Africa-Press – Botswana. A 21 year-old Kenya national, Timothy Kosgey has conquered the Makgadikgadi pans international marathon second edition, winning the 21km race with a time of 1:06:33. Kosgey, who was making his debut at the marathon, was among five Kenyan athletes who ran the marathon as the only international runners.
In an interview after the race, the Kenyan said while the track was unfamiliar as he is used to running on tarred tracks, he was grateful to have secured a win.
He said having taken part in the BDF marathon a week ago in Gaborone where he scooped position four had also worked to his advantage, as it contributed to his win. Meanwhile, the organising committee representative Kwao Mokoka explained that this year they experienced a low turnout of both local and international athletes, hence they had cancelled the 42km race which would have been the main race.
He said last year over 500 local and international athletes had turned up for the marathon but that this time around they saw a decline in the numbers registering only about 350.
Nevertheless, he said this year’s experience would not deter them as they would do their utmost to better market the next edition scheduled for August next year.
He further noted that they were going to start preparations as early as now and seek sponsorships for the third edition.
Kosgey got P5 000 prize money while Bontle Nginya of Francistown Athletics Club walked away with P5 000 for winning the 21km in the women’s category with a time of 1:32:37.
Runners-up for the men and women categories, Kagiso Kebatshwaretse of Mmadinare Athletics Club and Lesedi Tumelo an independent athlete, received P3 500 cash prizes, respectively.
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