Comrades Marathon: Top-10 women’s results

Gerda Steyn further entrenched her legacy as a legend of the Comrades Marathon on Sunday, with her fourth victory in the gruelling ultra marathon between Pietermaritzburg and Durban.

Steyn crossed the line in five hours 51 minutes and 19 seconds, over four minutes ahead of Alexandra Morozova in second (5:55:56).

Completing the women’s podium was Shelmisth Muriuki in 6:07:56.

The wily ultra star Steyn went out at a steady pace, content to let Elizabeth Mukoloma lead the way in the early stages of the race.

Gerda Steyn makes her move

Just over the two hour 20 minute mark, Elizabeth Mukoloma had opened up a major gap over Steyn as she went out at a blistering pace. If she had been able to maintain that pace it would have smashed the down run record, therefore it was just a matter of time before she would be caught and passed.

At the 2h42 mark, Steyn finally caught Mukoloma as she took the lead in emphatic style on the descent down to Drummond on a steep downhill. The only thing Mukoloma could do was watch as Steyn quickly became a tiny figure in the distance.

The top-10 runners in each race will sleep soundly not just from exhaustion but also from the knowledge of their bank balance receiving a significant boost.

Long gone are the days when record nine-time champion Bruce Fordyce won the race purely for prize and not a single cent in prize money.

Fordyce’s last win in the gruelling ultra-marathon took place in 1990, and five years later prize money was first introduced.

This year, both the men’s and women’s top-10 finishers will also receive the same payouts:

1st place - R875,000

2nd place - R438,000

3rd place - R315,000

4th place - R158,000

5th place - R123,000

6th place - R71,000

7th place - R62,000

8th place - R54,000

9th place - R45,000

10th place - R36,000

@Michael_Sherman

IOL Sport