Afowiri Kizito Fondzenyuy: The Marathoner For Community Development

Afowiri Kizito Fondzenyuy is an unusual marathoner. Instead of sleeveless T-shirt and shorts, he uses the gorgeous, hand-embroidered traditional outfit from Cameroon’s North West Region – the Toghu. Aptly known as the “Toghu Marathoner,” Afowiri will run his 17th marathon in Tokyo, Japan, having previously covered 673 kilometres in marathon races across Europe, America and Australia. The native of Bui Division in Cameroon’s North West Region participates in major global marathons to help raise funds for local community projects.

Why Tokyo Is So Special
“Tokyo is special” he says, adding that “It will be my sixth world major marathon and I'll be earning six-star major marathoner badge afterwards.” The Tokyo Marathon, which is one of the world's six majors, holds on Sunday, March 3, 2024.

Durable Bridges For Ngondzen 
“The badge is important, but the main goal is to help build the Tsenmah and Ndzenkov bridges in Ngondzen Community in Bui Division, North West Region of Cameroon,” Afowiri explains. The two bridges Afowiri is running to raise money for are made of wood that is almost rotten. 

Shufai Lun’s Appeal 
And according to the traditional village head, Shufai Lun, the bridges have almost collapsed, with the community cut off from others because both cars and motorcycles use them. Shufai Lun says during rainy season, children miss school because it is too risky to cross the bridges; while farmers find it difficult to get to their farms, resulting in losses. He therefore appeals to people of goodwill around the world to support the Toghu Marathoner as he runs to help them build new bridges. 

Past Marathons, Previous Causes 
During his other 16 marathons, Afowiri Fondzenyuy has raised money for various causes. These range from education, autism research, aid for Ebola victims, the construction of ...