'It means a lot to us' - Thembisa Mile secure new sponsor in Herotel

In a tough economic environment where many township races are struggling to attract commercial partners, the Thembisa Mile has bucked the trend by announcing yet another sponsor. Yesterday orgnisers of the Ekurhuleni township's premier road running event unveiled Herotel as their latest partners for the 2023 edition of the race which takes place on 29 October at the Moses Molelekwa Arts Center next to Makhulong Stadium. Founder and Race Director of The Thembisa Mile and 10km Donald Mathipa says securing the fibre company as the event's timing sponsor will ensure that registered athletes get their race numbers and official results shortly after crossing the finish line.

The Thembisa Mile team lead by Donald Mathipa (centre) pose with the Herotel team. Photo Credit: Thembisa Mile.

"The new partnership means a lot to us," he told #TheTopRunner. "Timing services for a road running event can be quite expensive so when you get a company of that magnitude coming on board to offset the cost of this timing that will help us to keep the race entry fee more affordable for runners. So it means a lot to us," he explained.

Having started from humble beginnings as an 8km fun run back in 2012, the Thembisa Mile has grown into one of the most hotly anticipated events on the Central Gauteng Athletics (CGA) Road Running calendar with elite athletes such as Caster Semenya and Johan Cronje have taken part in the One Mile event and thousands of social runners taking to the streets for the 10km. In 2019, the 10km event saw 2500 participants flocking to South Africa's second largest township to enjoy the Running Party. This according to Herotel is why they decided to throw their weight behind the event.

Thousands of runners enjoying the Running Party in the streets of Thembisa. Photo Credit: Thembisa Mile.

"We are a fibre and wireless Internet Service Provider. Herotel began its journey in 2013 with the dream of connecting all South Africans to faster, more affordable internet. We are in 400 different towns in South Africa. We want to show the benefits of fibre to all communities in the country. So Thembisa is very important to us because this is one of the first townships that we are trying to really work in. We love the passion in the area and so that's when we heard about the Thembisa Mile and it was an immediate yes because we were inspired by the passion and hard work they've put in to build the event to where it is today," said Herotel Marketing Manager Luke Hunter.

Herotel's commitment is important not only for the 2023 race, but will also ensure the event continues for years to come. "This will also help us to save something and make sure that we have something in reserve after the event. We plan to make sure that the event every year in leaps and bounds. So it means a lot to us to have a company like Herotel coming on board and looking after our timing services," said Mathipa.

Entries for THEMBISA MILE & 10KM are available online at www.thembisamile.co.za , www.peaktiming.co.za or simply click on the following link to register; http://onreg.com/thembisamile23