Haitope, Namupala make World Championships grade

Long-distance runners Lavinia Haitope and Reonard Namupala are looking forward to their maiden appearances at the IAAF World Championships in London next year.

The pair qualified for the global showpiece during the prestigious Sanlam Cape Town Marathon on Sunday.

“I finished fifth and qualified for the World Championships, so I’m very happy for that,” said Haitope, who clocked two hours, 40 minutes and 50 seconds, which is well inside the 2:45 entry mark.

Tish Jones of Great Britain won the race in 2:36:13, holding off a challenge from a world-class elite line-up. She was followed by Ethiopia’s Mergertu Geletu in 2:36:34, finishing ahead of third-placed South African Lebogang Phalula, who finished in 2:38:00.

Namupala, who posted a season’s best 2:18:31 in qualifying for London, faced stiffer competition in the men’s race, which was won by Asefa Negewo of Ethiopia who clocked the fastest long distance time ever run in South Africa.

Negewo was locked in a tightly contested battle with Kenyan athlete Emmanuel Tirop in the latter stages of the IAAF Silver Label race, but he managed to break clear in the dash for the line to win in 2:08:41.

While Namupala did not get to the podium, he was delighted with a respectable 16th position, which guaranteed him a place at the World Championships.

“I qualified for the World Championships. It was a season’s best time for me, so I’m happy for myself and my colleague. It was not easy, but we did our best,” he said.

Cape Town proved to be a fruitful destination for Namibia on Sunday as Helalia Johannes and Alina Armas partially banished demons from the Rio Olympics with podium finishes in the women’s 10km.

Johannes won the event in a new national and course record time of 32 minutes and 44 seconds, with Armas finishing third in 32:15.

“I’m happy for that [win and new records],” a beaming Johannes said. “I’m also happy for my colleagues because you need them to push you. You cannot do it alone.”

Armas added that the agony from Brazil was still weighing heavily on their minds in Cape Town, but that they navigated Sunday’s shorter course much better tactically, which allowed them to finish in the top three.

“I was so disappointed at the Olympics. I did not expect to get anything here, but I’m very happy that I managed to finish third,” Armas stated.

“Helalia helped me a lot during the race. So, I need to thank her for that,” she said.

The only blemish for Namibia on the day was Reinholdt Iita pulling out of the main race due to injury.

Still hoarse from cheering his compatriots on, Sanlam’s public and corporate support general manager Evans Simata said the athletes had put in commendable performances.

The five Namibian athletes were presented with a unit trust each, to a combined value of N$30 000.

“The stats show that about 8 000 people raced, which shows how good the performances of our athletes were,” said Simata, whose company carried the costs for the participation of the athletes.

“The unit trust is our way of teaching them financial education and reminding them about the importance of investment.

“They did us very proud. Going there and winning was exceptional. It was especially very exciting to see you on the stage collecting your medals,” Simata said.

The organisers believe that the large turnout showed that the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon cemented its position as one of the continent’s most popular road running events.

“Three years after it was relaunched, we have seen the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon develop into a world-class event,” said race director Janet Welham. “We are confident it will continue to grow in success and popularity as the race goes from strength to strength in our goal to achieve IAAF Gold Label status.”