Cape Maclear Triathlon returns for 4th edition
Based on a half Olympic also known as a “Sprint” Triathlon, the 4th Cape Maclear Triathlon dubbed (CMT2018) is scheduled for Saturday, 15th September at Cape Maclear Bay under the watchful eye of Thumbi island.
“Sprint” Triathlon format consists of a 750m swim, 20km cycle and a 5km run, however, CMT2018 is covering 4km.
According to one of the organizers Marcel Blankenstein, the format is fast and the winning time for individuals is around 1 hour and 15 minutes and for the relay, it is around 1 hour and 14 minutes.
“Participants can compete individually or as a team. This year, we’ll see if any records are broken. CMT2018 stirs up a major vibe in Cape Maclear. Chembe Village is full of excitement now but with all this excitement, there is also a very real reality that we should not glance over,” he explained.
Realizing the fact that many lakeshore Malawians don’t know how to swim, CMT2018 attempted to deal with this reality by creating a competitive and fun event that encourages Chembe inhabitants to participate.
“Official lakeshore drowning statistics are vague, an informal discussion with any lakeshore resident will tell you that it is a very real reality. This year, Rob Assad from Cape Maclear SCUBA provided free swimming lessons for any Chembe inhabitant that wanted to learn how to swim, either for personal reasons, or to participate in CMT2018,” Blankenstein added.
Cape Maclear Triathlon is the brainchild of Peter Thompson and is managed under the auspices of Mizu Foundation.
‘The Mizu foundation’, meaning ‘roots’ in Chichewa, is a unique non-profit organisation that mainly supports community organisations situated in Cape Maclear.
One of the “out of town” non-profits that CMT2018 supports is Africycle.
“Many of our CMT2018 participants are visitors in Malawi that don’t have their own bicycles. We hire bicycles on their behalf from Africycle and for CMT2017, bicycle rentals amounted to K300,000, all of which went to Africycle,” Blankenstein disclosed.
He said Cape Maclear Lodges have committed to sponsor any applicant wishing to participate.
“Over and above the Lodge support, there is also a program in place for financially able participants to sponsor any applicant wishing to participate. CMT2018’s aim is very clear, there is no excuse not to participate. CMT2018 will teach you how to swim, we’ll find a sponsor and we’ll get you a bike. All you need is to be a resident of Chembe village and have a strong willingness to participate, we’ll do the rest” he revealed.
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