two weeks after being knocked unconscious in a brawl outside a Hamilton nightclub.

And the 10 kilometre run winner's two week stay in hospital -- including a stint in intensive care -- is set to cost the tax payer more than $10,000.

Yesterday a hospital spokeswoman confirmed that the runner was still in a stable condition and was expected to be discharged within the next two or three days.

Mr. Mulinga was taken to the King Edward Memorial Hospital in the early hours of Monday, January 19 following a fight outside the Odyssey nightclub on Front Street. He had been out celebrating his win in the Race Weekend 10k race just before the attack.

But speculation remains as to how the fight broke out, with witnesses claiming Mr. Mulinga provoked his assailant by lashing out at a women.

A Police spokesman last night confirmed that an investigation into the attack was still ongoing and that several witnesses had been spoken to.

Despite the mystery over how the scrap began Public Safety Minister Quinton Edness has defended his decision to let Mr. Mulinga's medical expenses be paid out of the public purse.