South African athletes dominated the Comrades Marathon, with George Kusche winning the “up run” in record time and Gerda Steyn clinching a historic fifth overall title.
For the first time in 18 years, the men’s “up run” record was broken, and it was South Africa’s own George Kusche who set the new standard in the race’s 99th edition on 14 June.
After conserving energy for much of the race, Kusche executed a tactical masterclass to surge ahead, finishing in 5:15:56 and eclipsing Russian Leonid Shvetsov’s 2008 record of 5:24:49 by nearly nine minutes.
The Netherlands’ Piet Wiersma took second place, while South Africa’s Mbuti Mollo, the last survivor of the early breakaway group, finished third.
All five runners in the top five beat the previous record, with Japan’s Haruki Okayama just three seconds shy of the mark in fifth place.
Attention then turned to road‑running queen Gerda Steyn, who defended her Comrades Marathon title for a fourth consecutive year and a fifth overall.
Steyn conquered the 85.777 km course, lowering her “up run” record by five minutes for the third time.
With this victory, Steyn became only the second woman and the seventh runner overall to achieve five Comrades wins.
“Honestly, it means the world to me to have five wins,” Steyn said after the race.
