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18 April 2018 Photo Facebook
Bright future for Two Oceans winner and former Kovsie Gerda Steyn
Gerda Steyn, former Kovsie student and winner of the Two Oceans ultramarathon this year, with her trophy.

Gerda Steyn, female winner of this year’s Two Oceans ultramarathon, says her life has changed for the better in a very short time.

The former Kovsie received an invitation to a world-renowned marathon at the end of the year. She may not reveal the details yet.

Steyn, who studied Quantity Surveying and Construction Management at the University of the Free State (UFS) between 2009 and 2012, was just the third South African to win the Two Oceans since 1994. Her time of 3:39:31 was the second-best in the past seven years. For many she was a surprise winner because she didn’t compete last year and only managed a 14th place in 2016. 

“Things really took off since the race (in Cape Town at the end of March). I received a lot of exposure. People say you must try and win the race, but they don’t tell you what will happen after that with all the media attention.

“My next goal is the Comrades for which I started training in the third week of April. I will only decide on my specific goals for the race two weeks beforehand.” She obtained a fourth place last year.

According to Steyn, who is a full-time athlete, she only did a couple of cross country races while she was studying. 

“I played a bit of soccer and hockey for my hostel (Soetdoring). I have very fond memories from my university days. A couple of our hostel friends had a reunion after the race in Cape Town and had reason to have a big party.”

News Archive

Workshop: Agricultural Research for Development in the FS.
2006-05-31

The Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences and the Directorate Research Development at the University of the Free State (UFS) presented a workshop to discuss Agricultural Research for Development (ARD) in the Free State. 

The project is part of the institutionalisation of ARD within the South African education, research and development framework and is lead by a national ARD task team and managed by the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) in collaboration with the International Centre for Development Orientated Research in Agriculture (ICRA), based in The Netherlands.

Some of the guests attending the workshop were from the left:  Ms Lindie Botha (UFS ARD Coordinator), Ms Colletah Chitsike (Southern Africa representative of the ICRA), Mr Lephallo Ramotsabi (Project Manager of the National Development Agency), Mr Louw Steytler (Chairperson of Free State Agriculture), Prof Frans Swanepoel (Director: Research Development at the UFS), Mr Benedict Mokoena (MUCPP) and Dr Aldo Stroebel (UFS representative on the national ARD task team). Photo: Stephen Collett

Some of the guests attending the workshop were from the left:  Ms Colletah Chitsike (Southern Africa representative of the ICRA), Mr Lephallo Ramotsabi (Project Manager of the National Development Agency), Mr Louw Steytler (Chairperson of Free State Agriculture) and Prof Frans Swanepoel (Director: Research Development at the UFS). Photo: Lacea Loader

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