Latest news with #Cavanagh
The South African
2 hours ago
- Politics
- The South African
Two Oceans Marathon organisers respond to High Court ruling
The Two Oceans Marathon NPC has responded to the ruling handed down by the Gauteng High Court on Thursday. The social media post read: 'The Two Oceans Marathon NPC acknowledges the recent High Court judgment concerning public commentary made about the organisation and its leadership. 'While the matter was dismissed, we note that the judgement was based on procedural grounds – 𝙣𝙤𝙩 on the factual correctness, ethical appropriateness or moral acceptability of the statements made. It therefore cannot be said that the statements made were found to be truthful, justified, or ethically appropriate. 'As an organisation, we welcome constructive criticism and learn profoundly from it. However, we believe that such engagement must be 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦, 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘧𝘶𝘭, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘴, including runners, those who serve the organisation, suppliers and stakeholders. 'As one of Africa's most iconic running events, we value fair criticism and a spirit of public engagement that falls within the boundaries of what can be considered fundamentally decent and respectful.' In the Gauteng High Court case between Two Oceans chairperson Toni Cavanagh (first applicant) and the Two Oceans Marathon NPC (second applicant) and Stuart Mann (respondent), the Honourable Judge Yacoob ruled emphatically against Cavanagh and the TOM NPC granting a costs order on scale C (the most severe possible outcome). This will reportedly cost Cavanagh and the TOM NPC around R400 000. Whether Cavanagh will cough up the cash herself or turn to the NPC for help remains to be seen. The full 15-page judgement can be found HERE This developing news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. The future of the Two Oceans Marathon is in serious doubt after the City of Cape Town pulled its sponsorship of the event following a number of flagrant contraventions of conditions by the organisers of this year's race. Organisers were on the receiving end of more criticism this year – as is seemingly the case every year – as runners took to social media in their droves to vent their unhappiness and frustration. Runners lashed out at the organisers for – among many other things – shocking (read: no) communication pre-race, a lack of sufficient markings on the trail race, goodie bags hardly worth taking home, a lack of water tables during the race and running out of medals for finishers. Race director Hilton Kearns is on record as saying they 'overcompensated in predicting the number of silver medallists they expected and did not have enough bronze medals'. This was proven to be a lie by well-known South African runner and blogger, Stuart Mann, who, writing on his blog ' The Running Mann ' this week exposed the latest untruth. Mann ran the numbers and the percentage of silver medallists in the Two Oceans Half Marathon has been the same for the last three years: 1.3%. A mere 234 runners earned silver medals, while 17 443 runners earned bronze this year. The real reason the race ran out of thousands of bronze medals was the fact they accepted – and took payment for – more entries than they were allowed by the City of Cape Town. Meanwhile, according to Two Oceans chairperson Toni Cavanagh, the race has struggled to rope in enough sponsors since emerging from the Covid pandemic a few years ago. While they appreciated the support from current headline sponsor Totalsports – and the runners who paid entry fees – they are falling short of the claimed nearly R27 million required to organise the event. RELATED | Tributes pour in for runner after tragic death at Two Oceans Marathon In the irony of all ironies, just two short years ago prior to taking over as Two Oceans chairperson, Cavanagh took to social media to slate the race organisers following her 'fudging ridiculous' experience at race collection back in 2023. The South African website has in its possession a letter of demand to cease and desist from the Two Oceans Marathon NPC and Toni Cavanagh sent to Mann on Wednesday. The South African website also has it on good authority that Mann plans to neither cease nor desist from exposing the truth. It appears clear that the City of Cape Town is siding with Mann – and the truth. In a response sent to The South African website on Thursday, the City confirmed: 'Following the Two Oceans Half Marathon on Sunday, 6 April 2025, the City of Cape Town's Events Permitting Office discovered that the Two Oceans Marathon race management allowed more participants to take part in the half marathon than what was approved in the official permit. 'The Two Oceans Marathon race management contravened conditions of its permit and subsequently the Events By-Law by allowing more than the permitted number of runners to take part. 'This is a complete disregard of the months of work behind the scenes to plan the logistics and safety measures in place around the event. 'The contravention of stipulated permit conditions places at risk the safety of people taking part in events. 