The Fanie du Toit Sport Grounds were a spectacle of purple speedos on Friday, 13 October as the North-West University hosted the Potchefstroom leg of the 2023 Hollard Daredevil Run in aid of male cancer awareness.

Over 100 students lined up outside the NWU High Performance Institute of Sport (HPI) for a 5km run today as part of a national initiative that took part all across South Africa.

In Potchefstroom, the Tlokwe Athletic Club also ran in support of this initiative.

See the photos here: (Photos: Tian du Preez)

“The Hollard Daredevil Run has become a nationwide phenomenon since it first started in 2009, raising eyebrows and raising awareness about prostate and testicular cancer. We set out this year to achieve the biggest and bravest run to date, and we have achieved just that. This run goes from strength to strength each year, and we cannot be prouder,” says Warwick Bloom, Head of Group Marketing at Hollard.

The Hollard Daredevil Run saw over 3 000 runners participating at Zoo Lake in Johannesburg, as well as teams in Pretoria, Durban, Cape Town, Kimberley and everywhere in between. Participants were spotted running cancer outta their hoods in Despatch, Gonubie, Thohoyandou, Giyani, Makhado, Secunda, Sedgefield and even a team of game rangers braving a whole lot more by running through the Kruger National Park.

This year also saw more high schools taking part than ever before, with many schools and hundreds of learners in provinces around the country getting teams together to support the cause.

“Many men may be reluctant to talk about health issues or seek professional help. It is for this reason that cancer is often diagnosed later and perhaps at a more advanced stage.

Detecting and treating these cancers early means better futures for men and their families around the country,” says Bloom.

Cancer facts:

Prostate cancer

• By 2030, prostate cancer is predicted to be the most common cancer in South Africa.
• 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime.
• Black African men have an estimated 60% higher risk of getting prostate cancer than any other race group.
• Men who have a father or brother with prostate cancer are 2 to 3 times more likely to develop prostate cancer themselves.
• The risk of prostate cancer begins to rise sharply after age 55 and peaks at age 70-74
• Early diagnosis of prostate cancer can mean a 95% chance of being cured.
• A PSA blood test at your health care practitioner can take a couple of seconds and can potentially save your life.
• African men and men who have a family history of prostate and/or breast cancer in a first degree relative need to get screened annually from the age of 40. All men over the age of 45 need to be screened annually.
• According to Harvard Medical School, men who ejaculate 21 or more times a month have a 31% lower risk of prostate cancer.

 Testicular cancer

• While rare, testicular cancer is still the most common cancer affecting males between the ages of 15 and 35.
• The rate of men diagnosed with testicular cancer has doubled in the last 50 years.
• It is important for young men to start testicular self-examinations soon after puberty, because early detection can save lives.
• The survival rate for men who are diagnosed and treated for early stage testicular cancer can be as high as 98%.
• Men from the age 15 to 49 years need to examine their testicles each month, preferably after a bath or shower, to feel for any pea-sized lumps that could indicate testicular cancer.
• Men with a family history such as a brother or father diagnosed with testicular cancer are at an increased risk.