Times Of Swaziland: TINKHUNDLA CROSS-COUNTRY: EXCITING PRIZES ON OFFER

TINKHUNDLA CROSS-COUNTRY: EXCITING PRIZES ON OFFER
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Nimrod Hlophe on 29/11/2024 09:18:00


MBABANE - The stakes will be high, as the Tinkhundla Talent Identification
Cross-country athletics competition reaches its climax, tomorrow.
Approximately 240 regional champions will gather at the Mavuso Sports Centre in
chase for national supremacy. They will battle across three categories. Top
runners, both male and female from the 3km, 5km and 10km races, will be
competing for the top 10 slots. Those who fall within this bracket will have the
opportunity to further develop their talents through a nurturing programme.
Generous
The event will commence at 8am, and the top 10 performers on the day will
receive generous monetary rewards. Athletics Eswatini (AE) President Zakhele
Dlamini, has revealed that the prize monies have been significantly increased
this year. “Each champion, be it in the Under-15, Under-20 or open section,
will receive E2 000. The incentives will not be limited to the podium finishers,
but will extend to the top five, and we’ll still take the top 10 athletes
under the identification and nurturing programme,” Dlamini said.  The
runner-up will receive E1 500, while the bronze medallist will get E1 000. The
fourth and fifth-placed runners will be guaranteed E750 and E500, respectively.
Medals
Podium finishers will also receive medals. Government has injected E2 million
towards the Tinkhundla Talent Identification Competitions, which also feature
soccer, arts and culture.
Athletics was allocated E350 000, AE topped up with an additional E100 000,
taking the sponsorship up to E450 000. AE expects fireworks, with sparks set to
fly high in the under-20 categories. This is because there are some renowned
athletes, such as the recent winner of the Mbabane Half Marathon 10km Minehle
‘Jumbo Jet’ Mnguni, as well as Phiwokuhle Bulunga, a regular podium finisher
in races.