'The sponsorship agreement between the City of Cape Town and the agreement between the City and the Two Oceans Marathon NPC is clear that any breach of permit will result in the municipality pulling sponsorship of the event. 'The Two Oceans Marathon NPC was notified of the City's decision withdraw support on 10 April 2025. 'The City provides support in kind in the form of municipal services which assist in the event safety and logistics planning for the Two Oceans Marathon. 'The City's actions pertain specifically to its sponsorship of the Two Oceans Marathon – the Event Organiser can continue to apply for permits through the normal channels, as they are required to do in any event – irrespective of City sponsorship.' Quite how the Two Oceans Marathon plans on holding an event without the sponsorship of the City of Cape Town remains to be seen, considering the lack of funding alluded to by the organisers themselves. Whether any other sponsors wish to come on board and be associated with the race and its current Board remains to be seen. In addition, race founder Celtic Harriers (a club which still receives royalties from the Two Oceans brand, but is no longer involved in the organisation) has said it wants to meet with the Two Oceans board out of concern for the future of the race. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The South African
6 hours ago
- Sport
- The South African
Two Oceans Marathon organisers handed brutal beat-down in High Court ruling
Thursday saw a BIG win for runners – and an even bigger smackdown for negligence, incompetence and fragile egos. In the Gauteng High Court case between Two Oceans chairperson Toni Cavanagh (first applicant) and the Two Oceans Marathon NPC (second applicant) and Stuart Mann (respondent), the Honourable Judge Yacoob ruled emphatically against Cavanagh and the TOM NPC granting a costs order on scale C (the most severe possible outcome). This will reportedly cost Cavanagh and the TOM NPC around R400 000. Whether Cavanagh will cough up the cash herself or turn to the NPC for help remains to be seen. The full 15-page judgement can be found HERE This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. HISTORY The future of the Two Oceans Marathon is in serious doubt after the City of Cape Town pulled its sponsorship of the event following a number of flagrant contraventions of conditions by the organisers of this year's race. Organisers were on the receiving end of more criticism this year – as is seemingly the case every year – as runners took to social media in their droves to vent their unhappiness and frustration. Runners lashed out at the organisers for – among many other things – shocking (read: no) communication pre-race, a lack of sufficient markings on the trail race, goodie bags hardly worth taking home, a lack of water tables during the race and running out of medals for finishers. Race director Hilton Kearns is on record as saying they 'overcompensated in predicting the number of silver medallists they expected and did not have enough bronze medals'. This was proven to be a lie by well-known South African runner and blogger, Stuart Mann, who, writing on his blog ' The Running Mann ' this week exposed the latest untruth. Mann ran the numbers and the percentage of silver medallists in the Two Oceans Half Marathon has been the same for the last three years: 1.3%. A mere 234 runners earned silver medals, while 17 443 runners earned bronze this year. The real reason the race ran out of thousands of bronze medals was the fact they accepted – and took payment for – more entries than they were allowed by the City of Cape Town. Meanwhile, according to Two Oceans chairperson Toni Cavanagh, the race has struggled to rope in enough sponsors since emerging from the Covid pandemic a few years ago. While they appreciated the support from current headline sponsor Totalsports – and the runners who paid entry fees – they are falling short of the claimed nearly R27 million required to organise the event. RELATED | Tributes pour in for runner after tragic death at Two Oceans Marathon In the irony of all ironies, just two short years ago prior to taking over as Two Oceans chairperson, Cavanagh took to social media to slate the race organisers following her 'fudging ridiculous' experience at race collection back in 2023. The South African website has in its possession a letter of demand to cease and desist from the Two Oceans Marathon NPC and Toni Cavanagh sent to Mann on Wednesday. The South African website also has it on good authority that Mann plans to neither cease nor desist from exposing the truth. It appears clear that the City of Cape Town is siding with Mann – and the truth. In a response sent to The South African website on Thursday, the City confirmed: 'Following the Two Oceans Half Marathon on Sunday, 6 April 2025, the City of Cape Town's Events Permitting Office discovered that the Two Oceans Marathon race management allowed more participants to take part in the half marathon than what was approved in the official permit. 'The Two Oceans Marathon race management contravened conditions of its permit and subsequently the Events By-Law by allowing more than the permitted number of runners to take part. 'This is a complete disregard of the months of work behind the scenes to plan the logistics and safety measures in place around the event. 