Accra, Aug. 31, GNA – Nestle Ghana Limited, sponsors of the annual Accra Milo Marathon has donated 1,000 training boots for 20-selected Schools across the country ahead of the 2102 edition of the event scheduled for Friday, September 21.

The gesture according to the headline sponsors, is to empower the youth to pursue and maintain a healthy lifestyle through active sports involvement.

Olufemi Akintola, Category Business Manager in charge of Beverages for Nestle Ghana Limited told GNA Sports that the training boots are meant for Schools in the Greater Accra, Western and Volta Regions.

The donation, he noted is one of the initiatives by Nestle towards making the 26th edition of the annual event a must see for all.

Akintola said the theme: “Champions run the city”, was carefully chosen to reflect the heritage of the marathon and the champion spirit of the brand – Milo.

For the distance, he said the 42-km has been maintained for the Mass Sports whilst the U-15 category has seen a drastic reduction from 15km to 5km “to encourage and increase completion rate and to ensure maximum safety of the participants”.

The Mass Sports will begin at ‘The Point’ in Nungua and end at the Dansoman Keep Fit Club, whereas the U-15 category will also take off at the New Times Corporation junction before terminating at the Dansoman Keep Fit grounds.

The Category Business Manager announced a cash prize of GH¢10,000 for the winner in both male and female categories of the Mass Sports. The first runner-up will pocket GH¢7,000 and GH¢5,000 for the second runner-up.

For the U-15’s, the winner will take home GH¢1,200; GH¢800 for the first runner-up and GH¢500 for the second runner-up.

At least 7,000 runners consisting of 3,000 for the Mass Sports are expected to compete in this year’s edition of the event, which has risen to become one of the most popular on the Ghanaian sporting calendar.