Running News Daily
Top Ten Stories of the Week
6/15/2019

South African Gerda Steyn shattered the course record at Comrades as Camille had to drop out due to hamstring issues

The 94th running of South Africa’s premier Ultra marathon, the Comrades got underway at 5:30am Sunday June 9. 

South African runners Edward Mothibi and Gerda Steyn ended up the 2019 Comrades Marathon champions.  Gerda broke the course record winning one million R ($66,849US) in the process.  

Edward Mothibi won the race after a fourth placed finish in his Comrades debut last year, beating defending champion Bongmusa Mthembu by just 25 seconds.

Local favourite Gerda Steyn stole the show on Sunday as she shattered the women’s record leading the charge with South African athletes produced sterling performances in KwaZulu-Natal.

After breaking clear of the rest of the women’s field shortly before the halfway mark, Steyn gradually extended her lead throughout the second half, crossing the line in 5:58:53 to secure her maiden victory in the 87km race between Durban and Pietermaritzburg.

This shattered the up-run record, held by Russian runner Elena Nurgalieva, by more than ten minutes. Steyn became the first woman to run the Comrades up run in less than six hours. Her time was the fourth fastest of all-time for women, the only faster times were notched in down-runs.

The race is run ‘gun to gun’ meaning that contestants have 12 hours in total to complete the course.

This year’s race is an “UP RUN” starting at the City Hall in Durban and finished at the Scottsville Racecourse in Pietermaritzburg. The race distance is approximately 87km.

28-year-old Gerda Steyn has enjoyed a meteoric rise from amateur to professional in the space of just five years. After finishing as runner-up last year, Steyn took a six-week break from the sport before preparing to tackle the New York Marathon, finishing 13th in a PR of 2:31. The 2018 and 2019 Two Oceans winner made it clear in advance that her goal this year was to win and that is what she did this morning. 

America’s Camille Herron was not able to finished and dropped out.  

Camille’s brother Jack posted this on Facebook.  “My sister Camille Herron ended up dropping out from Comrades due too hamstring issues she’s been dealing with. I’m heart broken for her because this is just such a special event for her and our entire family.

“I understand the whole mentality of getting to race another day... but she trains so hard and we wait all year for her to defend this title she’s earned. I mean, just her single win is enough, but she goes out every time for a win, so when it doesn’t happen... it’s tough.”

Steyn now will shifts her focus away from Ultra marathons in a bid to qualify for the Olympic marathon in Tokyo next year. The Olympic marathon is expected to be run in blistering heat, with the start moved to 06:00 to mitigate potentially dangerous temperatures. Steyn’s ultra experience could make her a real contender for the Olympic crown.

America’s Camille Herron has a real shot at winning the Comrades marathon for the second time

The 94th running of the world-famous Comrades Marathon is scheduled to begin at 5:30am (8:30pm Pacific time Saturday) on Sunday, taking place from Durban to Pietermaritzburg.

“The Comrades Marathon attracts the very best ultra-runners in the world and this year will be no different. This year’s up-run already promises to be an epic race,” said Cheryl Winn, CMA chairperson.

In the women’s race, America’s Camilla Herron has a real shot of winning for the second time but her competition is top notch.

Here are the top five female contenders: 

1. Ann Ashworth (second photo) shocked the field to win the 2018 race with a tactical and composed performance. She subsequently left her career as an advocate to run full time ahead of the 2019 race. Ashworth is in good form and achieved a marathon PB of 2:35 at the Valencia Marathon in December.  A genuine contender to become the first female to win back-to-back races since Elena Nurgalieva.

2. Gerda Steyn The 28-year-old has enjoyed a meteoric rise from amateur to professional in the space of just five years. After finishing as runner-up last year, Steyn took a six-week break from the sport before preparing to tackle the New York Marathon, finishing 13th in a PB of 2:31. The 2018 and 2019 Two Oceans winner has made it clear, her goal this year is to claim a maiden Comrades Marathon title.

3. Camille Herron (first photo) was left gutted just weeks before last year’s race as injury robbed her of a chance to claim back-to-back victories. It has been two years since her big win but the raging crowds and electric atmosphere which greeted her at the finish at Scottsville Racecourse will serve as a huge motivating factor as she prepares for a comeback. She set a new 100-mile record at the Desert Solstice Track Invitational in December. As the reigning up-run champion, the 37-year-old is a genuine title contender.

