History
Voet Van Afrika
A rich history
Since 1977
The race dates back to 1977 – when the Bredasdorp Athletics Club was established. At the time, an icon named Eps Joubert was chair of the club. He sparked the idea to start a truly Overberg marathon; a unique marathon given our special location close to Africa’s southernmost tip.
It all started in
October 1978
And so, in October 1978, the FIRST Voet van Afrika Marathon was held.
The race was won by ex-Matie, Stephan Donald, competing against 169 runners. His winning time was 2:43:20.
An article from 27 October 1978 quotes feedback from athletes at this first race. “Tough, challenging and a combination of marathon and a trail run. You definitely have something that will grow into a big marathon.” Prescient words, indeed.
Past Marathon
Winners
Over the years, notable long-distance athletes have competed and won our marathon. These include:
| YEAR | OPEN MEN | Time | OPEN WOMEN | TIME |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | LINDILE TOKA | 2:38:59 | URSULA FRANS | 3:17:02 |
| 2013 | MTHANDAZO QHINA | 2:35:21 | CANDYCE HALL | 3:23:09 |
| 2014 | BERNARD RUKADZA | 2:26:44 | CANDYCE HALL | 3:18:51 |
| 2015 | EVENT CANCELLED | N/A | EVENT CANCELLED | N/A |
| 2016 | SIYABULELA MPONGWANA | 2:42:25 | CANDYCE HALL | 3:31:17 |
| 2017 | SIVIWE MKOMBI | 2:46:35 | CANDYCE HALL | 3:25:45 |
| 2018 | ADMIRE RUSHIKA | 2:44:40 | CANDYCE HALL | 3:35:11 |
| 2019 | BERNARD RUKADZA | 2:38:25 | ELME MIDDLEMOST | 3:39:56 |
| 2020 | EVENT CANCELLED COVID19 | N/A | EVENT CANCELLED COVID19 | N/A |
| 2021 | EVENT CANCELLED COVID19 | N/A | EVENT CANCELLED COVID19 | N/A |
| 2022 | MTHANDAZO QHINA | 2:46:42 | JADE BUCKLOW | 3:23:25 |
| 2023 | RICARDO SWARTS | 2:42:40 | CORNEL STANDER | 3:30:48 |
| 2024 | LLOYD BOSMAN | 2:32:53 | CANDICE HALL | 3:36:08 |
(In 1978, only men participated in the marathon. The women at the time ran our half marathon).
Our first
Half Marathon Winner
Was Thelma Rossouw
(in a time of 1:40:29). In 1980, the world-famous Elana Meyer won this event. But as she was too young to participate, she was not officially crowned.
Other half marathon winners include:
Liz Eglington | Noo Scales | Frith van der Merwe | Grace De’Oliveira | Marie Hill
In 1998, we added a 10km race for our up-and-coming and less experienced runners. And in 2002, the half marathon was opened for men.
Our Blog
& Articles
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