NYRR Media Center

The 2023 TCS New York City Marathon will be Ernst van Dyk’s final career race before retiring, and will be inducted into the NYRR Hall of Fame this year.

He has won the Boston Marathon a record 10 times, including six consecutive victories from 2001 to 2006. He recorded what was then a world-best time in the marathon in his 2004 victory, finishing in 1:18:27, and in 2017 set a new marathon personal-best time of 1:18:04 as he crossed the line a split second after winner Marcel Hug.

Van Dyk won the 2005 New York City Marathon after finishing as the runner-up in 2002 and 2003. He repeated his winning feat in 2015, taking the title after two consecutive years of finishing within one second of the winner. He kicked off 2018 with a record fourth win at the United Airlines NYC Half, posting a time of 53:12 on a bitterly cold March day. A month later, he placed second at the Boston Marathon in 1:47:14.

Van Dyk has represented South Africa in every Paralympics since 1992 and won a bronze medal in the marathon at the Beijing 2008 Games. At the Rio 2016 Games, he finished sixth in the marathon while also winning a gold medal in the 60-kilometer handcycling road race. At the Tokyo 2020 Games, he competed in the handcycling road race and time trial. 

In 2006, van Dyk was honored at the Laureus World Sports Awards as the Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability. He and his wife Suzanne have two daughters, Lexi and Sunei.