[1] Born in Sandton, South Africa,[2] her first major win came at the Zevenheuvelenloop in 2002, where at the age of fifteen she won the high-profile 15K race while on holiday in the Netherlands.

[4] She competed three times in the junior race at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, coming 18th in 2002, 16th in 2003, and 26th in 2005.

She dominated the 10K nationally, repeating her South African title win, taking victories in Durban, Pretoria and Cape Town, and ending the year with a best of 32:50 minutes for the distance.

[8] Van Zyl began 2013 with a four-win streak in South African half marathons.

She ran her best time of 2:28:40 at the 2021 Xiamen Tuscany Camp Elite Marathon in Siena, Italy.