The official countdown to the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon, to be held on Sunday September 15, has begun. At the 100-day countdown on Tuesday June 11 were, from left, MC Elana Afrika-Bredenkamp, the Cape Town Marathon Ambassadors, Olympic athlete Elana van Zyl-Meyer and Springbok rugby captain Francois Pienaar, with Professor Lizette Rabe of Stellenbosch University, who is the founder of the Ithemba Foundation, the only charity that will be participating in the name of mental health. Besides the full marathon – 42.2km along the most scenic Cape Town routes – one can also enter in the Peace 10km Run or Walk. It is the only marathon on the continent of Africa to have gold status, and the organisers are aiming for platinum status for 2020. If you want to help break the silence and the stigma surrounding mental health, and support the Ithemba Foundation in marathon or the Peace10, email ithembafoundation@mweb.co.za