1 June 2012
In a first for South Africa and the continent, the Comrades Marathon Association (CMA) has been chosen to host the 20th Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) Congress in Durban in May 2014.
Held every two years, the AIMS Congress brings together leading organisers of the road-running fraternity for four days of workshops, seminars and interactive engagement.
Delegates from 60 countries were represented at the 19th AIMS gathering in the Czech Republic’s capital city of Prague last month, where the decision to grant the hosting rights to the CMA was taken.
CMA chairman Peter Proctor and general manager Gary Boshoff were among the those bidding for the prestigious AIMS Congress in 2014.
Unanimously in favour
The process of selecting the host is decided on by the attending AIMS delegates, who were unanimously in favour of the CMA hosting their next convention on South African soil.
“This is a huge coup for the CMA, the city of Durban and our country,” Boshoff said in a statement.
“The convergence of these delegates from all over the world on Durban will undoubtedly boost the profile of this beautiful coastal city and set the pace for renewed interest in its tourism and other business prospects.”
“The CMA together with the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport and Recreation will host the AIMS Children’s Series Race in Durban on 2 June 2012,” Boshoff added.
‘Fostering the joy of running’
“As the CMA, we are already enjoy good working relationships with local and international athletics bodies and, together with organisations like AIMS, we aim to continue fostering the joy of running among our youth and to take development in athletics to new heights,” Boshoff went on.
“KwaZulu-Natal has many splendid offerings for the world and our potential to attract high profile events such as the 2014 AIMS Congress to the province is boundless. In the same light, we feel very fortunate to have AIMS display its high level of confidence in the CMA and South Africa, by awarding us the sought-after hosting rights.”
The goals of AIMS are to foster and promote distance running throughout the world; to work with the International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF) on all matters relating to international road races; and to exchange information, knowledge and expertise among members of the association.
SAinfo reporter
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