Ultramarathon

Ultramarathoners compete at the Sahara Race 2011 (4 Deserts)

An ultramarathon, also called ultra distance, is any footrace longer than the traditional marathon length of 42.195 kilometres (26.219 mi).

There are two types of ultramarathon events: those that cover a specified distance, and events that take place during specified time (with the winner covering the most distance in that time). The most common distances are 50 kilometres (31.069 mi), 100 kilometres (62.137 mi), 50 miles (80.4672 km), and 100 miles (160.9344 km), although many races have other distances. The 100 kilometers is recognized as an official world record event by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), the world governing body of track and field.[1]

Other distances/times include double marathons, 24-hour races, and multiday races of 1,000 miles (1,600 km) or even longer. The format of these events and the courses vary, ranging from single or multiple loops (some as short as a 400-metre (1,300 ft) track),[2] to point-to-point road or trail races, to cross-country rogaines. Many ultramarathons, especially trail challenges, have severe course obstacles, such as inclement weather, elevation change, or rugged terrain. Many of these races are run on dirt roads or mountain paths, though some are run on paved roads as well. Usually, there are aid stations every 20 to 35 kilometres (12 to 22 mi) apart, where runners can replenish food and drink supplies or take a short break. Timed events range from 6, 12, and 24 hours to 3, 6, and 10 days (known as multi-day events). Timed events are generally run on a track or a short road course, often one mile (1.6 km) or less.[3]

The International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU) organises the World Championships for various ultramarathon distances, including 50 kilometres (31 mi), 100 kilometres (62 mi), 24 hours, and ultra trail running, which are also recognized by the IAAF. Many countries around the world have their own ultrarunning organizations, often the national athletics federation of that country, or are sanctioned by such national athletics organizations. World records for distances, times, and ages are tracked by the IAU.

Racewalking events are usually 50 km, although 100 km and 100 mile (160 km) "Centurion" races are also organized. Furthermore, the non-competitive International Marching League event Nijmegen Four Days March has a regulation distance of 3 × 50 km over three days for men aged 19–49.[4]

IAU World Best Performances

Men

Event Record Athlete Date Place Ref
50 km Road 2:43:38  Thompson Magawana (RSA) 12 April 1988 South Africa Claremont, South Africa [5]
50 km Track 2:48:06  Jeff Norman (GBR) 7 June 1980 United Kingdom Timperley, United Kingdom [5]
100 km Road 6:13:33  Takahiro Sunada (JPN) 21 June 1998 Japan Yubetsu-Saroma-Tokoro, Japan [5]
100 km Track 6:10:20  Donald Ritchie (GBR) 28 Oct 1978 United Kingdom London, United Kingdom [5]
100 miles Road 11:46:37  Yiannis Kouros (GRE) 7-8 Nov 1984 United States Queens, New York, USA [5]
100 miles Track 11:28:03  Oleg Kharitonov (RUS) 20 Oct 2002 United Kingdom London, United Kingdom [5]
100 miles Indoor 12:56:13  Donald Ritchie (GBR) 3-4 Feb 1990 United Kingdom Milton Keynes, United Kingdom [5]
6H Road 92.188 km  Tomasz Chawawko (POL) 7 Mar 2004 Netherlands Stein, Netherland [5]
6H Track 97.200 km  Donald Ritchie (GBR) 28 Oct 1978 United Kingdom London, United Kingdom [5]
6H Indoor 93.247 km  Denis Zhalybin (RUS) 7-8 Feb 2003 Russia Moscow, Russia [5]
12H Road 162.543 km  Yiannis Kouros (GRE) 7 Nov 1984 United States New York, USA [5]
12H Track 163.600 km  Zach Bitter (USA) 14 Dec 2013 United States Phoenix, USA [5]
12H Indoor 146.296 km  Ryoichi Sekiya (JPN) 11 Feb 2007 Finland Lohja Citymarket, Finland [5]
24H Road 290.221 km  Yiannis Kouros (GRE) 2–3 May 1998 Switzerland Basel, Switzerland [5]
24H Track 303.506 km  Yiannis Kouros (GRE) 4-5 Oct 1997 Australia Adelaide, Australia [5]
24H Indoor 257.576 km  Nikolai Safin (RUS) 27-28 Feb 1993 Russia Podolsk, Russia [5]
48H Road 433.095 km  Yiannis Kouros (GRE) 2–3 May 1998 Switzerland Basel, Switzerland [5]
48H Track 473.495 km  Yiannis Kouros (GRE) 3–5 May 1996 France Surgeres, France [5]
48H Indoor 426.178 km  Tony Mangan (IRL) 16 Mar 2007 Czech Republic Brno, Czech Republic [5]

