All set for Ghetto Marathon

Acting Standard Group CEO Joe Munene (right) and Community Relations Foundation Director Martin Makio after signing a partnership at the Standard Group Headquarters, Mombasa Road. [Robert Tomno,Standard]

The second edition of the Ghetto Marathon will be held on June 30, 2024 at Kabete National Polytechnic.

The race, whose objective is to foster peace, combat drugs and substance abuse and uplift communities through sports and culture, is targeting 1000 athletes up from the 300 realised last season.

Categories to be contested will be the 21km (elite), 10km (elite), 10km (Community), 5km (community and students) and the 3km disability run.

Winners in the 21km will go home Sh200,000 richer (both men and women) while Sh150,000 and Sh 100,000 will be up for grabs for second and third place finishers.

Race founders and organisers, the Community Relations Foundation (CRF), said top 30 finishers will all be rewarded for their efforts in all the categories.

"But the rewards will all depend on the kind of budget that we have," CRF Chief Executive Officer Kavalla Moses told Standard Sports.

"Registration for the races will begin at the end of this month, hopefully we will be able to see defending champions guarding their crowns.”

Moses assured this year's edition will be bigger, better and flawless as they are currently mending all the teething problems encountered in the inaugural edition held at Gatina Primary School in Kawangware, Nairobi last November, and was graced by Africa's fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala who presides over the event.

While partnering with CRF for the forthcoming athletics showdown yesterday, Standard Group acting CEO Joe Munene hailed the race terming it a noble initiative meant to foster peace and good relations in our communities.

"This race is in line with our mission statement as Standard Group. It is connecting us with the communities at large, we are pledging to support this cause on our various media platforms. We also encourage other potential sponsors to come on board to support this marathon the way Kabete National Polytechnic has done by accepting to host the event," Munene underlined.

The CRF Director Martin Makio thanked the media outlet for embracing the cause.

He highlighted various ways in which the marathon has been beneficial to their organisation among them helping them to mitigate Gender Based Violence within the slums and reduce prevalent crimes in those areas.

"Through this race, the police and the communities are now living in harmony. Last year's winners have also made us proud as they have invested the prize monies won in good and profitable ventures," stated Makio, while adding that top two finishers in this year's categories will get fully paid scholarships at the Kabete National Polytechnic.

Apart from athletes and the communities around, Makio said Kenya Police Service, the Kenya Defence Forces and the Kenya Prisons are expected to grace the event.

Senior Superintendent of Police and Kenya Police Service representative Frederic Siundu Kinaibei stated concerning the marathon: "We fully embrace this race; it is for a good cause. As Kenya Police Service, we believe we need involvement of the communities for us to effectively fight crime.”

He further added: " This partnership enhances our relationship with the public. We are of the opinion that this idea should be carried out in all parts of the country."