4. Charne Bosman The 2016 down-run winner has proved to be one of South Africa’s most consistent athletes in recent years. She has five gold medals from six starts at Comrades. She is now 43 but there are no signs of her powers waning. She won the Johnson Crane Hire Marathon in January and the Om Die Dam Marathon in March. Bosman is in red hot form and is a genuine contender to win the race.

5. American Devon Yanko’s (third photo) Comrades journey began back in 2012 when she came fifth on debut. She then took a four-year break from the race but returned over the last two years to earn another two gold medals. She won the Oaklands Marathon in a time of 2:43 in March. An accomplished runner who knows what it takes push for a win.

Should the winner in either the Men’s or Women’s races in this year’s Comrades break the ‘Up Run’ Best Times of Russia’s Leonid Shvetsov (2008 – 5:24:49) or Elena Nurgalieva (2006 – 6:09:24) respectively, he or she will take home a minimum of R1-million ($66,849US) in Comrades prize money, comprised of a first prize of R500,000 plus a R500,000 incentive for breaking the Best Time; in addition to prizes for First South African (R200,000) and First KZN Man and Woman (R45,000). 

Age-group superstar 62-year-old Brian Pilcher wins the Dipsea for the fourth time.

Kentfield, California's Brian Pilcher, competing in the Dipsea Race for the first time since winning his third race in 2016, crossed the finish line in Stinson Beach first on Sunday morning to claim his fourth career victory.

Colorado’s Mark Tatum (age 59) finished second with San Rafael’s Alex Varner (33) and Sausalito’s Chris Lundy (48) — the two-time defending champion  –finishing third and fourth, respectively.

With his 4th win, 62-year old Brian Pilcher ties Shirley Matson for 2nd most wins in history (after Sal Vasquez with seven wins).

Sausalito’s Chris Lundy, 48, who began with a two-minute penalty after winning the last two Dipseas, said afterwards. 

“I had a good race today,” Lundy said. “It was a little bit slower than last year, but I felt really good and ran as fast as I could. I like the heat, but it still slows you down a little bit.”

Corte Madera’s Clara Peterson, 35, who finished 10th last year, rounded out the top five. Peterson also earned the award for best woman’s time, and two of her four children walked to the stage to accept her two trophies.

Brisbane’s Cliff Lentz, 54, Novato’s Dominic Vogl, 32, Montrose, Colo., resident Heath Hibbard, 66, Larkspur’s Diana Fitzpatrick, 61, and San Rafael’s Wayne Best, 51, placed 6-10, respectively.

The Dipsea was first run in 1905 and is considered to be the oldest trail race in America. It is run every year on the second Sunday in June.

The scenic 7.4 mile course from Mill Valley, California to Stinson Beach is also considered to be one of the most beautiful courses in the world.

The stairs and steep trails make it a grueling and treacherous race. And its unique handicapping system has made winners of men and women of all ages. Because of its beauty and challenge, it is a very popular event, and because of safety and environmental concerns the number of runners is limited to about 1,500.

While racers enter from all over the world, the Dipsea is primarily a Northern California event and the entry process is tilted slightly to favor local contestants.

Gabriele Grunewald has lost her battle with cancer and wants to thank everyone for their support

On Sunday, June 9, Justin Grunewald revealed that his professional distance runner wife Gabriele “Gabe” Grunewald, who gained thousands of fans over the years by sharing her inspiring cancer story, had been moved to comfort care after her condition began to worsen.

The decision came just two days after Gabe was readmitted to the ICU because she was experiencing septic shock.

“It breaks my heart to say but overnight Gabriele’s status worsened with worsening liver function causing confusion. Wanting to do her no harm we have made the difficult decision to move her to comfort cares this afternoon,” he sadly announced. 

Justin Grunewald shared the update on Instagram on his wife and four-time cancer survivor so fans and supporters could send her one last message “before she heads up to heaven.” He also posted photos of Grunewald running along a shoreline, the couple smiling as they embraced on a beach and them holding hands on a hospital bed.

“At the end of the day people won’t remember the [personal records] run or the teams qualified for, but they will remember that hard period in their life where they were losing hope but they found inspiration in a young lady who refuses to give up,” Justin Grunewald wrote.

Grunewald also posted a letter he wrote a few years ago, thanking her for showing him “what it’s like to be and feel” alive.

“I know life is scary and I know we have won the lottery of uncertainty, and it’s not fair, but I still choose our life of uncertainty and at times fear, over any alternative option I could think of,” Justin Grunewald wrote. “I have so much fun with you and have learned more from having you as my best friend and wife than I learned in the rest of my life combined.”

