Local Olympic athlete targets ‘sneaky' podium finish at Absa Run Your City Tshwane 10K
Known for her fearless front-running, Van Zyl's participation adds an exciting local star presence to the Tshwane leg of South Africa's iconic road running series.
After earning a gold medal on her Comrades Marathon debut in June, Van Zyl is shifting her focus to shorter distances as she works on regaining her 10km speed in the second half of 2025. The four-time Olympian has confirmed her entry for the Absa Run Your City Tshwane 10K, which forms part of her build-up towards a standard marathon later this year.
Van Zyl, who impressively finished fourth at The Ultimate Human Race on 8 June, said she is feeling better than expected as she transitions back to faster-paced racing.
'The body was lekker eina after Comrades. It took four days to start walking normal again and then I only started running again after ten days of full rest. The first two weeks back was slow and my body just felt so fragile. But after that every week went better and better. I have had a good four weeks of introducing speed again and every session has been going better. I'm very pleased with where I am right now mentally and physically,' she said with a smile.
The Hollywood Athletics Club ace demonstrated just how well her training has been going with an encouraging 34:42 to claim ninth position at the recent SPAR Women's 10km Challenge at SuperSport Park in Centurion. That performance in addition to the excitement of running her very first Absa Absa Run Your City Series race in her hometown, has left the 38-year-old bullish about the prospect of ending up on the podium on a hilly course which favours her strengths.
'I'm really excited to do this year's Absa Run Your City Tshwane 10K because last year I tore my hamstring post Olympics and I really wanted to do the race. I was entered but I had to make the call two days before not to run. But my husband LJ (Van Zyl) ran and he made me so jealous on the day because he had an amazing time on the roads. Being out there last year to see all the ladies run such good races motivated me. I'm really looking forward to being part of it this year and hopefully I can sneak in a top three position,' she remarked.
Van Zyl's husband LJ who won a bronze medal at the 2011 World Championships over 400m hurdles, will also run again as he tries to break the 40 minute barrier. Irvette says this is what makes the race so special for the Van Zyls – it takes place right in their backyard and ends up being a memorable outing for the entire family.
'Seeing that Tshwane is my hometown, I don't even have to go anywhere. The race is on my front stoep. We'll see if we take the kids with because we did last year, but I wasn't running whereas this year both LJ and I are running. It's going to be a good day out, racing hard and soaking up the vibes. I'm really excited,' she explained.
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