George Kusche produced one of the greatest performances in Comrades Marathon history on Sunday, winning the 99th edition of the race in 5:15:56 and demolishing a course record that had stood since 2008. The 27-year-old data scientist, running for Nedbank, conquered the 85.777km up run from Durban to Pietermaritzburg almost nine minutes faster than the previous best, the 5:24:49 set by Russia's Leonid Shvetsov.
Kusche's victory was as tactically astute as it was physically dominant. He sat patiently within the lead group for much of the race, conserving energy on the long climbs through the KwaZulu-Natal hills, and only struck for home with less than an hour of running remaining. By the finish he had distanced a high-class field, and the quality of the contest was underlined by the fact that the first five men all dipped beneath Shvetsov's old mark.
The Netherlands' Piet Wiersma, the defending champion, took second in 5:19:36, with South Africa's Mbuti Mollo third in 5:21:31. Great Britain's Alex Milne finished a creditable fourth in 5:22:29 and Japan's Haruki Okayama rounded out the top five in 5:24:46. For Kusche, the win delivered a payday reported at around R2.3 million once victory and record bonuses were combined.
The women's race produced its own slice of history as Gerda Steyn won her fifth Comrades title in 5:44:53, lowering her own up run record in the process. The South African has now established herself among the most decorated runners the event has ever seen, and her latest triumph cements a period of sustained dominance over the country's most storied ultramarathon.
With more than 21,000 runners on the start line, the 2026 edition reaffirmed the Comrades Marathon's standing as the world's largest and most celebrated ultramarathon. The dual records, allied to one of the deepest men's fields in memory, ensured that this up run will be remembered as a landmark in the race's near-century of history. Attention now turns to the milestone 100th running, due to take place in 2027.