Women

Event Record Athlete Date Place Ref
50 km Road 3:08:39  Frith Van Der Merwe (RSA) 25 March 1989 South Africa Claremont, South Africa [5]
50 km Track 3:18:52  Carol Hunter-Rowe (GBR) 3 March 1996 United Kingdom Barry, Wales United Kingdom [5]
100 km Road 6:33:11  Tomoe Abe (JPN) 25 June 2000 Japan Yubetsu-Saroma-Tokoro, Japan [5]
100 km Track 7:14:06  Norimi Sakurai (JPN) 27 Sept 2003 Italy Lupatotissima, Italy [5]
100 miles Road 13:47:41  Ann Trason (USA) 4 May 1991 United States Queens New York, USA [5]
100 miles Track 14:11:26  Pam Smith (USA) 14 Dec 2013 United States Phoenix, USA [6]
100 miles Indoor 14:43:40  Eleanor Robinson (GBR) 3-4 Feb 1990 United Kingdom Milton Keynes, United Kingdom [5]
6H Road 82.838 km  Ricarda Botzon (GER) 7 July 2001 Germany Kiel, Germany [5]
6H Track 83.200 km  Norimi Sakurai (JPN) 27 Sept 2003 Italy Lupatoto Verone, Italy [5]
6H Indoor 80.600 km  Marina Bychkova (RUS) 7-8 Feb 2003 Russia Moscow, Russia [5]
12H Road 144.840 km  Ann Trason (USA) 4 May 1991 United States Queens New York, USA [5]
12H Track 147.600 km  Ann Trason (USA) 3-4 Aug 1991 United States Hayward, USA [5]
12H Indoor 135.799 km  Sumie Inagaki (JPN) 11 Feb 2007 Finland Lohja Citymarket, Finland [5]
24H Road 252.205 km  Mami Kudo (JPN) 11–12 May 2013 Netherlands Steenbergen, Netherlands [5]
24H Track 255.303 km  Mami Kudo(Kudou, Kudoh) (JPN) 9-10 Dec 2011 Taiwan Soochow, Taipei [5]
24H Indoor 240.631 km  Sumie Inagaki (JPN) 29-30 Jan 2011 Finland Espoo, Finland [5]
48H Road 368.687 km  Mami Kudo(Kudou, Kudoh) (JPN) 8-10 Apr 2011 Greece Athens, Greece [5]
48H Track 397.103 km  Sumie Inagaki (JPN) 21–23 May 2010 France Surgeres, France [5]
48H Indoor 390.024 km  Traci Falbo (USA) 4-6 Aug 2014 United States Anchorage, USA [5]

IAU World Championships

There are four IAU World Championships: the IAU 100 km World Championships, IAU 50 km World Championships, IAU 24 Hour World Championship, and the IAU Trial World Championship.[7]

The IAU 24 Hour World Championship is held annually. Originally begun as a track event in 2001, it was rebooted as a road event in 2003. It also incorporates the IAU 24 Hour European Championship.[8]

