Thousands splash out at slick Midmar Mile
year’s annual and popular aQuellé Midmar Mile went off smoothly, which participants coming in all shapes, sizes and age groups, and painting Midmar Dam in bright colours.
The men’s elite race was won by Connor Buck in 17min 30sec, while the women’s elite section was won by the evergreen Sharon van Rouwendaal in 18:40.
Race director Wayne Riddin said although his team works for many months ahead of the four-day event that took place on Sunday to plan and put it together, the sponsors were always the backbone who make the event possible.
“All our sponsors, partners, volunteers and charity organisations are very important and what you see is made possible by them.
“We are very grateful to everybody who played a role by coming on board,” he said.
The organisers, he added, must be praised for putting together such a big “masterclass”, and also incident-free event.
During the event, the traffic, security and hospitality were never an issue and were of the highest level.
The local Mi7 Security medical emergency teams were on duty almost everywhere around the dam.
It was reported that the people on the water also included over 100 qualified lifeguards, and members of the South African Navy and the SA Police Service Diving Unit.
Staff of Hibiscus Hospital, the official medical partner, were also present and played an important role in the athletes’ post-race care. Sunday’s main event attracted thousands of spectators, bringing a carnival atmosphere to the Natal Midlands.
Montrose resident Mabongi Dlamini said she decided to participate this year because Midmar Mile was a good event and the “vibe” just unmatched.
“Wow! I just can’t believe that I was part of it and was able to finish it easily,” she said.
Nontuthuko Mashimane, a local road runner who did the Midmar Mile for the first time, said to be in the water was amazing and very interesting.
“I was doing it for the first time, and I promise you I will be back in the next few years,” she said.
“I really enjoyed it and I am happy about it.” –
After putting their heads down and bashing across the dam, South Africa’s Connor Buck and Dutch world champion Sharon van Rouwendaal (above) said they were delighted to come out on top in challenging battles at the Midmar Mile in the KZN Midlands on Sunday.
Making her debut in the world’s largest open-water swimming event, Van Rouwendaal had to work hard all the way.
Though she dominated from the start, taking control of the race and securing victory in 18:40, the global 10km champion finished just four seconds clear of four-time Midmar Mile winner Ashley Twitchell of the United States.
Defending champion Stephanie Houtman was the first South African home, finishing third in 19:29.
“I thought I needed to get out of there and find a position in front, and then just control whether people were trying to pass or not,” said Van Rouwendaal, a former Olympic marathon champion.
“Then I think around halfway I turned on my back and I saw there was only one person, and I saw it was Ashley, so I knew I had to be careful…when I saw the finish, I thought I’d build it up a little bit to get the win.”
Though he had nobody on his tail when he exited the water, Buck admitted he had faced his own challenges during the 1.6km race, as he successfully retained the elite men’s crown in 17:39, just 38 seconds off the men’s record.
Pretoria’s Henré Louw was almost a minute back, finishing second in 18:34, with Buck’s 17-year-old training partner Brendan Visser springing a surprise in his Midmar Mile debut by taking third place.
“My sighting wasn’t very good. I’m a little bit colour blind so trying to see the orange buoys against the grass doesn’t really work. I had to just try and look for the white tent at the finish the whole time,” Buck said afterwards.
“Coming into the race, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. You never know what’s happening with the currents and conditions on the day.”