Preparations underway for 2018 KZN Youth Run

Preparations are at an advanced staged for this year’s annual KZNDSR/KZNA Youth Run that takes place on the eve of the Comrades Marathon next month.  The race will again start and finish at the Kings Park Rugby Stadium outer grounds in Durban on Saturday, 09 June 2018.

This year the race is targeting 5000 young athletes for the 5km and 10km races together. The event is part of the programme to unearth talent and is funded by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport and Recreation (KZNDSR) in partnership with KwaZulu-Natal Athletics.

Whilst the race targets mainly the youth, scores of other runners use it to warm up for the Comrades Marathon.

The majority of the entries are accepted through the schools and a smaller number is via district eliminations, which have all been concluded. Club and individual entries may still be accepted at the offices of KZN Athletics at the Kings Athletics stadium until 01 June.

Top ten finishers in the 10km boys and girls’ categories - 14-19 years age group only - receive prize money with the winners pocketing R2000 each, second place R1750, third place 1500 and R1000 for the fourth finishers. Registered club teams with the most number of finishers will receive R5000 prize money, R4000 for the second and third gets R3000.

This is to encourage runners to join clubs and engage in the sport more regularly.

MEC for Arts, Culture, Sport and Recreation, Bongi Sithole-Moloi, said the annual Youth Run is one of KZNDSR’s flagship projects aimed at unearthing talent in different sport codes.

“The Youth Run gives young people from the entire Province an opportunity to experience the atmosphere of the Comrades Marathon. It is part of our programme to expose the youth, especially from rural areas to opportunities to participate in sport and recreation activities. We look forward to welcome the 5000 strong field of athletes who will participate, including those Comrades runners who will use the race to prepare themselves to tackle the grueling Ultimate Human race from Pietermaritzburg to Durban,” said MEC Sithole-Moloi.