Glenashley runner represents province at championships
The runner qualified for the championships after running a 5km run at Greyville Racecourse in 26 minutes.
AN avid runner from Glenashley recently returned from Johannesburg where she represented KwaZulu-Natal in road running at the first-ever South African Championships.
Clare Mangan ran 5km in a total of 27 minutes and 27 seconds, which earned her a silver accolade, an accomplishment she is very proud of.
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“I feel proud to have represented KZN at this event. I worked hard towards this accomplishment,” she said.
The qualifier for the championship was held at Greyville Racecourse in May where Mangan completed a 5km run in 26 minutes and received gold in her category.
“There were qualifying times for the different age categories. I was placed in the age group, 60–79, and completed the distance one minute ahead of the qualifying time so I qualified for the KZN Athletics team to compete in the South African Championships,” she said.
Mangan, together with other athletes, travelled to the event by bus on June 16. The champs were held the following day at the FNB Stadium.
“Running 5km in Durban and running the same distance in Joburg were two different experiences. It was a very tough, hilly route, and the weather conditions were dry. The difference in altitude also made it a challenge, but I ran my heart out. Afterwards, I was coughing and had a runny nose, but I enjoyed every moment of it,” said Mangan.
Reminiscing back to when she first started running, Mangan said it was a mate from varsity who asked her to run with her as she had entered Miss Legs SA and wanted to tone her legs.
“The running bug bit, and I knew it was something I wanted to continue. I ran my first 21km race in 1984 while working at Foschini and was the first employee to finish a half-marathon,” she added.
She is now the chairperson for the Riverside Harriers, a club she joined in 2001.
“I received a lot of support from my friends at the club. The club also sponsored my KZN kit for which I am most grateful. Running is such a liberating sport. The scenery, the fresh air, the people – I encourage people to get into walking or running,” added Mangan.
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