After the highly anticipated horse racing event, the Mascom Derby, the race was postponed from Saturday 4th of April to Sunday the 5th due to unfavorable weather conditions in the tourism capital of Botswana, Maun. A statement from Mascom has said the race would take place on the 5th despite drizzles of rain. The statement further opined that the race was moved from the 4th as there were heavy rains. “Before we set the date we did check the weather forecast and it indicated that on the 4th it would be partly cloudy with scattered thunder showers so we did not anticipate the heavy rain. On behalf of Mascom and the organisers of this race, we would like to apologise for this unforeseen circumstance. Despite it drizzling today (5th April) the event is continuing and everything is going according to plan as many people have turned up for the event,” Mascom Communications and Public Relations Manager, Barbara Tshipana told Time Out.
The Mascom Derby has been in existence since 2006 and is held over the Easter holidays. It is the highlight of Maun Easter Holidays calendar with dignitaries and tourists flocking in from different parts around the world to join in the excitement and experience Maun cuisine, music, cultural, and fashion extravaganza and a robust horse race competition. The 2015 race premiered the new name ‘Mascom Derby’, a change from the now famous Mascom National Derby. “As you might be aware the race is well known as The Mascom National Derby and 2015 premiers the new name ‘Mascom Derby’, this name change is for branding purposes and mostly influenced by the interest we have received from neighboring countries with the participation of Namibia and Lesotho,” explained Tshipana.
During the Derby Mascom will donate P50 000.00 to the Thuso Rehabilitation Centre to renovate their therapy department. Among the many services offered by the centre are occupational therapy, physiotherapy, speech and language therapy, orthopaedic services, therapy and rehabilitation, family counselling and HIV counselling. “It is worth noting that these donations are a huge part of the Mascom Derby because we would like the community of Maun to know that we care about them and that Mascom is a part of them,” Tshipana concluded.