South African runners have been given 200 000 reasons to go much faster in the popular Absa Run Your City Series with the organisers announcing a lucrative ‘SA Athlete Prize Incentive Schedule’ for this year’s edition.
The challenge is on to see if any of the men and women can break the respective 27 and 30:23 minutes barriers, with anyone doing so set to swell their back balance by a massive R200 000. In a sport not renowned for rewarding its practitioners well, the incentive scheme introduced by Stillwater Sports is sure to make the five-race series all the more exciting and highly competitive.
And already renowned runners such as last year’s star Kabelo Mulaudzi and Tayla Kavanagh are salivating at the prospect of taking a shot at dipping into the big-money incentive pot.
“It’s exciting that the faster you run the more rewards you receive,” Mulaudzi said “Qualifying for the incentives would mean a lot to me because a financial boost always brings a lot of changes and stability. The funds would help me prepare for races and support my family. All athletes prepare to win and achieve greater heights. Achieving the SA Record would be a bonus for me.”
The SA Athlete Prize Incentive Schedule is applicable to all five races in the series in 2024 and will offer bonuses for exceptional performances. In the men’s category, bonuses start for times faster than 28 minutes, with a substantial R 200,000.00 bonus awaiting anyone who breaks the 27-minute barrier.
For women, bonuses will start for times faster than 32:08 minutes, with a remarkable R200,000.00 incentive being awarded if the 30:23 barrier is broken.
“To further elevate the excitement, an additional R50k is on the table for any South African athlete who breaks the current SA 10km record,” Michael Meyer, Managing Director of Stillwater Sports and Series Founder explained “Our objective is to enable South Africa's elite athletes to make a living without needing to go abroad. We are confident that this incentive will attract considerable attention from South Africa's top athletes, and we are excited to see them showcase their talent at all five of the Absa Run Your City Series events in 2024.”
The men’s national record currently held by Precious Mashele stands at 27:35 which he ran in Gqeberha last year while the women’s mark of 31:13 is now 23 years old and belongs to the great Elana Meyer who set it back in 2001 in Budapest, Hungary.
Kavanagh is chomping at the bit, inspired to run like the wind and also to go for the record: “The SA athlete incentives serve as a powerful motivator for us athletes, encouraging us to push our limits and compete at an international level. They inspire me to aim for faster times and provide a rewarding recognition for achieving my goals. Breaking the current SA Record would be a dream come true for me, as it has remained unbroken for many years. Being the one to finally break this longstanding record would be an incredible achievement.”
Meyer believes they are on to a good thing with the incentives.
“Our objective is to enable South Africa's elite athletes to make a living without needing to go abroad. We are confident that this incentive will attract considerable attention from South Africa's top athletes, and we are excited to see them showcase their talent at all five of the Absa Run Your City Series events in 2024.”
The incentives are in addition to the overall prize-monies on offer at the races that will be hosted on the Sundays in Gqeberha (April 7), Cape Town (May 12), Durban (July 7), Tshwane (August 25) and Joburg (September 24).
Each athlete breaking the below times stands to win the corresponding bonus.
Men’s times
sub 28:00 - R60 000,00
sub 27:40 R80 000,00
sub 27:20 R100 000,00
sub 27:10 R120 000,00
sub 27:00 R200 000,00
Women’s times
sub 32:08 R60 000,00
sub 31:33 R80 000,00
sub 30:59 R100 000,00
sub 30:41 R120 000,00
sub 30:23 R200 000,00
IOL Sport