Gerda Steyn cruises to Comrades 2019 victory
Updated | By Shaun Ryan
KwaZulu-Natal is buzzing with Comrades Marathon fever today.

Thousands of runners are on the road, tackling the gruelling route between Durban and Pietermaritzburg.
NOW READ: 2019 Comrades Marathon: All systems go
The race got underway at the Durban City Hall this morning and ends at the Scottsville Racecourse in the province’s capital.
Edward Mothibi won the men’s race in a time of 5:31:33.
Bongmusa Mthembu finished second in 5:31:58.
Cape Town - Edward Mothibi won the 2019 Comrades Marathon. Mothibi finished in 5:31:33. pic.twitter.com/FEE52nKw4T
— Comrades Marathon (@ComradesRace) June 9, 2019
Top 5 Mens Elite https://t.co/WxEbvqgPEJ pic.twitter.com/LItr3m6gZa
— Comrades Marathon (@ComradesRace) June 9, 2019
However, it was the women’s race that caught the attention of many supporters today.
Gerda Steyn won the women’s race in a record-breaking time of 5:58:53. Steyn became the first woman to break six-hours on the ‘up run’.
She cruised across the finish line looking like she still had a few more kilometres in the tank.
She was the 17th runner overall to finish the race.
ALSO READ: I've run all my life and am hardly ever sick: 80-year-old Comrades runner
Her maiden Comrades victory came on the back of her first-place finish in the Two Oceans Marathon earlier in the yearGerda Steyn has won the 2019 Comrades Marathon.
— Comrades Marathon (@ComradesRace) June 9, 2019
Steyn stopped the clock in 5:58:53, smashing the up run record with over 10 minutes faster than than the 6:09:23 of Iena Nurgalieva in 2004. https://t.co/tWk0bh1wwr pic.twitter.com/9WOouwTh3P
Top 5 Women's Elite https://t.co/Q4MKib8gxX pic.twitter.com/bYufiDe6uK
— Comrades Marathon (@ComradesRace) June 9, 2019
Due to the nature of the race, some roads are closed for long periods of the day. You can listen to the full road closures, here.
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