RUN YOUR CITY: South Africans can get active again as new sponsor arrives
The RUN YOUR CITY series has a new sponsor, and will soon host mass participation events in Durban and then Cape Town.
The popular RUN YOUR CITY series has inspired millions of South Africans to get active again, and now the series has a new sponsor to help promote a running, walking, and riding culture.
It was announced recently that Absa Bank has signed a four-year partnership with the RUN YOUR CITY running events in South Africa.
The mass participation series will feature an elite athlete invitational programme that allows South African athletes to compete against the world’s best on home soil.
Absa Executive, Geoff Lee said, “As a proudly African bank, we recognise the role that sport and activity play in uplifting communities and boosting our nation’s morale. Sport has been tightly woven into our identity as Africans and we are excited to be announcing our new partnership, which will not only improve our sporting prospects but will shape our lives as citizens for the better. The Absa RUN YOUR CITY Series partnership is not only about getting active, but it will help the bank enable our colleagues to be an active force for good in their communities as part of our employee value proposition, ensuring that they are part of bringing Africa’s possibility to life and fostering a culture of action,” adds Lee.
The announcement of the new partnership was welcomed by Athletics South Africa (ASA) President, James Moloi, who expressed the association’s support at the virtual launch last week. “It is exciting to see brands such as Absa joining the running community on the highest level in the country. We welcome new partnerships, creative and innovative solutions that will help continue to build one of the leading sports in the country. We wish all athletes the best of luck with all their preparations as they get ready to safely hit the streets of Durban and Cape Town respectively in 2021 and Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg respectively in 2022,” Moloi said.
A virtual event took place on September 24 in Johannesburg, with the first mass participation CITY RUN set to take place on October 31, followed by Cape Town on 21 November.
Michael Meyer, MD of Stillwater Sports and founder of the RUN YOUR CITY Series said, “We wanted to create the most accessible and enjoyable mass participation road running event in Africa. With Absa’s commitment to the series, we believe that the future of the events in the series is extremely exciting and can’t wait for the thousands of runners (existing supporters and new) to experience the exceptional Absa RUN YOUR CITY events.”