At 5:30 a.m. on Sunday, June 9, within the raucous darkness of Durban, South Africa, greater than 20,000 runners, powered through nerves, adrenaline, and the “Chariots of Hearth” theme track, crossed the starting point of the 2024 Comrades Marathon to participate within the oldest and biggest ultramarathon on this planet: just about 86 kilometers of highway working all through the hills of South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province. It was once the 97th working of the development, which has handiest ignored 4 editions since Global Struggle I veteran Vic Clapham began it in 1921 to commemorate the lives of South African squaddies.
The beginning of the 2024 Comrades Marathon in Durban, South Africa. Picture: Comrades Marathon
Two of the runners — Gerda Steyn, of South Africa however who lives within the United Arab Emirates, at the ladies’s aspect and Piet Wiersma of The Netherlands at the males’s — cemented their names in race lore through taking house wins, and sizable paydays, of their respective races. The race has an enormous prize handbag, with a complete 4,092,000 Rand ($217,000) at the line.
Steyn, the protecting champion, broke her personal direction report for the Up run course through greater than 9 mins for her 1/3 win at Comrades. She additionally holds the ladies’s direction report for the Down run when the race is held in the wrong way, which she set in 2023.
Wiersma, in the meantime, subsidized up his spectacular Comrades debut remaining yr — the place he completed moment handiest 3 seconds at the back of the winner — together with his first win on the race.
The Comrades Marathon famously alternates the course every yr, and this yr’s race, which was once run in somewhat preferrred stipulations with temperatures starting from the mid-50s to low-70s Fahrenheit, was once the forty ninth Up race, which means runners started within the lower-altitude Durban and ended within the higher-altitude Pietermaritzburg. The race featured round 1,000 meters of elevation achieve, with maximum of it throughout the primary half of of the race, when the direction runs via 3 of its “Giant 5” hills. The Up run, subsequently, calls for a sensible, measured racing technique.
Learn on for complete race main points.
The 2024 Comrades Marathon height 3 women and men on the post-race press convention (l-to-r): third guy Degefa Yohannese Lafebo, 2d guy Dan Moselakwe, 1st guy Piet Wiersma, 1st lady Gerda Steyn, 2d lady Alexandra Morozova, and third lady Courtney Olsen. Picture: Comrades Marathon
2024 Comrades Marathon Males’s Race
For the race’s first half of, Piet Wiersma (The Netherlands) gave the impression content material to stick conservative and save his power for the again half of. A two-man pack of Jobo Khatoane (Lesotho), on the lookout for his first Comrades end, and Aleksei Beresnev (Russia), again for a moment time after debuting within the height 10 remaining yr, have been inside a minute of one another at Drummond, across the midway mark, with the following runner greater than 5 mins again and Wiersma sitting in Tenth, virtually nine-and-a-half mins off the lead.
However then Wiersma dropped the hammer, expanding his tempo to three:37 in line with kilometer from 3:58 in line with kilometer to leap into the highest 5 through the Cato Ridge checkpoint at 56.6 kilometers into the race. That apparently set the tone for giant strikes for the race’s moment half of, the place Beresnev was once nonetheless retaining the lead and adopted through Degefa Yohannese Lafebo (Ethiopia). With this race, Lafebo was once transferring up in distance following two top-10 finishes on the Two Oceans Marathon, a 50k race.
South Africans Tete Dijana, the two-time protecting champion, and Dan Moselakwe, a previous Comrades podium finisher, sat in 1/3 and fourth, respectively.
Wiersma endured to run robust and moved into the lead through Umlaas Street, 67.5k, passing Lafebo, and through Mkondeni at 79.1k, he had higher to just about a minute. In the back of him, Beresnev dropped off the tempo, whilst Dijana couldn’t hold on, both. The pair would end, however outdoor the highest 10 this yr.
Moselakwe took good thing about fading runners to transport himself into moment. Joseph Manyedi (South Africa), in the meantime, methodically moved his approach as much as end in fourth, his 8th and highest Comrades end, whilst Andrew Davies (U.Okay.) jumped from twelfth to 5th over the process the second one half of of the race. This was once Davies’ first Comrades end.
