Gerda Steyn’s astonishing Comrades Marathon pace, averaging 4:01 per kilometre over 85.77km, highlights her ultra-distance dominance as she set a new up run record with a time of 5:44:53, a feat nearly impossible for most runners to match even for a single kilometre. Picture: Gerda Steyn/Facebook (left), Michael Sherman (right)
For most people — and even most runners — understanding just how fast Gerda Steyn runs in the Comrades Marathon is almost impossible to comprehend.
Steyn set a new up run record on Sunday as she crossed the finish line in Pietermaritzburg in a time of 5:44:53. It was her fourth consecutive Comrades victory and her fifth title overall at the Ultimate Human Race.
Over the 85.77km route, Steyn averaged exactly 4:01 per kilometre.
On paper, that’s just a number.
