KWAZULU-NATAL, PIETERMARITZBURG, 2 JUNE 2016 – The 2016 Nedbank Green Mile was a magnificent and humbling community event from start to finish, carefully organised to give family, friends and spectators the opportunity to boost runners embarking on the final 26km stretch to the end of the Comrades Marathon on Sunday, 29 May 2016.

Approximately 8 000 spectators occupied the Nedbank Green Mile on Old Main Road in Kloof, lining the street, shouting, dancing and clapping to the music that filled the air across the mile, which was swathed in green and gold. Families and friends picnicked on the lawns and grandstands, with multiple big screen TVs keeping them in tune with live race action.

Like a well-oiled machine, 643 entertainers, all sourced from KZN, knew exactly what to do and when, performing across six zones strategically positioned along the 1.6km Nedbank Green Mile, dressed up in an array of costumes like Ninja Turtles, Batman, Superman, Star Wars storm troopers, and green morph suits, running up the mile encouraging runners to keep moving forward. Groups of traditional Zulu dancers, gumboot dancers, and professional dancers put on shows continuously for 7 hours, plus cheerleaders, larger-than-life giant puppets, lifeguards and more cheered runners on.

Throughout the day, Scottish and military marching bands, Durban Girls High School’s drum majorettes, DJs, live bands including Afritude and Afro Divas, plus the marimba and steel drummers from St Nicholas Primary School, performed on either side of the Mile and across four stages. It was inspiring and electrifying, akin to a magnificent Rio de Janeiro parade party.

“A vital, behind-the-scenes element of the Nedbank Green Mile is its commitment to supporting the local community. In total, 881 local people were employed to work at the 2016 Nedbank Green Mile, sourced from local schools, universities, small businesses and non-profit organisations. This included 643 local entertainers and a support crew of 238. In 2016, we had the best catering zone yet, with eight local SME vendors showcasing KwaZulu-Natal’s incredible flavour,” said Tobie Badenhorst, Head of Sponsorship and Cause Marketing at Nedbank.

For the first time in Nedbank Green Mile history, Comrades Marathon major co-sponsor, Nedbank, gave spectators the chance to send digital motivational messages to their runner heroes. These messages were directly linked to a runner’s number so that when they crossed the timing map heading into the mile, the personal message was broadcast to them on a big screen TV. This proved incredibly popular amongst spectators and runners and will be a feature of future Nedbank Green Miles.

A most magical moment at the 2016 Nedbank Green Mile was double-amputee, Sandile Mbili.

“Four years ago, Sandile, from Diepsloot in Johannesburg, lost both his legs due to a bacterial infection. The Jumping Kids Foundation helped him to get prosthetic legs. Inspired by Sandile’s story, and his dedication to learning to run again using his new legs, Nedbank decided to help Sandile to raise funds to help more children like him get prosthetic legs,” said Badenhorst.

Nedbank challenged Sandile to run the Nedbank Green Mile on a 1.6km Twitter Track made up of motivational tweets from the public. For every Tweet on the track, Nedbank made a donation to the Jumping Kids Foundation to help more paraplegic children get prosthetic legs.

Running the Nedbank Green Mile, was a huge feat for 17-year-old Mbili, who until recently, was wheelchair bound and couldn’t even walk. He ran a social media campaign beforehand called #GoSandile, which encouraged people to raise awareness and donations for the Jumping Kids Foundation.

“This was an immense challenge for Mbili who is still undergoing regular physiotherapy to help him walk, let alone run again. But he ran the entire 1.6km Twitter track with a huge smile on his face, with thousands of supporters and hundreds of Comrades runners cheering him on. Sandile’s journey is what the Comrades Marathon is all about – humbly achieving what once seemed impossible,” said Badenhorst.

“With all your support on Twitter I was motivated to go on and finish the Nedbank Green Mile in 12 minutes! said a humbled Mbili

This is the Nedbank Green Mile – community, passion, challenge and victory, all rolled into one.

“Thank you to everyone involved with the 2016 Nedbank Green Mile – the spectators, the entertainers, the support crew, the charities, the schools, the universities and the Nedbank staff who gave freely of their time to manage our water point. But most importantly, thank you to the real inspirational heroes of the day – the runners who make this the greatest race in the world,” concluded Badenhorst.

You can watch Sandile's story at https://youtu.be/2ZchrUwPico

Watch the 2016 Nedbank Green Mile video here https://youtu.be/MWS14POyCI4

For high-res images of the 2016 Nedbank Green Mile, click on the link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/3cpv0d9kegw80ji/AAAU1c7wiaD59htItPMGUZcDa?oref=e&n=281151227

KWAZULU-NATAL, DURBAN, 5 MAY 2016 – To experience ordinary people conquering the extraordinary, be at the award-winning Comrades Marathon Nedbank Green Mile SPECATOR ZONE in Old Main Road, Kloof, on Sunday, 29 May 2016 from 8am to 3pm.