Gabriele Grunewald — whose battle against cancer has inspired an outpouring of support on social media, including a “BraveLikeGabe” hashtag — was a senior running track and cross-country at the University of Minnesota when she was diagnosed in 2009, the Star Tribune reports.

A year later, Grunewald finished second in the 1,500 meters at the 2010 NCAA Championships after having surgery and radiation treatment. She then became the US indoor champion at 3,000 meters in 2014 before continuing to run professionally as recently as 2017 despite additional treatment for cancer in her thyroid and liver, the newspaper reports.

According to scientists human endurance is determined by the gut, not the mind or muscles

There is a limit to human endurance and it is determined by the gut, not the mind or muscles, according to scientists.

US and Scottish researchers studying humans involved in the most demanding physical feats, from running six marathons a week to pregnancy, have shown that the amount of calories the body can absorb a day determine the upper limit of human performance.

The threshold amounts to 2.5 times above the level they would use energy if they were at rest; beyond this limit the body begins to break down fat, muscle and connective tissue to make up for the shortfall in calories.

“This defines the realm of what’s possible for humans,” said study co-author Dr Herman Pontzer, an evolutionary anthropologist at Duke University, North Carolina. “There’s just a limit to how many calories our guts can effectively absorb per day.”

The team compiled new data on energy use from the 3,080-mile, five-month Race Across the USA. The researchers found that athletes’ energy expenditure started off high, before plunging to flatten out at this 2.5-times limit.

“Humans have evolved greater endurance capabilities than other apes, which has typically been ascribed to selection for increased physical activity, particularly long-distance running,” the authors wrote in the journal Science Advances.

Sara Hall was the winner at the New York Mini USA 10-K in Central Park

On a morning with near-perfect weather conditions in Central Park, Sara Hall won a thrilling battle for the USATF Women’s 10-K Championship, using a devastating kick to pull away from fellow Flagstaff, Arizona, resident Stephanie Bruce in the final 100 meters. The event was held as part of the 48th edition of the NYRR New York Mini 10-K, the longest-running women’s-only road race in the world.

Five minutes before the open race began, a field of 28 American professionals set out for the national title under comfortable temperatures (68F/20C) with moderate humidity and a slight breeze. Emma Bates, winner of U.S. titles in the marathon and 25-K in the past sixth months, took the early lead as the pack raced up Central Park West for the first mile (5:20), with Jordan Hasay and Carrie Dimoff a step behind.

As the race moved into the park a few minutes later, Bruce inserted herself just behind Bates, while Hall began to move up through the tightly-bunched group.

Shortly past 2 miles (10:28), a pack of five began to pull away, including Bates, Bruce, Hall, Aliphine Tuliamuk and Sally Kipyego. Laura Thweatt soon reconnected to the leaders and those six women climbed and descended the steep north hill in the park together through 3 miles (15:34) and 5-K (16:11). In the fourth, uphill mile Bates finally gave up the lead and appeared to be dropping back, with Thweatt and Kipyego taking turns controlling the pace.

“It was an honest pace the whole way. I couldn’t believe how fast we came through 5-K, which is mostly uphill,” Hall told Race Results Weekly. “There was always someone else would get in the lead and start pushing any time it slowed down.”

At the 4-mile mark (21:02) Bates had worked her way back into the mix, with Bruce and Thweatt now leading the group of six. Shortly past 8-K (26:02), the pack passed Sara’s husband and coach, Ryan Hall, cheering on the side of the course.

“I could tell she was relaxed,” the two-time Olympian said. “She smiled at me when she came past me. I was just telling her to collect herself on the downhill. When you’re at that point in the race, everyone is screaming at you and you have to just relax, take a deep breath, collect yourself for the finish.”

Moments later the 36-year-old Hall began a surge to the front, running side-by-side with Bruce, and Kipyego a stride back. With a little more than 400 meters to go, Kipyego lost contact as Bruce and Hall were powering uphill to the finish. At 6 miles (31:25) it was still tight, before Hall unleashed a powerful sprint over the final climb to the tape adjacent to Tavern on the Green (the same iconic finish line as the TCS New York City Marathon).

This year 80-year-old Alf Burgess his running his 19th Comrades Marathon

The Richmond, KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, resident said he is a regular runner in his neighborhood and has become a familiar face to drivers on this route.

“I start my running regime at midnight but moved it to 2am or 3am to run with the delivery trucks entering the area to feel safer. I run at least 7 minutes per kilometer,” said Burgess.

“I ran my first Comrades in 1967 with my teammate Tommy Malone, who died two months ago.”