'The contravention of stipulated permit conditions places at risk the safety of people taking part in events. 'The sponsorship agreement between the City of Cape Town and the agreement between the City and the Two Oceans Marathon NPC is clear that any breach of permit will result in the municipality pulling sponsorship of the event. 'The Two Oceans Marathon NPC was notified of the City's decision withdraw support on 10 April 2025. 'The City provides support in kind in the form of municipal services which assist in the event safety and logistics planning for the Two Oceans Marathon. 'The City's actions pertain specifically to its sponsorship of the Two Oceans Marathon – the Event Organiser can continue to apply for permits through the normal channels, as they are required to do in any event – irrespective of City sponsorship.' Quite how the Two Oceans Marathon plans on holding an event without the sponsorship of the City of Cape Town remains to be seen, considering the lack of funding alluded to by the organisers themselves. Whether any other sponsors wish to come on board and be associated with the race and its current Board remains to be seen. In addition, race founder Celtic Harriers (a club which still receives royalties from the Two Oceans brand, but is no longer involved in the organisation) has said it wants to meet with the Two Oceans board out of concern for the future of the race. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
TimesLIVE
6 hours ago
- Politics
- TimesLIVE
Blogger Mann will not be silenced on Two Oceans Marathon matter, court rules
Freedom of speech has won the day in a matter in which Two Oceans Marathon chair Antoinette Cavanagh and her board tried to silence marathon runner and blogger Stuart Mann. Cavanagh wanted the court to rule certain of his articles on his blog The Running Mann are defamatory, to order they be removed and that he apologise publicly for them. But Mann, in opposing the application, said his allegations — that she had embellished her CV, lied about her running credentials and was responsible for 'the worst organised marathon' in the event's 54-year history — were true and in the public interest. In a ruling handed down on Thursday, Johannesburg high court judge Seena Yacoob said Cavanagh's case was lacking in many respects and she had not established Mann's publications were defamatory. 'In this case neither of the applicants (Cavanagh and the board) have made out a case that the esteem in which they are held is of a particular type. 'Cavanagh does not favour the court with her own full history nor does she demonstrate she is viewed with any particular esteem or she has a reputation for integrity and good leadership. 'Two Oceans does not contend it has run its events in a manner reasonably beyond criticism and above board. It does not even contend, let alone attempt to demonstrate, it has conducted its events lawfully and in a manner compliant with its permits from the City of Cape Town. There is no attempt to demonstrate any of the factual claims made in the publications is untrue, though there are bald allegations that they are all false,' Judge Yacoob said. The judge criticised the 'chaotic and vague manner' in which the urgent application was pleaded. 'The founding papers are vague, voluminous and lacking particularity. They contain more argument than fact. To require a judge to trawl through papers to try to make sense of them is unacceptable in an urgent court.' She said Cavanagh and the board had failed to set out a 'clear factual background' and the founding affidavit consisted almost entirely of argumentative matter. It did not contain dates of the publications, nor the specific problematic statements or utterances. They had also not dealt with why they alleged each publication, in its entirety, was defamatory, instead pleading defamation in a 'broad and sweeping manner'. Yacoob said while it was possible an entire publication may, on the face of it, be defamatory, in this case the publications complained of were not. For example, it was not clear how a photograph of Cavanagh, with a caption she had recently completed a running event, could be defamatory. 'There are reams of examples of patently non-defamatory and even complimentary statements in the publications. A cursory glance demonstrates that the publications consist as much of opinion as fact, and that at least some of the factual matter has a proper basis,' the judge said. 'It is not the function of the court to attempt to sift out what may be defamatory and how.' Yacoob said the applicants had wrongly approached the matter on the understanding that all they had to do was show publication of uncomplimentary statements about themselves. However, in discharging their onus to establish that the publications were defamatory, they were required to establish both what their status or esteem was and that the publications tended to lower these in the eyes of the community. This had not been established, she said. Yacoob dismissed the application, and ordered the applicants to pay the costs. She said she had considered 'showing her displeasure in which the application had been run with a punitive costs order but on reflection, I consider the failure of the application is sufficient indication of the court's displeasure'.
