The safety of the runners was taken into account when the decision was made.
The Cape Town marathon, one of South Africa’s biggest road running events, was cancelled on Sunday due to safety concerns.
Just over 24,000 runners were expected to take part in one of the country’s most popular races, but strong winds forced organisers to cancel the race. The race was due to start at 6.15am in the Green Point area of the city.
The decision was taken on Sunday morning following structures at the start and finish areas being blown over during the night.
The 10km street race as well as the three trail runs — 43km, 22km and 11km — took place on Saturday without incident, though conditions were windy and hot.
Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said on X on Sunday morning “The Sanlam Cape Town marathon was cancelled this morning due to high winds at the race start and along the route. I’m disappointed of course, and gutted for the runners who have prepared so well .
“But I’m grateful for the event organisers and authorities for taking a decision with runners’ safety in mind.
“The City of Cape Town is committed to hosting events if the highest global standards, and that includes sometimes managing difficult calls like this one.”
The decision to cancel the race was taken at 4.45am and all runners were informed by 5am.
Clark Gardner, CEO of the Cape Town marathon, said: “The Cape Town marathon is devastated at the cancellation of our very special event. We have worked for months on planning for all scenarios and conditions, but ultimately a bigger force had the final say, and we are so sorry for the situation.”
Colonel Christo Engelbrecht of the Joint Operations Committee added: “The route is unsafe, as the wind is constantly gusting in Woodstock and the infrastructure at the start and finish venue has been compromised.
“It’s unsafe for the runners and pedestrians in that whole area and that’s why the race has had to be cancelled.”