IAU 100 km World Championships

Year Location Champion (m) Champion (f)
1987 Belgium Torhout  Domingo Catalán (ESP)  Agnes Eberle (SWI)
1988 Spain Santander  Domingo Catalán (ESP)  Ann Trason (USA)
1989 France Rambouillet  Bruno Scelsi (FRA)  Katherina Janicke (West Germany)
1990 United States Duluth  Roland Vuillemenot (FRA)  Eleanor Adams (GBR)
1991 Italy Faenza  Valmir Nuñes (BRA)  Eleanor Adams (GBR)
1992 Spain Palamós  Konstantin Santalov (RUS)  Nurzia Bagmanova (RUS)
1993 Belgium Torhout  Konstantin Santalov (RUS)  Carolyn Hunter-Rowe (GBR)
1994 Japan Yubetsu/Saroma/Tokoro  Aleksey Volgin (RUS)  Valentina Shatyeyeva (RUS)
1995 Netherlands Winschoten  Valmir Nuñes (BRA)  Ann Trason (USA)
1996 Russia Moscow  Konstantin Santalov (RUS)  Valentina Shatyeyeva (RUS)
1997 Netherlands Winschoten  Sergey Yanenko (UKR)  Valentina Lyakhova (RUS)
1998 Japan Shimanto  Grigoriy Murzin (RUS)  Carolyn Hunter-Rowe (GBR)
1999 France Chavagnes-en-Paillers  Simon Pride (GBR)  Anna Balosáková (SVK)
2000 Netherlands Winschoten  Pascal Fétizon (FRA)  Edit Bérces (HUN)
2001 France Cléder  Yasufumi Mikami (JPN)  Yelvira Kolpakova (RUS)
2002 Belgium Torhout  Mario Fattore (ITA)  Tatyana Zhyrkova (RUS)
2003 Taiwan Tainan  Mario Fattore (ITA)  Monica Casiraghi (ITA)
2004 Netherlands Winschoten  Mario Ardemagni (ITA)  Tatyana Zhyrkova (RUS)
2005 Japan Yubetsu/Saroma/Tokoro  Grigoriy Murzin (RUS)  Hiroko Sho (JPN)
2006 South Korea Misari  Yannick Djouadi (FRA)  Elizabeth Hawker (GBR)
2007 Netherlands Winschoten  Shinichi Watanabe (JPN)  Norimi Sakurai (JPN)
2008 Italy Rome  Giorgio Calcaterra (ITA)  Tatyana Zhirkova (RUS)
2009 Belgium Torhout  Yasukazu Miyazato (JPN)  Kami Semick (USA)
2010 Gibraltar Gibraltar  Shinji Nakadai (JPN)  Ellie Greenwood (GBR)
2011 Netherlands Winschoten  Giorgio Calcaterra (ITA)  Marina Bychkova (RUS)
2012 Italy Seregno  Giorgio Calcaterra (ITA)  Amy Sproston (USA)
2013 cancelled
2014 Qatar Doha  Max King (USA)  Ellie Greenwood (GBR)
2015 Netherlands Winschoten  Jonas Buud (SWE)  Camille Herron (USA)

World or national-record holding or world-championship-winning ultramarathon runners

For reliable and updated information, see the IAU (International Association of Ultrarunners) annual report of current world records on its newest "World's Best Performances" page in "statistics".

Ultra Marathons by Regions

Ultra Marathons are run around the world with more than 70,000 people completing them every year.

Africa

Several ultra distance events are held in Africa.

Asia

Ultrarunning has become popular in Asia recently, and countries such as Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea have hosted IAU World Championships.

Oceania, Australia, and New Zealand

Australia and New Zealand are hosts to some 100 organized ultramarathons each year. Additionally a handful of runners have run the entire length of New Zealand, a distance of around 2,200 kilometres (1,400 mi).[38]

Australia

In Australia, the Westfield Ultra Marathon was an annual race between Sydney and Melbourne contested between 1983 and 1991. Greek runner Yiannis Kouros won the event five times during that period. Australia is also the home of one of the oldest six-day races in the world, the Cliff Young Australian 6-day race, held in Colac, Victoria. The race is held on a 400-meter circuit at the Memorial Square in the centre of Colac, and has seen many epic battles since its inception in 1984. The 20th Cliff Young Australian six-day race was held between 20 and 26 November 2005. During that event, Kouros beat his existing world record six-day track mark and set a new mark of 1,036.851 kilometres (644.269 mi). The Coast to Kosciuszko inaugurated in 2004, is a 246-kilometre (153 mi) marathon from the coast to the top of Mount Kosciuszko, Australia's highest mountain.

Australia has seen a steep growth in Ultrarunning events and participants in recent years. Many new and challenging races have come into inception in the last few years alone, covering the whole spectrum of Ultramarathon distances from 50 km right through to multi-day events. The cornerstone of Australian Ultra events being such races as; The North Face 100, Bogong To Hotham, Alpine Challenge, and the Cradle Mountain Run.[39] Australia's own Australian Ultra Runners Association (AURA) has a comprehensive list and links of events and their respective results.[40]

New Zealand

Events by month and distance - these are the events that you can enter as a solo runner