He recalled the marathon in 1966 where Malone won his first his Comrades, saying this had inspired him to participate the following year.

Burgess participated in the race the following year where Malone lost by one second to Manie Kuhn because of a leg cramp.

“I placed 51st in my first race. I’m running again after 18 years and I’ve run 18 (Comrades) marathons.”

He admitted that he used to start the marathon too fast causing him to tire easily and this contributed heavily to his 18-year long break from his last race in 2001.

Burgess said he plans to run another race in order to complete his personal goal of 20 races.

His advice to those who are keen on running the Comrades for the first time was to be fit, to start off with a walk and then a park run.

For the first time in its 48-year history, the NYRR Mini 10K, will host the USATF 10K championships

For the first time in its 48-year history, the NYRR Mini 10K, which takes place in New York’s Central Park on Saturday, will host the USATF 10K championships. Stephanie Bruce will step up to defend her national title, which she earned at last year’s Peachtree Road Race. (She was seventh at the Mini 10K last year.) If she wins, she will earn USD $20,000.

Bruce is also the reigning American half-marathon champion.

Americans Aliphine Tuliamuk, Emily Sisson and American marathon record-holder Deena Kastor, all past national 10K champions (Tuliamuk in 2017, Sisson in 2016, Kastor in 2007) will join Bruce on the start line, as will Jordan Hasay, Sara Hall and Laura Thweatt.

USATF.TV will broadcast the race live starting at 7:40 a.m. ET. 

Former soldiers ran the Lake Placid half marathon to raise money for the Rangers Lead the Way Fund

Roughly 1,000 people completed either the Lake Placid Marathon or Half on Sunday, and a few runners carried military packs.

John Byrne, a U.S. Army veteran, said his group was running to raise money for the Rangers Lead the Way Fund.

“It’s a fund that helps fallen (Army) Rangers and their families deal with the funeral costs and other costs,” Byrne said. “Or amputees. They come to your house, and they readjust the house so you’re comfortable after your service time.

“I’m not a Ranger. I was an infantryman with Anthony (Cambareri). He’s the spearhead of the whole thing.”

The group was made up of Byrne, Cambareri, Dan Geraghty and Joey Gay. The four donned Lead the Way Fund shirts and military packs during the half marathon portion of the Lake Placid Marathon.

“I’m a 9/11 survivor. I was at the towers on 9/11,” Geraghty said. “I was actually just working there. I was a civilian at the time. But John was one of the guys who deployed. Anthony was one of the guys who deployed.

“When John got back eight years ago, we raised money for the Warrior Project. We were just looking for people to support and keep the message out there. Just because this never-ending war continues doesn’t mean that people haven’t been hurt, that they don’t need help.

“I know it’s cliche, but some gave all, and a lot of gave plenty,” he continued. “And they’ve got to live with that. They’ve got to live with the results for a long time, so we want to help them the best we can.”

The Army Ranger Lead the Way Fund offers former Rangers a number of services, including help with medical costs and transitioning into a career after the military. It also helps Gold Star families, those whose loved ones have died in service to the country.

This was the 15th annual marathon. Three runners who recently graduated from Boston University took the top three slots in the men's marathon, with Johnny Kemps claiming the title. Kemps won the race with a finish time of 2 hours, 43 minutes and 2.4 seconds. He was followed across the line by teammates Alexander Seal (2:43:33.8) and Zachary Prescott (2:45:12.3).

If you can't actually be in New York for the Marathon you can run the world's largest marathon through their Virtual program

Jogging solo in Florida in near 80 degree Fahrenheit heat, Theresa Winterhalter’s New York City Marathon experience last November looked much different to what you would expect from the world’s biggest marathon.

The 54-year-old was one of 424 people to finish the iconic race’s first “virtual marathon”, an event that race organizers are now expanding. The New York City Marathon will welcome unlimited, free enrolment in its virtual marathon this year, aiming to attract thousands of runners from across the globe.

With 52,813 finishers last year, the New York City Marathon is famously popular with amateurs and pros alike, attracting massive interest in its yearly lottery entry.

Capiraso said he was eager to draw in runners who might be unable to commit to the travel or expenses, and sees huge potential in virtual races.

The plan is an extension of NYRR’s years-long push into virtual products, which have included a training program, and a virtual racing series launched last year that has so far seen over 57,000 finishers.

Virtual marathon participants will log their marathon miles through Strava, a social networking site geared toward athletes, choosing to run on the day of the marathon or one of the three days leading up to it.