On the day, a 1.2km stretch of road in Kloof will be converted into an energetic mile-long ‘green & gold’ themed spectator and runner zone, orchestrated by Nedbank, to ensure runners, families and friends feel fully immersed in the awe-inspiring, humbling, life-changing Comrades Marathon along the Comrades Marathon route. Dress to theme and join in with the fun and festivities.

The Comrades Marathon is South Africa’s most inclusive sports event, involving a sports discipline that has no cultural, racial or financial barriers and attracting around 350,000 spectators, 3-million global TV viewers and 4 500 volunteers every year, not to mention the real heroes – the approximately 20 000 runners who take on the ‘Ultimate Human Race’.

For millions of South Africans, showing their support for the Comrades Marathon has become an important, unmissable and iconic tradition. Families, friends and colleagues make plans to support competitors, getting up at the crack of dawn, packing picnic baskets, deck chairs and umbrellas, and donning their supporter outfits, to stake out at the Nedbank Green Mile official spectator zone, where they provide encouragement to runners as they take on this immense challenge, whilst being entertained by movement and sound.

“The only place to catch all the 2016 Comrades action is at the only official spectator point along the route, the Nedbank Green Mile. The Nedbank Green Mile has been designed to celebrate the essence of what it means to take part in the Comrades Marathon - courage, selflessness, humbling, dedication and perseverance. In 2016, the Nedbank Green Mile is themed ‘Green and Gold’, and will see Kloof’s Old Main Road transformed into a rejuvenating, eco-friendly, celebratory, community-orientated space alive in green and gold. It is the real story of triumph over adversity,” says Tobie Badenhorst, Head of Sponsorship and Cause Marketing at Nedbank.

The 2016 Nedbank Green Mile will be bringing in a host of KwaZulu-Natal-based entertainment acts, including DJs, bands, professional dancers, drummies, cheerleaders, and local sports personalities and more. They’ll be performing from 8am to 3pm on race day, entertaining supporters throughout the spectator-friendly zone, and most importantly, encouraging runners as they embark on the final 26km stretch home to the finish at Kingsmead Stadium in Durban.

For children, the secure Kids Entertainment Zone is open from 8am and will feature fun-filled activities and entertainment acts like jumping castles, magicians, clowns, stilt walkers, balloon artists, puppet shows and face painting and sand art.

Throughout the day, spectators can watch all the Comrades Marathon action live via big screen TVs in the Nedbank Green Mile zone, with live commentary, picnic spots and grand stands located right alongside the route.

On site, there will also be food and drinks stands to replenish hungry and thirsty spectators. All food and drinks in the Nedbank Green Mile are sold by local schools, churches and charities, with all profits retained by these organisations.

In line with Nedbank’s commitment to greening the environment, all food and beverage packaging along the Nedbank Green Mile will be recycled.

“A major feature of the Nedbank Green Mile is its goal to involve and uplift the community. This is why all entertainment acts, support crews, food and beverage vendors are sourced from KwaZulu-Natal. This year, the Nedbank Green Mile will also be supporting two local children’s charities, the Star Fish Foundation and The Sports Trust,” says Badenhorst.

The Nedbank Green Mile is open from 8am to 3pm on Sunday, 29 May 2016. Entry is free and easy access can be gained from the M13 Hillcrest - Pinetown alternative highway travelling east towards Durban at the Pioneer off ramp. Follow the sign boards or follow www.facebook.com/nedbanksport/ or www.twitter.com/nedbanksport on Twitter for more information.

Use the hashtag #NedbankGreenMile to join the conversation.

Editors’ Notes

Nedbank is an official major sponsor of the 2016 Comrades Marathon.

The first Comrades Marathon took place on 24th May 1921, Empire Day, starting outside the City Hall in Pietermaritzburg with 34 runners. It has continued since then every year with the exception of the war years 1941-1945, with the direction alternating each year between Pietermaritzburg and Durban, the so called up & down runs.

The Nedbank Green Mile is the only official spectator point along the marathon route, offering Comrades supporters a perfect vantage point to view all the race action. It is located along Old Main Road in Kloof and is just 26km from the finish line in Kingsmead, Durban.

Entry into the Nedbank Green Mile Spectator Zone is free and festivities start at 8am.

This year the 89-km marathon starts in Pietermaritzburg and ends in Durban on 29 May 2016.

KWAZULU-NATAL, DURBAN, 5 MAY 2016 – To experience ordinary people conquering the extraordinary, be at the award-winning Comrades Marathon Nedbank Green Mile SPECATOR ZONE in Old Main Road, Kloof, on Sunday, 29 May 2016 from 8am to 3pm.

On the day, a 1.2km stretch of road in Kloof will be converted into an energetic mile-long ‘green & gold’ themed spectator and runner zone, orchestrated by Nedbank, to ensure runners, families and friends feel fully immersed in the awe-inspiring, humbling, life-changing Comrades Marathon along the Comrades Marathon route. Dress to theme and join in with the fun and festivities.