BUSHFIRE MEETS PARKRUN

MBABANE – From BushFire Festival to parkrun. The weekly Mbabane Club Parkrun attracted Bloemfontein Heldedal parkrunners, who were in the Kingdom of Eswatini for the annual BushFire Festival in Malkerns.

These ladies left Malkerns on Saturday morning to join the 5km timed run. They commended the warm welcome that they received in the kingdom and the wonderful experience of the Mbabane Parkrun. These are Kuni Ditira, Mosidi Lebona, Jean Ninive and Koki Motsekoa.

“We are all fired up and happy to be here. We had a lovely experience and the scenery was amazing. Despite our age, we dedicated ourselves to staying fit and healthy,” said Motsekoa.

Dominic Robinson, who hails from Preston near Manchester in England also featured in the weekly run. He is also in the country on vacation and promised to join parkrun for the next five weeks of his stay.

enjoyed

“I really enjoyed running on the grass and  the fresh warm air. In our country, all the paths are paved and its freezing cold and we do not run on the grass because it’s always wet and slippery especially in the morning. The people are very friendly here and I will definitely join parkrun for the next five weeks,” said Robinson.

Meanwhile, Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force (UEDF) athlete Zwelithini Mndzebele was crowned the champion of the 107th Mbabane Club Parkrun. He completed the 5km run in 16:06 minutes. He holds a fastest record of 15:31minutes. This is his 22nd parkrun and has by far finished in the first position four times. In second place was Swazi Slojos’ Mdududzi Dlamini, who clocked 16:47 and he was  12 seconds faster than Siyabonga Masuku.

“I had a smooth run and my closest competitor Nkululeko Gama was not here so it was smooth sailing for me. My target is to finish within 15 minutes. As athletes we are truly grateful to Mr Drinkwater for this initiative because parkrun is now part of our training routine,” said Mndzebele.

Last week’s winner, Senzo Khatsidze finished fourth in 17:64 minutes. Nhlanhla Magagula clocked 18:15 minutes. The leading lady was junior athlete Simphiwe Gama, who crossed the finish line in 22:33 minutes.

The 14 year-old sprinter holds a fastest record of 20:14 minutes and was last week crowned the champion of the JM Busha 5km race. The second lady to scan her bar code was University of Eswatini athlete Gcinile Magongo, who returned after 23:48 minutes. Magongo was last week crowned Usutu Forest Momentum Trail Run Challenge 12km champion in the ladies’ category. She walked away with a gold medal, cash prize and a trophy.

youngest

The youngest achiever of the week was 12-year-old Nakekelwe Dlamini, who has completed 10 parkruns. As a token of appreciation, the grade six Sifundzani Primary School parkrunner was awarded a parkrun mileage certificate.

“I do not normally run but walk at a fast pace. This is a big step for me and I can see the benefits of parkrun. I’m more active now and my weight is dropping bit by bit,” she said.

The success of parkrun is dedicated to the volunteers who devote themselves each week to organising and assisting runners along the route and in recording their finishing time. This week’s volunteers were Nonhlanhla Makhanya, Petros Nkomo, Rhona Healey, Joe Msibi, Sebbie Du Pont, Frankie Williams and Kirsten Robinson.

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