WALVIS BAY – Jason Johannes and Ottillie Aimwata claimed top spots in the Namport PowerHouse Challenge, which brought together more than 1 400 runners and cyclists from across the country in Walvis Bay on Saturday. 

Johannes won the men’s marathon in 3:01:09, followed by Winter Erastus in 3:08:12 and Paulus Ndangi Iiyambo in 3:11:06. Aimwata claimed first place in the women’s marathon in 3:41:39, followed by Delicia Mupetami in 4:36:13 and Maria Matsi in 5:15:12.

In the 21km road race, Joel Lukas claimed first place in the men’s category in 1:09:33, followed by Petrus Fimaneka Nuule in 1:10:46 and Israel Amukwa in 1:10:54. Salmi Nduviteko won the women’s 21km race in 1:17:12, followed by Beata Naigambo in 1:26:28 and Shipolo Ndeshilila Shiyukifeni in 1:35:09.

In the 70km mountain biking category, Danzel de Koe claimed first place in the men’s race in 2:05:26, followed by Anthony Jevu in 2:12:07 and Brandon Stiger in 2:12:21. Louise Breed won the women’s 70km race in 2:15:06, followed by Olivia Shililifa and Monja Scholtz, who both finished in 2:27:28.

In the 35km mountain biking category, Darian van Wyk and Anthony van Wyk shared first place in the men’s race, both finishing in 1:18:39. Randall Phillips took third place in 1:18:41.

Melissa Kotze won the women’s 35km race in 1:55:42, followed by Charmaine Oliver in 2:00:37 and Monicques van Rensburg in 2:05:59.

Namport’s marketing and stakeholder engagement manager, Cliff Shikuambi, said this was the third year the company had hosted the wellness initiative, which aims to promote sport, healthy lifestyles and community engagement.

“We are promoting sport and wellness, but we also want to integrate. We meet outside the office spaces and boardrooms in a very relaxed environment,” Shikuambi said.

He said the event also contributes to the local economy, as participants travelling from outside Walvis Bay make use of accommodation facilities, while small and medium enterprises benefit from opportunities to showcase and sell their products.

Shikuambi added that the initiative strengthens partnerships between Namport and other stakeholders.

“We want to strengthen partnerships and collectively create and enhance things together,” he said.