Piet Wiersma wins Comrades Marathon, Steyn sets new record

Dutchman Piet Wiersma was the main winner of the 2024 Comrades Marathon, while Gerda Steyn smashed her own record to win her third crown in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday. Wiersma crossed the finish line in 5 hrs 25 min 00 sec.

He spent two months in Kenya preparing for the ultimate Human race where he finished on the podium last year.  He just missed out on Leonid Shvetsov’s up record of 2008 of 5:24:39 by 21 seconds. His time is the second-fastest in the men’s up run.

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“It really felt pedestrian, like I was running a training run. But then I knew it was too early to make my move,” he said.

“Once I reached Umhlanga, I knew that I could now push. I felt strong on the hills, it must be the hours of training I did in Kenya. So yeah, it was a good race.” Wiersma finished three seconds behind winner Tete Dijana in second in last year’s down run.

South African Dan Moselakwe was second in 5:25:45 while Ethiopian Degefa Lafebo was third in 5:27:48.

Meanwhile, Dijana, winner of the successive down runs in 2020 and 2021, could not join a group of five men’s runners who have won a ‘hat-trick’ with three successive Comrades’ in the 103-year history of South Africa’s premier road running event.

GERDA STEYN BROKE HER OWN RECORD WHILE PIET WIERSMA WAS THE MAIN WINNER OF THE COMRADES MARATHON 2024 

In the Women’s categories, Gerda Steyn won her third Comrades Marathon crown smashing her own up run best time as she crossed the line in an unofficial 5hr 49min 46 sec.

The defending champion, who broke the down run best time last year, set the previous 5:58:53 mark in 2019. Alexandra Morozova from Russia finished second in 6:05:12. She won the race in 2022. 

Courtney Olsen from the USA came from deep in the field, and sixth place just past Umlaas Road, past Camperdown, to finish in third place in 6:08:09. Carla Molinaro (06:12:01) just edged Nobukhosi Tshuma (06:12:18) in a tight race at the finish for fourth place.