Gerda Steyn wins her fourth Comrades Marathon
Gerda Steyn laboured more than in previous victories but continued her dominance of the South African ultra-marathon running and the Comrades Marathon clinching her fourth win in the 2025 race.
At on stage near the end the gap between Steyn and second-placed Aleksandra Morozova of Russia was less than three minutes approaching the finish.
Steyn dug deep and ran into the People's Park finish strongly to take the win in an unconfirmed time of 5hrs 51min 19sec, well off her 5:44.54 in her 2022 win in the last down run in 2023.
The 2025 race would always have slower times given it was run over 89.98km, about 2km more than the last down run in 2023 won by Dijana because of a finish at the People's Park outside Moses Mabhida Stadium due to renovations to the 2010 Fifa World Cup semifinal venue.
However, Steyn did grimace and show unusual signs of strain in the last 10km coming into Durban.
The women's race best time record-holder added to her wins in 2019, 2023 and 2024.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

IOL News
39 minutes ago
- IOL News
Steyn secures fourth Comrades, grateful for rising competition
Gerda Steyn won hewre fourth Comrades on Sunday. Photo: Leon Lestrade Independent Media Image: Leon Lestrade Independent Media The reign is likely to continue unabated — at least for the foreseeable future. But there's every reason to believe it will not be the no-contest it had been in previous years. Gerda Steyn's fourth victory in the Comrades Marathon was not as compellingly dominant as her previous three. The Smiling Assassin beat second-placed Alexandra Morozova by just three minutes, clocking 5:51:09 in Sunday's Down Run from Pietermaritzburg to Durban. Steyn sportingly welcomed the challenge, with the Russian runner — who won three years ago in her absence — just a minute behind at one stage of the race. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ 'To have had that competition was also good, not just for me to raise my performance but also for the race,' Steyn said, during the post-race media conference deep in the bowels of the Moses Mabhida Stadium. 'It is no surprise to see a tight time of only three minutes between us, because Alexandra had done well. We can expect faster times to come — and Comrades deserves it.' The Hollywood Athletics Club star said she relishes being challenged and enjoys seeing more talented runners enter the race because 'it is exciting to get competition. "As I said in the pre-race conference," she added, "we are entertainers, and I hope it (the race) was great to watch. It is not a one-woman show. "When I heard Alex (Morozova) had gained a minute on me at Fields Hill, it made me work harder. The competition makes me want to be in my very best shape whenever I go into the race.' Queen of Comrades! 👑🇿🇦 Gerda Steyn crossed the finish line in 5:51:19 to secure her 4th Comrades Marathon title! A phenomenal performance from Gerda.🏃♀️🔥#Comrades2025 #TeamSA #ForMyCountry — Team South Africa (@OfficialTeamRSA) June 8, 2025

IOL News
an hour ago
- IOL News
Comrades Marathon winners Dijana, Steyn clinch third and fourth titles
Tete Dijana won his third Comrades Marathon title in the down run from Pietermaritzburg to Durban on Sunday. Image: Sibonelo Ngcobo / Independent Newspapers Tete Dijana won his third Comrades Marathon title while Gerda Steyn claimed her fourth title in the men's and women's races on Sunday. Dijana won the down run from Pietermaritzburg in the time of five hours, 25 minutes and 27 seconds in a tense finish in Durban. Steyn crossed the line in five hours, 51 minutes and 19 seconds. According to IOL Sport, there were some runners who went out to set the pace in the beginning of the race but they ran out of steam quickly and the real contenders then took over. Dijana moved into the lead with 16km left in the marathon. It came down to the final 8.5km of the down run from Pietermaritzburg to Durban, in which Dijana running at the front would outlast Wiersma. At that point, Dijana clung to a 44-second lead over Wiersma. With 4km left, the lead was 51 seconds. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading Gerda Steyn clinched her fourth Comrades Marathon title on Sunday. Image: Sibonelo Ngcobo / Independent Newspapers In the women's race, Steyn was happy to let Elizabeth Mukoloma lead the way in the early stages of the race. Just over the two-hour, 20-minute mark, Mukoloma had opened up a major gap over Steyn as she went out at a blistering pace. Mukoloma's pace was so impressive that if she had kept it up she would have broken the down-run record. But by the 2h42 mark, Steyn caught Mukoloma and took the lead in emphatic style and opened up a significant gap on her competitors. THE MERCURY


The Citizen
2 hours ago
- The Citizen
Evan Roos called up to Springbok squad
The Boks will kick off their season against the Barbarians in Cape Town on Saturday, 28 June. BLOEMFONTEIN, SOUTH AFRICA – JULY 20: Evan Roos of the Springboks during the 2024 Castle Lager Incoming Series match between South Africa and Portugal at Toyota Stadium on July 20, 2024 in Bloemfontein, South Africa. (Photo by Charle Lombard/Gallo Images) Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus on Sunday added DHL Stormers No 8 Evan Roos to his squad for the matches against the Barbarians and Castle Lager Incoming Series, increasing the size of his group to 55 players. Roos, who attended the first alignment in Cape Town in February, has run out seven times in the green and gold. His last Test was against Portugal in Bloemfontein in the 2024 Castle Lager Incoming Series, before he was sidelined for several months due to shoulder surgery. The Springbok squad will report for duty in Johannesburg on Sunday afternoon and begin their on-field preparations on Monday, as the team gets the wheels in motion for the international season starting in under three weeks. The Boks will kick off their season against the Barbarians in Cape Town on Saturday, 28 June, in the first ever match between the sides on South African soil, before taking on Italy in back-to-back Tests in Pretoria and Gqeberha on 5 and 12 July, and Georgia in Nelspruit on 19 July in the Castle Lager Incoming Series. With the Vodacom Bulls and Leinster battling it out in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship Grand Final at Croke Park in Dublin next week Saturday, and Bath and Leicester meeting in the Gallagher Premiership final on the same day, the players will join the squad based on a staggered approach, until the completion of respective club commitments.