'It looks way easier on TV' - van Zyl upbeat about Comrades debut after successful route tester

Despite a disappointing Totalsports Two Oceans Ultra Marathon race where she did not finish, Irvette Van Zyl is upbeat about making her Comrades Marathon debut on June 8. After failing to finish the 56km event in The Mother City on 5 April, the Olympian threw herself into training and rebuilt her confidence with some solid training runs which included three consecutive victories at the Mpileng Tshwane North Ultra 50km on 19 April (3:27:14), the Loskop 50km Ultra Marathon on 26 April in 3:18:12 and the Wally Hayward Marathon on 1 May.

"I've never done Wally so it was a good opportunity to do Wally as a long run in preparation for Comrades," she told #TheTopRunner after winning the Wally Hayward 42km race in 2:49:00. "I really enjoy hills but a lot more downhills than I expected. So it was a good day to come out and enjoy it and not do a long run on my own. There was a lot of support on the route so it was a great day out and a bonus to take the win. I’m feeling all more ready for what's to come," said the holder of a 2:26:11 marathon personal best.

van Zyl on the way victory at the Loskop 50km Ultra Marathon. Photo Credit: Supplied.

Feeling ready is important for this meticulous planner who grew up watching The Ultimate Human Race and would have watched her aunt Frances van Blerk win the race in 1992 as a five-year-old. But watching and doing are hardly the same, which is why van Zyl ran the Comrades route from Cameprdown to Westville in mid-May. Reflecting on her route tester, the 37-year-old couldn’t believe just how many hills await her during the 90km Down Run from Pietermaritzburg to Durban.

"You must know the route. That’s the first thing you do. It's like a test you write - you don't go unprepared. You know what to expect in the test. You can’t say you're ready if you don’t know the route. You need to know the route that you're running and the types of hills and downhills and the profile of the route. Honestly, it looks way easier on TV than actually running it. There are the Big Five hills and then another trillion hills that don’t even have names," said the four-time Africanbank Soweto Marathon champion.

van Zyl and Steyn battle it out during the 2022 Totalsports Two Oceans Marathon when both finished inside Frith van der Merwe's 31-year-old record, with Steyn winning in 3:29:41, just 49 seconds clear of Van Zyl, who finished in 3:30:30 – six seconds inside the previous record. Their first comrades showdown is set for June 8. Photo Credit: Totalsports Two Oceans Media.

With the route tested and her training done, the final weeks of preparation will surely focus on her competition. Just as she did at Two Oceans in April, van Zyl will once again face her Hollywood Athletic Club teammate Gerda Steyn. Having produced memorable clashes over 56km, the road running public will be expecting the same over 90km. But with Steyn having the benefit of experience given her three wins which include setting the 5:44:54 Down Run record in 2023, van Zyl would be forgiven for adopting a cautious approach in her first Comrades. Sharing her philosophy on racing, Van Zyl reveals that delivering a good performance on race day is about balancing the pre-formulated race plan with what happens on the day.

"You have to have a race plan because if you don't have a race plan then you’re just running and that’s not a good thing. You also need to keep your competition in mind and know the pace that you intend to run. It’s extremely important to keep your competition in sight because that is why you’re racing. That’s why racing is special and that’s the difference between just training and racing."