Lewa Safari Marathon: Decorated Lodepa Gunning For A Seventh Title
NAIROBI, Kenya-The 2023 Lewa Safari Marathon Launch at Sarova Stanley Hotel.
Lewa Safari Marathon: Decorated Lodepa gunning for a seventh title.
Safaricom and Huawei Technologies have supported the 24th edition set for June 24 in Isiolo to a tune of Sh10 million each.
Ochieng’ Oyugi
Decorated Fridah Chepkite Lodepa will head for a seventh title in the 24th edition of Lewa Safari Marathon to be held at the Lewa Conservancy in Isiolo County on June 24.
The mother of three embarked on intense training on January 10 at her base in Iten with her Cloud Nine Athletics Club in readiness to defend the women’s 42Km category she dominated last year in the annual race whose proceeds are channeled towards wildlife conservation.
“I’m already in shape now, the remaining three months I’ll work on speed. I’ll also do long runs for endurance and mileage,” the triple Standard Chartered Marathon champion told Standard Sports.
In a press launch in Nairobi on Tuesday, Lewa Wildlife Conservancy CEO Mike Watson said they are targeting between 1000-1200 athletes in this year’s race whose theme is ‘Ditch the desk, run for the wild.’
“This is a world class sporting event that brings together people from all walks of life with shared values, so we encourage Kenyans to embrace the marathon spirit.
“The marathon tests both physical and mental limits of participants, it also impacts our climate positively,” Watson underlined.
Mobile services providers Safaricom and Huawei Technologies have sponsored this year’s race to a tune of Sh10 million each.
“We are glad we have been in this marathon since its inception, we are proud to support the cause that it stands for, sponsoring the race is part of our sports development policy that we are undertaking.
“We are also on a mission to plant 5 Million trees in the next five years, so far we have planted one million,” Paul Kasimu, Chief Human Resource Officer, Safaricom, said during their cheque handover.
Huawei Technologies Deputy CEO, Sheng Kaifu said they are proud to support the marathon for the last 16 years that they have been in partnership with the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy.
“The conservancy is home to some of the rarest wildlife and we know through our support and that of Safaricom, a difference has been made in preserving these iconic species for future generations as well as the surrounding communities,” Kaifu underscored.
The registration for this year’s race will officially start on Wednesday with Sh20, 000 charged for participation in either 42km or 21km categories.
“This season, the race will purely be physical, we won’t have any virtual races as we have had in the past two editions due to the Covid-19 pandemic,” Ivy Wairimu, Tusk Trust Programme Manager clarified.
Race ambassador Eliud Kipchoge in a statement hailed the marathon saying: “To me, a running world is a happy world.
“We are all part of the human family, we must keep strong and stay fit for our wellbeing. By running together, we can also conserve our environment, empower our communities, take care of our wildlife and support those at Lewa who are working for the future for all of us.”
UTILITIES:
Selected races that Fridah Chepkite Lodepa has won so far;
2004: Benidorm Half Marathon
2007: Standard Chartered Bangkok Marathon
2008: Kuala Lumpur International Marathon
2008: Pattaya International Marathon
2008: Kota Kinabalu Marathon
2009: Standard Chartered Kuala Lumpur Marathon
2010: Khon Kaen International Marathon
2010: Kilimanjaro International Marathon
2010: Pattaya International Marathon
2010: Standard Chartered Bangkok Marathon
2011: Khon Kaen International Marathon
2012: Samuli Island Marathon
2012: Lewa Safari Marathon
2013: Lewa Safari Marathon
2014: Kilimanjaro International Marathon
2014: Mombasa International Marathon
2014: Lewa Safari Marathon
2015: Lewa Safari Marathon
2015: Penang Bridge Marathon
2015: Lewa Safari Marathon
2016: Lewa Safari Marathon
2022: Lewa Safari Marathon
