St Francis Bay runner Margie Saunders has the chance to break the 10km world record in the 70-plus age category at the SPAR Women’s Challenge.
Gqeberha, South Africa (18 September 2024) – There is every chance that records – including a world best – will tumble at this year’s SPAR Women’s Challenge in Gqeberha.
A revamped course for the 31st running of Nelson Mandela Bay’s most beautiful road race on September 21 is expected to deliver much faster times than in recent history.
While the route will please Grand Prix Series athletes no end, it will also give St Francis Bay runner Margie Saunders the chance to break the 10km world record in the 70-plus age category.
Saunders, a member of the Nedbank Running Club in the city, recorded the fastest time in the world for her age group at the Econofoods 25km in Gqeberha last year. She also set a new national mark over 10km, which she recently lowered to 46:07.
Now, with the adapted Women’s Challenge course ratified by World Athletics, the current global benchmark of 44:09 may just come under threat if the conditions play along.
Eastern Province Athletics event administrator Irene van Eeden said the coast-hugging course was much faster than the previous one from an elevation perspective and that she would not be surprised if athletes ran personal bests.
The start of the race in Marine Drive, Summerstrand, has a lowly elevation of five metres. From there, runners head south for about 2km before a 180-degree turn sends them back along the same road.
At the 3.4km mark, they turn left into Admiralty Way. The next 200m is an uphill drag that sees the elevation increase to 8m above sea level at the right-turn into Brighton Drive.
The course continues to climb to the 4.3km point, where runners reach the highest point of 12m. A sharp descent follows as athletes head to 4th Avenue, which comes after 4.85km.
They reach the halfway mark 150m down the road, all the while dropping back down to an elevation of 5m as the course veers left into Marine Drive en route to the turnaround at Strand Avenue in Humewood.
This portion undulates between 5m and 9m and, after making an about turn, runners head to the finish at Pollok Beach.
“The course features the beachfront a lot more than in previous years; we think people will love that,” Van Eeden said.
Some athletes did not enjoy the steep downhill on La Roche Drive on the old course. Even though it was fast, the significant drop in elevation tended to be tough on the legs.
The 2024 route gives social entrants the chance to see the elite runners in full flight on their return leg.
Van Eeden said the SPAR Women’s Challenge had lifted the standard of running in the country.
“It’s an excellent way to test your speed and get noticed, especially for newcomers. It’s good for them to be showcased at big races.”
Since Covid, many more people have started running. Van Eeden said club memberships had really picked up, particularly since mid-2023.
SPAR Eastern Cape advertising manager Roseann Shadrach said schools and corporations with the highest number of entries will receive prizes.
In addition, one lucky entrant will win SPAR vouchers for a year. The total value of this windfall is R12,000.
There is also a lucky draw for the grand prize – a Proton car – and the local winner will be put forward for the national draw.
The beneficiaries of the Gqeberha leg of the SPAR Women’s Challenge – Eastern Cape mobile mammogram service Radhiate and LifeLine South Africa – will be awarded R50,000 each to assist them in continuing their uplifting work among women.
Enter at www.sparwomensrace.co.za.
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