On the end line, Wiersma would keep transparent of Moselakwe through 45 seconds and third-place finisher Lafebo through just about 3 mins.
Piet Wiersma crossing the road to win the 2024 Comrades Marathon. Picture: Comrades Marathon
2024 Comrades Marathon Males’s Effects
- Piet Wiersma (The Netherlands) — 5:25:00
- Dan Moselakwe (South Africa) — 5:25:45
- Degefa Yohannese Lafebo (Ethiopia) — 5:27:48
- Joseph Manyedi (South Africa) — 5:28:33
- Andrew Davies (U.Okay.) — 5:30:46
- Bongmusa Mthembu (South Africa) — 5:34:45
- Elov Olsson (Sweden) — 5:35:24
- Teboho Sello (Lesotho) — 5:36:11
- Alex Milne (U.Okay.) — 5:36:51
- Givemore Madzinganyama (Zimbabwe) — 5:37:09
2024 Comrades Marathon Ladies’s Race
Gerda Steyn (South Africa, lives within the United Arab Emirates), who received the Comrades Marathon in 2023 and 2019 and could also be set to run the Olympic Marathon in Paris, France, later this summer time, was once at or close to the entrance of the race from the start. On the 5.5k and Pinetown (18.5k) checkpoints, she sat in a bunch with Carla Molinaro (U.Okay.) and Loveness Madziva (Zimbabwe).
Molinaro was once a six-time Comrades finisher along with her highest efficiency remaining yr in 1/3 position, and Madziva was once on the lookout for her first Comrades end after a variety of robust performances across the 50k distance. The ones 3 ladies led a decent pack of runners via Winston Park (29.6k), with the highest 10 ladies all inside six mins of the lead.
However then Steyn picked up her tempo through 4 seconds in line with kilometer to hole Madziva through virtually a minute through Drummond (42.6k), about midway into the race. By way of then, the Tenth-place runner was once greater than 10 mins again of Steyn.
Steyn’s lead handiest higher over the latter half of of the race, however at the back of her, there was once important motion throughout the box. Alexandra Morozova (Russia), the 2022 champion and a many-time Comrades podium finisher, made a giant transfer between the Umlaas Street (67.5k) and Mkondeni (79.1k) checkpoints, shedding her tempo through just about 10 seconds in line with kilometer to go Molinaro and Nobukhosi Tshuma (Zimbabwe) and bounce from fourth to moment, a place she wouldn’t relinquish. Tshuma was once some other runner having a look to transport up in distance after a hit shorter-distance ultrarunning.
In all probability essentially the most dramatic transfer, even though, got here from American Courtney Olsen, who methodically made her approach into the lead pack all through the race. By way of Drummond, she was once in 9th position ahead of leaping 3 spots at Umlaas Street. As Pietermaritzburg approached, Olsen jumped 3 extra spots to complete 1/3. Olsen’s unbelievable debut Comrades follows up on prior top-five finishes on the IAU 50k and 100k Global Championships.
Nobody, even though, may just get with reference to Steyn, who raised her hands in triumph as she broke the tape underneath a cloudless blue sky and took a small bow, atmosphere a brand new ladies’s Up run report and completing greater than quarter-hour forward of second-place Morozova.
Gerda Steyn after successful the 2024 Comrades Marathon. Picture: Comrades Marathon
2024 Comrades Marathon Ladies’s Effects
- Gerda Steyn (South Africa, lives within the United Arab Emirates) — 5:49:46
- Alexandra Morozova (Russia) — 6:05:12
- Courtney Olsen (United States) — 6:08:09
- Carla Molinaro (U.Okay.) — 6:12:01
- Nobukhosi Tshuma (Zimbabwe) — 6:12:18
- Antonia Iushina (Russia) — 6:12:28
- Caitriona Jennings (Eire) — 6:13:00
- Jenet Mbhele (South Africa) — 6:16:54
- Dominika Stelmach (Poland) — 6:19:24
- Yuliya Ryzhankova (Russia) — 6:28:22
The 20,000-plus starters of the 2024 Comrades Marathon run into the pre-dawn hours. Picture: Comrades Marathon