The Herald Scotland
6 days ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
New Rangers owners must bridge financial gap with Celtic
The new owners have pledged to invest £20 million into the club at this time, subject to shareholder approval. Mr Cavanagh steps into the role of chairman, and will work closely with Paraag Marathe, the president of 49ers Enterprises who joins the board as vice chairman of the club. The duo will now, as part of the board, 'oversee all aspects of the club in this next chapter'. Fans of the Govan side will now naturally begin daydreaming about star signings and the assembly of a squad that can finally offer a sustained and meaningful challenge to historic rival Celtic, which has won 13 of the last 14 Scottish Premiership titles and has hoovered up the vast bulk of trophies contested in that period. Success is unlikely to happen overnight, though, with much likely to hinge on how much investment in the playing squad that the new owners are able to frontload to help Rangers become a competitive force again. It is unclear at this stage how much of the £20m of investment promised by the new regime will be spent on players. Read more: A cursory comparison of the most recent accounts of Rangers and Celtic lays bare the current financial disparity between the two clubs. In October Rangers, which over recent years has relied on the financial support of a small group of directors and investors, reported an eye-watering pre-tax loss of £17.305 million for the year ended June 30, 2024, following a loss of £3.108m the year before. The results underlined the weakness of the player trading model at Ibrox, as the loss came in spite of revenue hitting a record £124.58m, rising from £119.851m. In its most recent financial update to the stock market, Celtic booked a whopping pre-tax profit of £43.9m for the six months ended, up from £30.3m the year before. Revenue for the period dipped by 2.1% to £83.5m, although there were differences in 'match composition' compared with the same period the year before. Celtic has fared significantly better than Rangers when it comes to profiting from player trading over recent years, and has also had the benefit of greater exposure to the Champions League, which offers far greater financial compensation for participation than the Europa League – despite Rangers' impressive performances in the latter. The Parkhead club also has the distinctive advantage of Celtic Park being able to accommodate around 10,000 supporters more than Ibrox. The difference amounts to a financial head-start for Celtic worth millions of pounds at the start of every season and it is one the new people in charge of Rangers will seek to address. As the owner of Leeds United, which recently secured promotion backed to the English Premier League, 49ers Enterprises has unveiled plans to increase the capacity of Elland Road from 37,645 up to 56,500, unlocking vast amounts of additional revenue in the process given the expected demand for tickets. On that basis, it is certainly not difficult to imagine the new chiefs at Rangers quickly beginning to look at plans to expand Ibrox in the coming years. It will also be expected that the new owners will be looking at all other ways to drive revenue for the club, whether by striking enhanced commercial deals, synergies with Leeds, or broadening the matchday experience at Ibrox. In the shorter term, the objective will surely be to put a more competitive team on the pitch to try and end Celtic's dominance and reach the promised land of the Champions League. There is certainly no time to waste, with the first qualifying rounds for the competition beginning in late July. As Rangers looks to what fans hope to be a brighter future, there should be some recognition among the support of the efforts of the outgoing shareholders. Former chairmen and key investors Dave King, Douglas Park and John Bennett did not get every call right, as perhaps the men themselves will admit, but their willingness to plough millions of pounds of their personal wealth into the club over the last decade undoubtedly kept the show in the road, and allowed Rangers to move on from its painful financial implosion in 2012. But some there will be some continuity with the old regime, at least for the time being. Outgoing chairman Fraser Thornton will remain on the board, along with chief executive Patrick Stewart, John Halsted, and George Taylor. They will be joined on the board by new members Mark Taber, Andrew Clayton and Gene Schneur, though Graeme Park, Julian Wolhardt, and Alastair Johnston will step down.
