29 Oct 2013

The fourth annual Morupule club cycling challenge race has raised P80 000 for Khama III Memorial Museum and Sehunou Primary School.

The club handed over two cheques of P40 000 each to Khama III memorial museum and Sehunou rimary school on Sunday, October 27. The event, whose aim was to raise funds for charity, attracted multitudes of cyclers from various cycling clubs and individuals across the country.

The club started the race in 2010 with the aim of contributing to the less fortunate members of the community using proceeds from sponsorship and had previously enabled Morupule Cycling club to donate almost P200 000 to charitable beneficiaries.

The 58km race kick-started at Boiteko Junction up to Khama Rhino Sanctuary and back to the starting point whilst the 100km race will kick started at Boiteko Junction past Khama Rhino Sanctuary up to a point near Mmashoro well fields and concluding at the start point.

The race saw cyclers Belnardo Ayuso and Deborah Bailey winning the 100km race championship in the male and female categories respectively. Matthew Smith and Tabona Benard won the 58km race in the male and female categories respectively.

Speaking during the event Morupule coal mine Production manager Steffen Nareetsile thanked the communities of Serowe and Palapye for supporting the event every year.

He also thanked the new sponsor of the race Stanbic Bank Botswana for having undertaken to sponsor the event to the tune of P75 000 for three consecutive years beginning this year. Since 2010, the funds raised through the race have been distributed to various social support institutions in Serowe, Palapye and Mahalapye.

He also stated that the growing participation of young cyclists who take part in the activity bodes well for the future of the cycling sport in the country. Nareetsile challenged the business community to emulate Stanbic Bank by supporting initiatives such as this.

The 50 member Morupule Cycling club was formed in 2009 with a view to improving the level of fitness and wellbeing of members of the community in which it operates. For his part Bangwato regent Kgosi Sediegeng Kgamane expressed his gratitude to cyclers for encouraging educational, social and cultural events through donation to the museum and sehunou primary school.

“This is a remarkable practice worth promoting across the country and I give it a pat on the back,” he said. Stanbic Bank Represenative Kenneth Tlagae said his bank was proud to sponsor an event such as this, adding “as a business we are successful because of the community. He said the sponsorship was a way of ploughing back into the community. ENDS