Soweto Marathon set for 30th edition with Gerda Steyn debut

The 30th edition of the African Bank Soweto Marathon will take place this weekend despite earlier repeated threats by a member of the Soweto Marathon Trust that the People’s Race would happen ‘over my dead body’.

Stan Itshegetseng has repeatedly questioned the legitimacy of the group organising the race, threatening to ensure that no running would take place in the popular township. Those threats now appear set to remain unfulfilled, with a pre-race media conference scheduled for Wednesday at the Nasrec Expo Centre ahead of Saturday’s event, which incorporates a full marathon, a 21.1km race, and a 10km event.

Perhaps most exciting about this year’s race is that Gerda Steyn – the multiple Two Oceans and Comrades Marathon champion and record holder – will make her debut in the 42.195km event, generally deemed the toughest in the country.

The darling of South African road running has chosen Soweto to make up for the disappointment of last month’s cancelled Sanlam Cape Town Marathon, for which she had thoroughly prepared. Steyn’s presence sets up a fascinating clash with her Hollywood Athletics Club teammate Irvette Van Zyl, the queen of the Soweto Marathon, who won the race in 2017 and 2018. Van Zyl set the course record of 2:33:43 in 2018 and was pregnant when she won in 2017.

The duo will be joined by Rutendo Nyahora, who has two Top 10 finishes in the race – fifth in 2022 and seventh in 2024. Defending champion Neheng Khathala, also of Hollywood Athletics Club, will this year compete in the half marathon.

While indications are that Steyn and Van Zyl will battle for the top two spots, they will need to be wary of the strong opposition from other participants.

Entsika Athletics Club has two formidable competitors in Shelmith Muriuki and Nobuhle Tshuma, both proven performers in ultra distances. Muriuki has previously warned Steyn to ‘watch out’ after finishing second and third behind the Smiling Assassin at this year’s Two Oceans and Comrades respectively.

She also finished fourth at Soweto last year.

Tshuma boasts Top 10 finishes in both ultras – sixth at Two Oceans this year and fifth at Comrades last year – and is renowned for her gutsy running. She finished eighth at Soweto last year and will be looking to improve on that position this weekend.

No Soweto Marathon would be complete without an Ethiopian contender, and Amena Worke Degu will lead the charge for the East African countries. Degu was on the podium last year, finishing third behind Khathala and Margaret Jepchumba, and is no stranger to racing against Steyn, having finished seventh at Two Oceans in April.

Despite the threats that have overshadowed the event throughout the year, the People’s Race is set to run for the 30th time since its inaugural edition in 1991. While much attention is often on the men’s race, this year’s women’s race promises to be every bit as thrilling, if not more.