Toyota welcomes Comrades winner Gerda Steyn as official ambassador
The qualified quantity surveyor is a four-time Comrades marathon champion and one of the most accomplished ultra-marathon athletes in the world, holding records for the Two Oceans (six times) and Comrades Marathon down run and up run.
Steyn's running career kick-started at the Comrades Marathon in 2015 where she finished in the 56th position. As part of her ambassadorship Steyn will be paired with the Toyota Fortuner SUV.
'Toyota SA Motors is proud to support athletes who embody determination, resilience and a global sporting spirit. To this effect, Toyota's partnership with Gerda is the beginning of new and exciting adventures,' said Tasneem Lorgat, GM marketing communications at Toyota SA.
The company said Steyn's appointment reaffirmed Toyota's commitment to supporting sports as a tool for nation-building and social cohesion — values linked to its historic 21-year support of the Comrades Marathon.
Commenting on her appointment, Steyn said: 'To represent Toyota — pioneers and leaders in the motoring industry — is a huge honour. I look forward to this long-term partnership with a name that stands head and shoulders above the rest.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Citizen
10 hours ago
- The Citizen
Brave the cold and take part in the first local post-Comrades road race
Brave the cold and take part in the first local post-Comrades road race The Garsfontein Ice Breaker road race is already well known among road athletes who dare to brave the winter weather of Gauteng. This half marathon race is presented annually by the Wingate Road Runners in collaboration with Garsfontein NG Kerk Gemeente and is also recognized by Athletics Gauteng North (AGN) as an official league race. The half marathon will start at 07:00. The event, which has already been presented annually since 2008, also includes a 10km race (starting at 07:00), a 5km race (starting at 07:15) and a 1km fun run, starting at 07:20. This race has been voted South Africa's best organised road race in the past and last year almost 2000 athletes participated. Advance entries can still be done online until midnight on 1 July at and late entries, as well as race number collections can be done at Laerskool Garsfontein (Petronella Street entrance) or the morning of the race from 05:30. Enquiries can be directed to Claude at 083-564-3630. Do you have more information about the story? Please send us an email to [email protected] or phone us on 083 625 4114. For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord's websites: Rekord East For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
Daily Maverick
10 hours ago
- Daily Maverick
Insurers take hard line on failure to maintain infrastructure aimed at preventing climate change damage
A R6.5bn lawsuit in the wake of the 2022 KZN floods reveals how insurers are no longer willing to act as underwriters of public incompetence, especially concerning damage related to climate change. Cast your mind back to April 2022 and the floods in KwaZulu-Natal. Infrastructure, homes and businesses buckled under severe floodwaters that caused billions of rands in damage and hundreds of deaths. Devastating flood damage at Toyota's manufacturing and assembly plant in Durban halted vehicle production there for four months. In the aftermath, Toyota South Africa Motors' (TSAM's) insurer, Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance, paid out — and then turned its attention to those it holds responsible. The Japanese insurer is now attempting to recoup a collective R6.5-billion from the eThekwini Municipality, the KZN Department of Transport and Transnet. It is claiming negligence, specifically the failure to maintain flood prevention infrastructure. 'It is important to note that the litigation proceedings are not being facilitated and/or funded by TSAM,' said Tasneem Lorgat, the general manager of marketing communications at TSAM. 'Accordingly, TSAM will not benefit in any way from the subrogated recovery action against these entities.' If successful, this case could change how insurers manage climate risk and who they hold accountable for damages related to climate change. Insurers vs incompetence As the climate warms and infrastructure decays, insurers like Tokio Marine seem no longer willing to act as underwriters of public incompetence. And who can blame them? According to Atang Matebesi, the CEO of Santam Client Solutions, the insurer's storm and flood claims in commercial lines have increased by 5% over the past year. 'Storm and flood damage is often exacerbated by inadequate infrastructure maintenance or poor town planning, resulting in higher-value claims regardless of no major catastrophe events occurred over the past year,' he said. Santam's latest Insurance Barometer shows that climate change has barged its way into the list of top 10 concerns for customers, with 78% of respondents worried about extreme weather. Nearly a quarter of respondents said they were proactively cleaning gutters or upgrading infrastructure to mitigate risks, said Matebesi. He added, however, that Santam's claims data tell another story: too little, too late. Climate change is a balance sheet issue Insurers aren't alone in their shift from passive observer to active risk manager. 