Breaking Barriers 50km

The Breaking Barriers 50km (also known as the Nedbank Runified Breaking Barriers 50km for sponsorship reasons) is an annual road-based ultramarathon hosted by Gqeberha, South Africa, since 2021.[7][8] The ultramarathon is a World Athletics Elite Label Road Race.[9] As of the 2023 race, a new 50K world record has been set every year the race has been held.[3][10][11][12][13]

Breaking Barriers 50km
Marine Drive along Hobie Beach in Summerstrand, part of the northwest leg of the race course
DateFebruary or March[1][2]
LocationGqeberha, South Africa
Event typeRoad
Distance50K ultramarathon
Primary sponsorNedbank
Established2021 (2021)[3]
Course records
Official sitehttps://www.nedbankrunningclub.co.za/DisplayLink.aspx?group=About%20Us&name=Nedbank%20Runified%2050km
Participants
  • 92 finishers (2023)[5]
  • 48 finishers (2022)[6]

History

The inaugural race was held on Sunday 23 May 2021.[3] The 50K was won by Ethiopian runner Ketema Negasa and South African runner Irvette van Zyl, with finish times of 2:42:07 and 3:04:24, respectively.[3][11] Negasa set the 50K world record for men, while van Zyl set the 50K world record for women in a women-only race.[14][3][11]

On 6 March 2022, the second running of the race, South African runner Stephen Mokoka broke the world record with a finish time of 2:40:13 in his 50K debut, while Ethiopian runner Amelework Fekadu, with her winning time of 3:04:58, missed breaking the record van Zyl set the previous year by about half a minute.[1][15][16][17]

The third edition of the race was held on 26 February 2023.[8][4] Ethiopian runner Emane Seifu Hayile set a new 50K world record for a women-only race with her finish time of 3:00:30, beating van Zyl's time by nearly four minutes.[4][13] South African runner Tete Dijana, winner of the 2022 Comrades Marathon, also set a new course record, and a new South African 50K record, with his winning time of 2:39:04.[18][19][20][lower-alpha 1]

Course
External image
image icon Course map of 50K in 2021[26]

The ultramarathon is run on a loop course along the M4 freeway in Gqeberha, on Marine Drive and Beach Road.[26][27] The course runs largely along the coast.[26] Each loop is 10 km (6.2 mi) long, and the loop is run five times.[26]

The race begins and ends in front of the Piet Retief Monument in Summerstrand, near Pollock Beach.[26][27] Runners first head southeast along Marine Drive for about 2 km (1.2 mi) before turning around.[26] The course then heads northwest for about 5 km (3.1 mi), reaching another turnaround point on Beach Road.[26] Runners then head back southeast to the starting point for the final 3 km (1.9 mi) of the loop.[26]

Winners

Key:    Course record (in bold)

Ed. Date Male Winner Time Female Winner Time Rf.
1 2021.05.23  Ketema Negasa (ETH) 2:42:07 WR  Irvette van Zyl (ZAF) 3:04:24 WR [3][11]
2 2022.03.06  Stephen Mokoka (ZAF) 2:40:13 WR  Amelework Fekadu (ETH) 3:04:58 [1][16][12]
3 2023.02.26  Tete Dijana (ZAF) 2:39:04 NR  Emane Seifu Hayile (ETH) 3:00:30 WR [2][18][4][13]

Notes
  1. Some sources reported that Tete Dijana set a new world record,[21][22] while others noted that U.S. runner CJ Albertson had run a faster 50K a few months earlier, with a finish time of 2:38:43 at the Ruth Anderson Memorial Endurance Run in San Francisco, California, although Albertson's time had yet to be ratified as a world record.[23][24][20][4][25]

References
  1. "Nedbank Runified 50km". results.finishtime.co.za. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  3. Snider-McGrath, Ben. "Ethiopian runner sets men's 50K world record with 2:42:07 run in South Africa - Canadian Running Magazine". Canadian Running Magazine. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  4. "Hayile breaks women-only 50km world record in Gqeberha | REPORT | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  5. "Nedbank Runified 50km". results.finishtime.co.za. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  6. "Nedbank Runified 50km". results.finishtime.co.za. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  7. Software, Entelect. "Nedbank Running Club - About+Us Nedbank+Runified+50km". nedbankrunningclub.co.za. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  8. "Will yet another record be broken? | News24". News24. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  9. "World Athletics Label Road Races | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  10. "Stephen Mokoka not ready for move to 50km despite smashing world record". TimesLIVE. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  11. "Inaugural world 50km records ratified | PRESS-RELEASES | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  12. "Ratified: world records for Yehualaw, Knighton, Nugent and Mokoka | PRESS-RELEASES | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  13. "Ratified: world records for Duplantis, Bol and Seifu, world U20 records for Jackson and Sosna | PRESS-RELEASES | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  14. "SA's Irvette van Zyl breaks 50km world record | Sport". Sport. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  15. "Mokoka breaks world record on 50km debut". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  16. "Amelework FEKADU | Profile | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  17. "South Africa's Mokoka breaks world record in first 50km race". Reuters. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  18. "Athletics South Africa". athleticssa.org.za. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  19. "Dijana eyes top podium spot in Gqeberha 50km". HeraldLIVE. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  20. Snider-McGrath, Ben. "Ethiopian runner breaks women-only world 50K record in South Africa - Canadian Running Magazine". Canadian Running Magazine. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  21. Africa, AlgoaFM South. "World records shattered in Gqeberha". algoafm.co.za. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  22. "World records are the theme for the Nedbank Runified Breaking Barriers 50km | News24". News24. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  23. Botton, Wesley. "Distance runners Mokoka and Dijana shine on the road | The Citizen". The Citizen. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  24. "CJ Albertson Is Once Again World Record Holder in the 50K". Runner's World. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  25. "Albertson runs world 50km record in San Francisco | REPORT | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  26. "Microsoft PowerPoint - Layouts 50km 2021.ppt [Compatibility Mode] - Layouts50km2021.pdf" (PDF). eolstoragewe.blob.core.windows.net. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  27. "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
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