Daily Maverick
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
Two Oceans Marathon chairperson squares off with blogger over ‘defamatory' articles
Two Oceans Marathon chairperson Toni Cavanagh has approached the high court on an urgent basis over what she alleges are defamatory and malicious articles written by blogger Stuart Mann. In the aftermath of last month's Two Oceans Marathon, in which the race organisers drew widespread criticism over multiple issues, the chairperson of the marathon, Toni Cavanagh, is dragging one of her loudest critics to court. Cavanagh has approached the Gauteng Division of the High Court in Johannesburg on an urgent basis. She wants popular running blogger Stuart Mann to rescind claims that he has made on his platform over the last couple of months. In her affidavit, she said the articles written by Mann were defamatory and contained half-truths to suit a specific narrative, thus disrupting the operations of the Two Oceans Marathon board. She said her health had suffered since Mann zeroed in on her. On his blog, The Running Mann, Mann wrote articles in which he alleged that Cavanagh (who was elected as Two Oceans chairperson in October 2024) did not attain the position in an honest manner. Mann's allegations included the Two Oceans chairperson lying about her running credentials, as well as embellishing her professional CV. In one of his articles, Mann labelled this year's Two Oceans 'the worst organised' edition of the marathon. As a direct consequence of accepting more runners than were permitted for the 2025 event, the Two Oceans organisers did not have enough medals to distribute after the race. Participants also bemoaned the limited number of water tables along the route. Some runners complained of the distance between the tables, which they said were often overcrowded. Mann also highlighted these issues on his platform, with Cavanagh acknowledging to Daily Maverick that she and her colleagues could have done a better job. Reputational damage Nevertheless, she said the issues had been blown out of proportion. In her affidavit, she contended that Mann fuelled this furore with his publications. 'This application arises from a series of allegedly defamatory publications authored by the respondent, Stuart Mann, a blogger operating under the alias 'The Running Mann', which the applicants contend constitute a sustained campaign of reputational harm, harassment and character assassination,' she said. 'The publications falsely impugn the first applicant's personal and professional integrity, question the legitimacy of her leadership and cast aspersions on the governance and ethical standing of the Two Oceans Marathon. 'The applicants submit that the publications violate constitutional rights to dignity and psychological integrity, have caused measurable reputational and medical harm and jeopardise the credibility and sponsorship viability of the Two Oceans.' Cavanagh is asking the court to force Mann to retract and delete his article, and to issue a public apology in the form of a media statement. The Two Oceans boss also wants Mann to stop writing about her and has asked for an interdict to be granted to this end. Not backing down Mann, though, is not backing down and argued that he did not set out to humiliate Cavanagh, but aimed to use his powerful platform to hold Cavanagh and her colleagues accountable for their shortcomings. In his affidavit, Mann highlighted the injustices within the running community that he has exposed over the years. This includes him breaking the story of Steven Swarts earlier this year. Swarts was the Athletics Free State president despite being a convicted sex offender serving a suspended sentence. Mann's writing led to Swarts being removed from his post by Athletics South Africa. Mann said he had nothing to gain by aimlessly picking on Cavanagh, but wished to preserve the prestige of the Two Oceans Marathon and extend its lifespan. 'I deny that any statements or comments in the articles were defamatory, but are indeed truthful and in the public interest. [They] represent fair comment and criticism,' he said. 'Any attempt by the first applicant to paint me as a sexist is completely unfounded and I submit (with utmost respect) done in an effort to gain sympathy from the court.' Mann also said whatever criticism Cavanagh and her colleagues had been subjected to was by virtue of their own incompetence. He used the permit breach saga, which cost the Two Oceans Marathon its sponsorship from the City of Cape Town, as an example. 'I am not sure how I can be blamed for this. The City of Cape Town has, on its own accord and completely separate to any of my articles, shown distrust in the second applicant's leadership as a result of the permit scandal,' Mann said of Cavanagh. The court case will be heard on Tuesday, 13 May. DM