'Climate volatility has accelerated the case for investing in renewable energy and water infrastructure to enhance economic and environmental resilience,' said Thabang Selota, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and impact analyst at Sanlam Investments. The asset manager's investments, including in Oya Energy and Alien Fuel Group, are designed to lower exposure to fossil fuel volatility and boost long-term sustainability. Sanlam uses internal ESG scoring and aligns decisions with global standards like the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosure and the UN's Principles for Responsible Investment, said Selota. High-emission companies with no real decarbonisation plan are red-flagged. 'Climate-related risks have direct implications for investment values,' said Selota. 'These risks have increasingly influenced how we assess infrastructure resilience and asset viability.' Everyone's problem, nobody's job In sectors like agriculture and logistics, the cost of inaction will hit a lot harder. Selota points out that businesses with physical exposure to climate extremes — agriculture, logistics, infrastructure — are particularly vulnerable. Those without the capital to build adaptation buffers are the first to go under. '[Climate change] impacts substantially on livestock and crop health and production, while damage to infrastructure from extreme weather events disrupts agricultural and food supply chains,' said Stellenbosch Business School research fellow Roscoe van Wyk. There's still a yawning gap between risk perception and preparedness. Santam's data show that 64% of agribusinesses name climate change as a top concern. Yet only 16% of corporates overall rank it in their top three risks. Wear and tear on infrastructure and increased weather-related risks could influence the fine print of insurance policies, said Kirsten Wolmarans, a partner at Webber Wentzel. 'Insurers may soon require institutional policyholders to implement early warning systems as a condition for coverage,' she said, warning that infrastructure contracts should mandate such systems or risk facing litigation. DM
IOL News
a day ago
- IOL News
New vehicle sales surge continues: These were the 50 best sellers and top brands in June
The Toyota Corolla Cross was SA's best-selling passenger car in June. Picture: Supplied Image: supplied South Africa's new vehicle market continues to defy the economic odds, with another strong sales month recorded in June. The total new vehicle market saw a volume of 47,294 units last month, an impressive increase of 18.7% versus the same month in 2024. Robust growth was seen in both the passenger car market, which grew by 21.7% year-on-year to total 26,763 units in June, and the light commercial sector, which surged by 14.9% to 10,559 units. But while the medium commercials also showed solid growth, up 24.7% to 652 units, the heavy commercials decreased by 3.1% to 1,943 units. 85.9% of vehicles were sold through the traditional dealer channels in June, Naamsa said, while the rental industry scooped up 8.2% and corporate and government clients accounted for 3.2% and 2.7% of the market, respectively. Naamsa said that sales for the first half of 2025 were now 1.36% ahead of the same period in 2024. On the sales charts, the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger led the bakkie race, both making notable gains over the previous month, while the Toyota Corolla Cross surged to the top of the passenger car list with an impressive volume of 2,132 units. Suzuki's Swift, which led the way last month, fell back to seventh after the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro made some notable gains. South Africa's 50 best-selling vehicles: June 2025 Toyota Hilux - 3,035 Ford Ranger - 2,318 Toyota Corolla Cross - 2,132 Volkswagen Polo Vivo - 1,962 Isuzu D-Max - 1,678 Chery Tiggo 4 Pro - 1,538 Suzuki Swift - 1,466 Hyundai Grand i10 - 1,301 Haval Jolion - 1,116 Suzuki Fronx - 1,112 Toyota Fortuner - 878 Mahindra Scorpio Pik-Up - 860 Toyota Starlet - 852 Suzuki Ertiga - 840 Toyota Vitz - 794 Volkswagen Polo - 756 Kia Sonet - 735 Toyota Urban Cruiser - 720 Nissan Magnite - 678 Toyota Starlet Cross - 657 Renault Kwid - 597 Toyota Land Cruiser PU - 591 Volkswagen T-Cross - 588 Toyota Hi-Ace - 524 Omoda C5 - 478 Mahindra 3XO - 475 Haval H6 - 456 Hyundai Exter - 438 Renault Kiger - 437 Nissan Navara - 403 Chery Tiggo 7 Pro - 401 Suzuki S-Presso - 379 Toyota Rumion - 375 Jetour Dashing - 373 GWM P-Series - 367 Suzuki Baleno - 360 Volkswagen Amarok - 354 Citroen C3 - 348 BMW X3 - 339 Jetour X70 Plus - 310 Ford Everest - 306 Ford Territory - 286 Hyundai i20 - 278 Volkswagen Tiguan - 273 Suzuki Jimny - 250 BMW 3 Series - 236 Jaecoo J7 - 230 Foton Tunland G7 - 224 Beijing X55 Plus - 215 Omoda X5 X - 215 Volkswagen Polo Sedan - 214 Top Manufacturers Toyota - 11,690 Suzuki Auto - 5,221 Volkswagen - 4,973 Ford - 3,058 Hyundai - 2,905 GWM / Haval - 2,288 Chery Auto - 2,101 Isuzu Motors - 2,087 Mahindra - 1,483 BMW Group - 1,349 Naamsa said the strong sales performance this year is due to a number of factors, including decreasing interest rates, low inflation and improved credit access across the market. 'The first half of 2025 has shown just how resilient and responsive our domestic market truly is. Strong consumer demand, supported by positive economic fundamentals, has helped the automotive sector deliver impressive growth amid global turbulence,' said Naamsa CEO Mike Mabasa. IOL
