Gerda Steyn is a South African marathon and ultramarathon runner who has won the Comrades Marathon four times and holds the South African marathon record. Born March 3, 1990, in Bothaville, Free State, Steyn began competitive running at age 24 after qualifying as a quantity surveyor at the University of the Free State.
Her Comrades Marathon record is unmatched among contemporary women. Steyn won the 90-kilometer race in 2019 (5:58:53, the first woman under six hours on the up-run), 2023 (5:44:54, the down-run record), 2024 (5:49:46), and 2025 (5:51:18). She also holds the Two Oceans Marathon 56-kilometer record and won that race seven consecutive times starting in 2018.
On the standard marathon, Steyn ran 2:24:03 at the 2023 Valencia Marathon, setting the South African national record and qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympics. She represented South Africa in the marathon at Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. Her transition from quantity surveying to professional running has produced one of the deepest competitive ranges in women's distance running, spanning from the Olympic marathon to South Africa's flagship 90-kilometer ultra.