SPEECH BY CEO JOHN VAN DEN AARDWEG – Tuesday, 24 February 2004

 

Last year was an excellent year for the Comrades Marathon particularly from a media coverage perspective. Our appreciation must be expressed to you the media – print, radio and television – for the excellent and extensive coverage we received. Special mention must be made of SABC Sport for its continued live coverage of the race.

 

The 2004 Comrades Marathon however, promises to be even better. This year is a significant year in our country as we celebrate ten years of democracy. Our race is run on Youth Day and while the Comrades Marathon has its roots in remembering sacrifices of the “Comrades” of the First World War, we also acknowledge the significance and sanctity of 16th June in the history of our country. The Comrades Marathon, we believe, is a fitting way to commemorate both struggles.

 

One of the dominant features of this year’s theme is women. Women have made a significant contribution to the race and the 35% increase in the number of female competitors last year is testament to the growing love and commitment for road running among women. Another important feature of our theme is our charity initiative, AmaBeadiBeadi, which has raised in excess of R5 million over the past 5 years for our various charities. We have some exciting new plans for AmaBeadiBeadi this year, details of which will be released at a later stage.

 

We have already embarked on and plan further exciting initiatives this year: 

  1. Race Dates, published with Tom Cottrell, is a useful bi-annual publication for runners containing a training logbook, race details for six months as well as a Comrades training guide compiled by the Comrades Coach, Don Oliver.
  2. Last year we acquired the broadcast sponsorship of Tseleng, the SABC 2 road running programme. The main reason we sponsored this programme was to get it off the ground in the hope that if successful, it would stimulate further interest in the sport of road running. So successful is the programme that it will be broadcast weekly, as opposed to monthly, from April this year.
  3. Our on-line entry system has been refined and we expect an increase in the number of on-line entries (39% last year).
  4. Our website has been revamped and made more user friendly. The various forums are proving to be quite popular.
  5. The SA Natural Products Road Shows have been extended this year, the first round commencing in Verulam, Durban, on 1 March. We have been very strategic in our planning this year and are going to centres where there are high concentrations of Comrades runners. Road shows will be held for the first time on the East and West Rand, Chatsworth, Verulam and Soweto.
  6. The finish of the race will be hosted at the Oval in Alexander Park, Pietermaritzburg, for the first time.
  7. A pasta party for all runners will be held on the Monday evening of our Expo. The annual Comrades Marathon Experience will be staged at the Durban Exhibition Center from 13th to 15th June and a few exciting changes are on the cards. 
  8. The Pick ‘n Pay Freedom Run will be run on Sunday, 13 June from the Hayfields Pick ‘n Pay in Pietermaritzburg to the Comrades finish at the Oval. 
  9. The Comrades Friends in the Valley of 1000 Hills Fun Run will be held on Sunday, 31 May 2004 aimed at involving communities living in Inchanga and the Valley of 1000 Hills along the world famous Comrades Marathon route.

All these initiatives would not be possible if it were not for the contribution and commitment of our numerous sponsors and suppliers. The Comrades Marathon, as an organising body, has changed considerably over the last couple of years. Essentially this has been necessitated through the change in the sporting and socio-economic environment in which we exist. One of the most rapidly changing areas has been that of sponsorship, sponsorship procurement and sponsorship management. Despite the commercial changes the Comrades Marathon as a race remains constant and for the average runner the challenge and the race remains the same as it was decades ago.

 

The South African sponsorship market is highly competitive and there has been a recent proliferation of sponsorship choices from sport, to arts and culture, to wildlife causes, to name but a few. The traditional big sports of soccer, rugby and cricket attract the lion’s share of all sport sponsorship spend. There is increased pressure on lesser sports to secure and maintain sponsors.

 

The Comrades boasts an impressive list of Sponsors and Official Suppliers, each with its own unique contribution and role in the race:

 

MAJOR SPONSORS

  1. Imperial Car Rental is our longest standing sponsor and inter alias, provide the 80-odd bailer combis on race day.
  2. Pick ‘n Pay brand the start and half way. 
  3. Harmony Gold provides the one-ounce Harmony Gold medals to the first ten men and women, gold prizes for the first South African man and woman, as well as incentives for new Best Times.
  4. Peoples Bank brand the race numbers and host approximately 150 underprivileged runners annually in its Home away from Home;

IT PARTNER

Mr Price have developed a state of the art IT system over the past two years. Their system is also utilized at the Flora Sydney Marathon.

 

OFFICIAL SUPPLIERS

  1. SA Natural Products
  2. SAA
  3. Nike
  4. SA Breweries promote its Sterling Lite Larger brand.

In addition, we are proud and excited to welcome the following high profile brands to the Comrades family of Sponsors and Official Suppliers:

 

NEW MAJOR SPONSORS

  1. Energade, a brand of the Bromor Foods stable, is our Official Sports drink supplier and will brand the finish straight.
  2. Flora, a Unilever Bestfoods Robinsons brand, and sponsor of the world’s largest marathon – the London Marathon, as well as the Sydney Marathon, will brand the last mile in addition to acquiring the naming rights to the Flora Comrades Experience.

NEW MEDICAL PARTNER

NetCare, South Africa’s leading medical service provider will attend to all our hospital, Emergency Medical Services (NetCare 911) and physiotherapy requirements.

 

NEW OFFICIAL SUPPLIERS

  1. Virgin Active, the Official Gym of the Comrades;
  2. Southern Sun Hotels, our Official Hotel, will not only meet our accommodation requirements, but also those of runners as competitive rates;
  3. Renault, our Official Car.

These leading brands have shown their confidence in us as a reputable credible sporting event and one, which provides measurable positive returns. What is significant is that our two new major sponsors - Energade and Flora - are new to athletics in South Africa. At a time where sponsors are questioning the compliment to South African sport, we have secured to prominent brands, who previously have had no involvement in athletics in this country. We pride ourselves in being a professional, transparent and successful sporting organization and assure you of our commitment.

 

With the support of a host of the country’s leading brands – our Sponsors and Official Suppliers, the SABC (Radio and television), our parent body, Athletics South Africa, runners and the thousands of volunteers who assist in the organization of the race, we are well positioned to stage one of the most successful Comrades Marathons ever. We look forward to the continued support of the media in covering this truly South African sporting event – The Ultimate Human Race.

 


 COMRADES MARATHON MEDIA RELEASE 9/2004

Statement Released: Tuesday, 24 February 2004

go back to previous page