SA women paving the road to half-marathon podium

Already one of the country’s all-time best distance runners on the track, Dominique Scott-Efurd’s explosive result in Houston last week will no doubt have the US-based athlete considering a permanent switch to the road, which could help elevate SA women to a new international sphere.

Scott-Efurd made her half-marathon debut in Newcastle on Tyne last year, clocking 1:10:42 in a respectable maiden attempt at the 21.1km distance. But her performance in Houston, where she finished third in 1:07:32, was on a whole different level.

Former world record holder Elana Meyer is the only SA woman to have run quicker, and while Scott-Efurd was nearly a minute shy of Meyer’s national record (1:06:44), she clocked the fastest time by a South African in 23 years.

And she’s not alone. Though she hasn’t gone quite as fast as Scott-Efurd, domestic road running star Glenrose Xaba has dipped under 1:10:00 on four occasions since making her debut in 2019, also showcasing her half-marathon potential.

Not that this means the country’s top women are now going to be raking in medals, with the world record having been taken under 1:03:00 last year, but the performances of Scott-Efurd and Xaba indicate that a rare podium will be on the cards if they team up at the World Half-Marathon Championships in Yangzhou in November.

It’s unclear at this stage whether Scott-Efurd will compete at the biennial showpiece, but if she does, it will offer a chance for a breakthrough in the team competition.

South Africa has a rich history at the World Half-Marathon Championships, but the medals dried up a long time ago.

Between 1994 and 1999, led by former world record holder Elana Meyer and gutsy front-runner Hendrick Ramaala, South Africa secured four medals in the individual men’s and women’s races and three medals in the team events.

However, in the 16 editions of the World Half-Marathon Championships held since the turn of the century, the SA team have not returned to the podium.

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There has been some depth on display on the men’s side, but among the women it has been far more bleak. Elana Meyer was the last SA woman to finish in the top 10, in Bristol back in 2001, and the best they have done in the team competition is sixth, thanks to solid results from Rene Kalmer in 2009 and 2012.

Even at her best, without much experience over the distance, it might be a bit much to suggest Scott-Efurd will turn out as a medal contender in the individual contest if she runs in Yangzhou, but her presence alongside Xaba could put the SA squad in contention for the team competition.

With three athletes to count, they will need support, but the likes of Gerda Steyn and Irvette van Zyl have the ability and the experience to back them up in a long-awaited medal attempt.

South African road running fans must be getting thirsty, and it will be a tremendous relief if the country’s top athletes can end the drought.