allowing the Two Oceans Marathon to contribute towards the event’s beneficiaries. This year the beneficiaries are The Wildlands Conservation Trust, The Igazi Foundation, The Chaeli Campaign and Waves for Change. The Tomi also supports athletics development in collaboration with Western Province Athletics (WPA) in the form of logistical support and or skills transfer. This includes events like the WPA street athletics series, and assisting Hewat AC with the organisation of the Cape Town Festival of Running.
The initiative has partnered with GivenGain for the 2018 event, a global online fundraising platform that enables runners to create projects for any charity or individual to generate funds from their own network of friends, family and colleagues. All donations received are secure and automatically transferred to beneficiary charities by GivenGain.
For a full list of the charities, please visit twooceansmarathon.org.za.
Runners can contact the entries team at info@twooceansmarathon.org.za or 0861 262326.
'We bring you the latest Garden Route, Karoo, Hessequa news'
