On the weekend of 26 to 28 May, almost 150 trail runners from near and far gathered at Koedoeslaagte for the inaugural Decathlon Crater Traverse Trail Run. The event opened on Friday evening with a full briefing, followed by a hearty pasta dinner and an opportunity for athletes to socialise before the main event.
Athletes had two options for entering the main event, the Quartzite Run and the Gra-nite Run. The Quartzite Run was presented in two stages, 20 km on day one and 15 km on day two, covering a total distance of 35 km. The Granite Run was also presented in two stages, 15 km on day one and 11 km on day two, covering a total distance of 26 km.
This event was sanctioned by Athletics Free State and presented by Koedoeslaag- te Trail Park under the auspices of Parys Multisport Club. The Crater Traverse Trail Run followed the rules and regulations of Athletics South Africa (ASA) and the World Athletics (WA) Federation with the prospects of hosting this event as a provincial championship event in 2024.
The results of both stages in each race were combined, and the winners of the 2023 Decathlon Crater Traverse Trail Run were announced on Sunday, 28 May, after the conclusion of the second stage of the race.
In the overall men’s category of the Quartzite Run (35 km), the first position went to Tranquil Gumbo with a total time of 2:50:09. Second place went to Johan Olivier, who finished in a time of 3:06:16. Shaun Leach followed closely in third position with a time of 3:09:35. Michael Herweg finished in fourth position, followed by Tim Conventry in fifth place.
In the overall women’s category of the Quartzite Run (35 km), the first position went to Takalani Ndadani, who finished the race in a total time of 3:50:57. Marisa Tallie finished second in a time of 3:59:03 with Benita Coetzee in third place with a time of 4:17:04. Lauren Treston finished in fourth position, followed by Riana de Bruyn in fifth place.
In the overall men’s category of the Granite Run (26 km), the first position went to Jeremy Davidson, with a total time of 2:45:30. Second place went to Pieter Marx, who finished in a time of 2:52:08. Heinrich Birkner followed closely in third position with a time of 2:55:59.
In the overall women’s category of the Granite Run (26 km), the first position went to Carina Swiegers, who finished the race in a total time of 2:24:48. Crizan Du Preez finished in second place with a time of 3:22:39. Local ultra- and trail runner, Tara Walmsley, took third place with a time of 3:27:19.
Overall and category prizes were awarded in both race distances, and all finishers received a medal specially designed for this event.
The ‘Lekka Run’ also formed part of this prestigious event and allowed runners to be part of the thrills and beauty of the inaugural Crater Traverse Trail Run without having to compete in the multi-stage main event. The ‘Lekka Run’ followed the same 11 km route as the Granite Run’s second stage and started a few minutes after the main event. Koedoeslaagte Trail Park set the benchmark for multi-stage, multi-day trail running and wrapped it in breathtaking views of the Vredefort Dome with its lush green river trails and rugged terrain.
