Conditions may have not been the greatest at the past weekend’s Xiamen Sienna Tuscany Elite Marathon that took place in Sienna, Italy, but phenomenal tenacity and runs were shown by local Pretoria Nedbank Running Club athletes. Three athletes obtained Olympic qualification, while a new national record was also set. In the women’s race, teammates Gerda Steyn and Irvette Van Zyl, both coached by Nedbank running club national team manager Nick Bester, arrived in Italy with a clear goal. Although not stated before, Steyn was eyeing Coleen de Reuck’s national marathon record of 2:26:35 after narrowly missing out on it last year in London. Her teammate, Van Zyl was looking to run a new personal best and dip under the automatic Olympic Marathon qualifying time of 2:29:30. Both athletes did not disappoint. Running virtually on their own the entire race, Steyn set out at a high 2:25 projected finish time with Van Zyl maintaining a projected finish of 2:27. As the lapped course went on, it was clear that both were witnessing something special as they started to pick off runners ahead of them who were starting to struggle.

With 5km to go, it was clear that both were on track, as Steyn powered through to the finish to not only achieve a new personal best, but also smash the national record when she finished in a time of 2:25:28. Van Zyl bravely held on behind her to finish in 2:28:40, also smashing her previous best and booking an automatic Olympic qualifying time to boot. “We ran and we fought, and we did it. I am super happy with my time of 2:25:28 after narrowly missing out last year on the record. There is so much to say about the experience but for now I want to celebrate pb’s with Irvette,” said an elated Steyn after the race. An equally elated Van Zyl also expressed gratitude and thanks for her race. “It’s all smiles for myself and Gerda after today’s run and I could not be prouder today of being a South African,” said Van Zyl. After being very close to quitting the sport in the aftermath of the 2016 Rio Olympics as well as recent operations she underwent, Van Zyl said she did not know how to describe her feelings. “There are so many people I am thankful for, who made this all possible,” Van Zyl remarked. In the men’s race the Nedbank running club had 3 athletes taking part which consisted of Namibian Tomas Reinhold and Zimbabwean’s Ngodzinashe Ncube and Isaac Mpofu. Reinhold faired best of the three, speeding up over the last 10km to record a personal best of 2:10:24 and qualify for the Olympic Games.  

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