Gaborone is set to explode in colour again later this year as the Botswana Colour Run returns for a second year running. For an exotic concept making its debut in an inherently reluctant society as ours, the 2015 event was a surprise success.
“We were extremely impressed by the turnout,” the event’s Marketing Executive Chawapiwa Mbakhwa told Lifestyle.
“Every activity we had arranged went perfectly well and we did not receive any bad reports,” she said. She said the event will move from the Grand Palm Hotel to Gaborone Club in order to accommodate several additional activities that will make part of the 2016 event, slated for August 27.
Some of the changes in activities will include the addition of international DJs to the already existing crop of local performers who will provide entertainment for the glow-in-the-dark ‘Neon Party’ to wrap up the day.
“Last year we had decided to keep it 100 percent local but this time around we have included big international acts to spice up the night,” Mbakhwa said. The 2015 party involved colour splashes which together with the neon lights created vivid colour combinations making for an incredibly photogenic experience. The neon party DJ list will include the South African trio of DJs -Euphonik, Chris Taylor, and Timo ODV. It will be interesting to finally see Euphonic allow his music do the talking after making news headlines in SA for his twitter war with estranged ex-girlfriend, Bonang Matheba.
TiMO ODV is a singer/songwriter/ producer/ DJ who is famous for his 2015 hit Single Save Me feat Sarah Jackson which became a huge hit on the dance floors across the region.
Chris Taylor started out at house parties at the tender age of 15 before his career exploded, becoming a household name outside Cape Town where his career started.
New additional activities at this year’s event will include a five-a-side tournament, beach volleyball, Zumba, spinning, and basketball for corporate companies. The 5kkm Fun Run will take place along the streets surrounding Gaborone Club.
Mbakhwa said they hope to sell in excess of 5000 tickets. After complaints about an overcrowded music festival earlier this year, Mbakhwa said they were not about to repeat the mistake.
“The Colour Run is different because we have people coming in specifically for various activities and then leaving the venue,” she said, adding, “Some people come solely for the 5km fun run while others come for the activities following the run. Children stay only for the afternoon before giving way for adults attending the neon party.”
The 5 km run is an un-timed race in which participants or ‘Colour Runners’, are doused from head to toe in different shades of paint at each kilometre. They start off wearing white clothes and finish off with rainbow colours. It is all in the name of fun. There’s no winner or loser. The idea is to exercise in the name of fun. It is an event for all fitness levels, ages and backgrounds. Because it has no losers or winners, the Colour Run is suitable for all, including seasoned athletes and first timers. Each of the kilometres in the 5km usually has a corporate sponsor, and the runners would be doused in the sponsor’s corporate colours. The paint is made from corn-starch and is completely harmless.
