GABORONE, Botswana, April 26, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Only a few months into 2017 and the year has already proven to be one of surprises and progress. In keeping with this spirit of growth the Diacore Gaborone Marathon is pleased to announce that the event will be allotting space and facilities on race day specifically for the De Beers Youth Innovators Botswana, a platform for young innovative entrepreneurs.

On the race day of May 7th 2017 there will be prime exhibition area allocated for the De Beers Youth Innovators Botswana entrepreneurs in order to give them access to the 6,000 runners who attend the event and the opportunity to mingle with and sell themselves to corporate leaders from a vast number of fields. The initiative has so far had a focus on commitment to practical youth development in the areas of commerce, technology and lifestyle but to name a few. The De Beers Youth Innovators Botswana initiative, has so far created invaluable opportunities for young entrepreneurs to give them the much needed push towards penetrating commercial markets and achieving their full potential. This ties perfectly into the marathon's newly extended scope in that in 2016 the event took steps to grow outside the purview of a one-day event by adopting 10 elite long distance athletes to train for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Since the program began in August of 2016 the athletes have gone on to conquer podiums in Francistown, Jwaneng, Gaborone and as far Soweto Marathon where they competed against 22,000 of Southern Africa's finest. This has only marked the beginning of what promises to be a very fruitful four years of running.

It is only through the contributions of loyal Botswana runners who have not only committed to healthier more active lifestyles but have also contributed one million pula in the past two years respectively to the event's charity beneficiaries that such initiatives are possible. In recent years national development has become very much a collaborative effort and with more mutual understandings such as these there is no telling what is yet to be achieved.

The Diacore Gaborone Marathon thanks our proud and loyal sponsors Diacore, Stanbic Bank, Mascom, Gemmological Institute of America (GIA), Sefalana, Botho University, Grand Palm Hotel and Casino Resort and broadcast sponsor Yarona fm.

Further details will be available on www.diacoregaboronemarathon.com as well as our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Diacoregaboronemarathon

About Diacore: Title Sponsor

Diacore, a multinational diamond company, has diversified interests in the diamond industry providing rough and polished diamonds to customers around the world. The company has manufacturing facilities in Botswana, South Africa, Namibia and New York and has established its leadership in crafting rare, exceptional diamonds as well as unique high-end jewelry. The main administrative office of Diacore is based in Johannesburg, South Africa, with a global presence in Antwerp, London, New York, Tel Aviv, Dubai, Mumbai, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Gaborone and Windhoek.

www.diacore.com

About PGM Foundation

PGM is a charitable organization whose mission is to empower young people through our sporting events in Botswana. PGM strives to give talented and determined Batswana the tools succeed by providing a wide platform to build local capacity for sporting events that meets international standards. PGM launched the Gaborone City Marathon as its first flagship event in 2010. The event has since been named Diacore Gaborone Marathon (DGM), after its Title Sponsor. DGM is the country's largest running for charity event an important qualifier for major international races in which Botswana and international athletes participate. DGM is AIMS certified and IAAF affiliated.

Media Contact
Diacore Gaborone Marathon
Thabo Makgato
Telephone: +267-715-099-06
thabo@diacoregaboronemarathon.com

www.diacoregaboronemarathon.com