Moorosi Tsiane
FIRST National Bank (FNB) Lesotho and Mamoth Employee Benefits have partnered to sponsor the fourth edition of the annual Maseru City Urban Road Challenge (MCURC) marathon.
FNB has injected M30 000 while Mamoth has contributed M20 000 towards the race which is penned in for the first weekend of October in Maseru.
First introduced in 2015, MCURC is a road race which takes place in October to commemorate Lesotho’s independence. The race did not take place in 2017 as its dates clashed with the Local Government elections.
FNB marketing manager Lebohang Setlalekhosi said they found it necessary to support the race to create a competitive platform for local athletes while also helping unearth local talent.
“Running has not received the attention that it deserves but as FNB, we focused on it and that is why we sponsored runner (Teboho Noosi) last month to a race in Switzerland where he performed very well,” Setlalekhosi said.
“We believe the reason for which he did well is that he received support and we also believe that if all local runners get such support, then they can also qualify for international competitions.
“The country has a lot of athletes who compete locally and abroad but they lack support and we are trying to give them that support. Supporting this event is our way of giving them the necessary support.”
On his part, Mamoth Business Development Manager Botha Tiheli said they are passionate about supporting local brands.
“When the organisers presented their ideas to us, they said their agenda was to attract people from across the world and that would improve local tourism.
“Secondly, our strongest emphasis is to see Basotho living long and we encourage wellness and we approach it with lifestyle modification where we simply encourage people to eat well and exercise,” Tiheli said.
Lesotho Amateur Athletics Association (LAAA) spokesperson Sejanamane Maphathe said they were happy to be part of the initiative.
“We are also thankful to the two companies for coming forward to support this initiative which will double also double as Lesotho’s independence,” Maphathe said.
One of the race organisers, Bokang Kheekhe said the race has improved over the years and expressed gratitude to FNB and Mamoth for supporting them.
“We have a good history in terms of performance but due to lack of funding, our athletes end up failing to reach their full potential. However, when companies are coming forward to support us, it is encouraging because one of our objectives with this race is to also unearth the talent.
“This is our chance to grow the race and this is also the reason for which we also engaged the LAAA to help us professionalise it,” Kheekhe said.
