KERICHO, Kenya
The fifth edition of the Tea Board of Kenya ‘Tea for Health International Marathon’ organised by the Tea Board of Kenya in conjunction with Athletics Kenya (AK) will take place in Kericho Kenya on 10th May 2014. The theme of the Marathon will be, “Where the World’s Best Athletes and Tea Meet.”
The marathon is aimed at raising awareness of Kenya tea as a healthy drink with the eventual objective of increasing local consumption and opening up more international markets as well as nurturing emerging talent in athletics. The partnership between Kenyan tea and the marathon event is premised on the fact athletes form the leading flagship brands that have raised Kenya’s international stature.
The key message is that Kenyans should not only take pride in the sustained production of high quality tea and supremacy in marathon/athletics but also that drinking tea can boost the energy of athletes to perform better. The race will involve a 42-kilometre full marathon for professionals, a 10-kilometre race for non-professionals and a 5-km family and fun race.
The top prize for the 42 kilometre marathon will be Sh1.5 million for each of the winners in the men and women categories. There will also be other prizes including gift hampers, medals and cash awards. While launching the final preparations for the event last Friday, officials of the Tea Board of Kenya led by the Ag. Managing Director Zakayo Magara and Athletics Kenya officials represented by the Vice President in charge of competitions and administrationDavid Okeyo exuded confidence that the event will be a success.
Mr. Magara said the “Tea for Health International Marathon” has evolved into one of the key athletics events in the country with more up-coming athletes looking forward to participating and in the process building up their careers before they can launch into other global events. He added that through the event, some of the previous winners have proceeded to make a mark in the premium marathon editions such as Berlin and Boston Marathon events, among others. Mr. Magara lauded Kenya Tea Packers Ltd (Ketepa) for joining the Tea Board Kenya as a silver sponsor for the event and called on other tea industry stakeholders and partners to come on board and support the event.
Mr. Okeyo said all the IAAF rules will be followed, including anti-doping tests being conducted after the race as well as necessary health checks on all athletes to avoid any risk to the participants’ lives. The Athletics Kenya South Rift Chairman, Mr. John Wachira ,who was present said the challenges caused by the last minute change of route in last year’s event due to heavy rains have been addressed and assured that adequate preparations are being executed in conjunction with the Tea Board of Kenya and the AK National Office.
The launch event was also attended by the TBK “Tea for Health International Marathon” Ambassador, Mr Moses Tanui who is a renowned athlete. In his remarks, Mr Tanui said he was going to ensure success of the event by providing the necessary technical and professional support during the preparations. The event is targeting to register over 10,000 runners from the local and international arena into the three categories of 42km, 10km and 5km.
Registration is currently underway at the Tea Board of Kenya Offices in Nairobi, Kericho, Embu and Mombasa. Online registration is also ongoing through the TBK website, www.teaboard.or.ke.
The registration process has been made much easier this year with introduction of the “LIPA NA MPESA” platform. The “LIPA NA MPESA” number is 666728. The registration fee is Kshs. 300/= only for local participants. Registration for international participants will be USD 100.
