After four incredibly tough days over 150 kilometres of desert mountain terrain, the inaugural  Richtersveld Wildrun™ came to final conclusion on Saturday at the usually sleepy Northern Cape town of Sendelingsdrif – the entry point to the world renowned botanical hotspot  - the /Ai/Ais-Richtersveld Transfrontier Park.

Of the 57 runners that started the challenge, 53 managed to finish the whole event, albeit a bit worse for wear than when they set off from Sendelingsdrif at the start on Wednesday, 4th June.  The tough route included over 3000m of vertical height gain and covered a magnificent cross section of this outstanding mountainous desert, from the Western Numeesberge to the Gariep (Orange) River valley.  This World Heritage site is one of the world’s 25 botanically important ‘hotspots’, home to 4849 species of succulent plants – 40% of them found nowhere else in the world.

Zimbabwean born, Bernard Rukadza dominated the race from the outset, pulling ahead at the first big climb on day one and going on to win the first three stages comprehensively. He only narrowly missed out on a grand slam of stage wins after a few navigational errors on the final day. “I had so much fun. It was a really great event,” said Rukadza. American ultra trail runner, Matt Hart gave his all and managed to secure a stage win on the final day, and second overall, after chasing Bernard for the three days prior.

In the ladies field, Tracy Zunckel made her intentions clear from the start, winning both days one and two. Unfortunately she took a tumble on the third day and though she toughed it out and finished the day, she moved down to third place overall. Katya Soggot, after finishing second on days one and two, had a strong run overall and walked away as the first Richtersveld Wildrun™ ladies champion. The two top lady runners ran together for the whole of day four and crossed the finish line together, a fitting finish to a great race.

For most runners though, this event was not about the racing but about the experience. As with other Wildrun™ events, the Richtersveld Wildrun™ is about the journey and not the destination and it certainly was an epic journey. During the four days, runners had to make their way over spectacular wild mountain passes, through hot desert valleys, over massive boulder fields and across vast quartzite fields. Add to that some unusually spectacular rains and a flash flood and it was a most interesting journey – one that will not be forgotten by anyone who was a part of it.

“It's hard to really pinpoint what the very best thing about the Richtersveld Wildrun™ was for me. One would think the amazing, breath-taking rough beauty of the area would win hands-down… but on second thoughts, I think the warmth of the hosts and the people of the area, and the camaraderie of the fellow runners might just have snuck in and taken first place in my heart,” said Melanie Nijland, the second female runner overall.

Owen Middleton, Managing Director of the organising event company, Wildrunner, was delighted that the Richtersveld Wildrun™ had finally become a reality and is already looking forward to next year’s Richtersveld Wildrun™. “It has been a dream for a long time to present a Wildrun™ in the Richtersveld and I’m really pleased that the first one went so well. We’ve received amazing feedback and we will be working hard to make this event even better going forward.”

This event would not have been possible without the support of Boundless Southern Africa, SANParks and numerous other partners and sponsors – including the Northern Cape Tourism Authority.  “We are confident that with the right support this event will only grow in coming years and in doing so boost tourism and job creation in the /Ai/Ais-Richtersveld Transfrontier Park and surrounding area – a real hidden gem on the South African tourist track.” said Middleton.

Overall Results (150km)

For more information on the Richtersveld Wildrun™ photos, videos and results visit the website at www.wildrun.com.

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Please note the correct usage of the event name is “ Richtersveld Wildrun™ ” or “ Wildrun™ ”.

For any further information or more high res images please contact Catharina Robbertze on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 021 821 9898 or 072 212 2318.