Month Event Distance Location Website
January The "James" 50 km, 100 km South Island http://www.stjamesmountainsports.co.nz/
- The Ultra Easy 100 100 km South Island http://theultraeasy100.nz/race-distances/100km/
February Tarawera Ultramarathon 60 k, 85 km, 100 km North Island http://www.taraweraultra.co.nz/
- The Hilary 80 km North Island http://thehillary.co.nz/wordpress/
March Te Houtaewa (90 mile beach) Challenge 63 km North Island http://www.tehoutaewa.co.nz/
- Northburn Station Ultra 50 km, 100 km, 160 km South Island http://northburn100.co.nz/
April Riverhead Adventures 50 km North Island http://www.ultrarunner.org.nz/
May The Great Cranleigh Kauri Run 76 km North Island http://www.arcevents.co.nz/kaurirun/ultra/
- Sri Chinmoy Ultra Trio 50 km, 80 km, 100 km South Island http://nz.srichinmoyraces.org/100km-race
June --- --- ---
July --- --- ---
August Great Naseby Water Race 50 km, 80 km, 100 km, 160 km South Island http://www.greatnasebywaterrace.co.nz/
September Marton to Wanganui Ultra/Relay 66.3 North Island http://www.wanganuiharrierclub.co.nz/
October Sri Chinmoy 6-12-24 Hour Track Races 6 - 12 - 24hr North Island http://nz.srichinmoyraces.org/
- XTERRA Trail Challenge Waihi 61.5 km North Island http://www.trailrun.co.nz/XTERRAtrailchallenge/index.php
November Tarawera 50 50 km North Island http://www.taraweramarathon.co.nz/
- The Taniwha 60 km North Island http://www.thetaniwha.co.nz/
- Around the Mountain Relay 160 km North Island http://www.mountainrelay.co.nz/home
- Molesworth Run 80 km South Island http://www.harriers.net.nz/events/molesworth/
December Kepler Challenge 60 km South Islandhttp://www.keplerchallenge.co.nz/

New Zealand's first ultramarathon called The Kepler Challenge was held on a 60 kilometres (37 mi) trail through Fiordland National Park, which has been running since 1988 and is one of the country's most popular races. New Zealand's Northburn 100 ultra mountain run is the first 100-mile (160 km) race through the Northburn Station. The world famous Te Houtaewa Challenge has a 62 km race on ninety mile beach, Northland. The filed of international and local runners have to contend with rising tides and soft beach sand and the March race dates often means the race is run in the cyclone season. In 2014 the ultramarathon was postponed because of Cyclone Lucy. In 2016 the race will be in its jubilee and the 25th anniversary will see many of its famous past runners compete for the honour of the ultimate challenge winner.

In November 2012, Kim Allan planned to run and/or walk 500 kilometres (310 mi) nonstop, without sleep, on the Sri Chinmoy Peace Mile track at the Auckland Domain. Her aim was to beat ultrarunner Pam Reed's record of 300 miles (480 km).[41] According to her Facebook page, she only managed 385.8 kilometres (239.7 mi).[42] She eventually passed the 500 kilometre mark at 86 hours, 11 minutes, and 9 seconds, breaking the 486 kilometres (302 mi) women's record.[43]

In April 2013, a Feilding man, Perry Newburn, set a new New Zealand record by running 483 kilometres (300 mi) without sleep at Feilding's Manfield Park.[44]

Ultramarathon running in New Zealand has a national body the New Zealand Ultrarunners Association

Oceania

Papua New Guinea has the Kokoda Challenge Race, an annual 96 km endurance race held in late August that runs the length of the historic Kokoda Track.[45]

Papua New Guinea also has the The Great Kokoda Race, a multi-stage 96 km (3 day) adventure race held in early July where competitors run or walk the length of the historic Kokoda Track.[46]

Europe

Ultrarunning is popular in Europe, and the sport can trace its origins here with early documentation of ultrarunners from Icelandic sagas, or even the antique Greece from where the idea of the Marathon, and the Spartathlon comes. The history of ultrarunners and walkers in the UK from the Victorian Era has also been documented. The IAU hosts annual European Championships for the 50 km, 100 km and 24 hours. There are over 300 ultramarathons held in Europe each year. Some of the largest events include:

Antarctica

Due to logistics and environmental concerns there are only a handful of ultramarathons held in Antarctica, and travel costs can mean entrance fees as high as $14,000.[51] Ultramarathons in Antarctica include: The Last Desert, a multi-stage footrace, and the Antarctic Ice Marathon – a marathon and 100-kilometer race.

North America

There are several hundred ultramarathons held annually in North America. One of the most popular is the Western States Endurance Run, the world's oldest 100-mile trail run. The race began unofficially in 1974, when local horseman Gordy Ainsleigh's horse for the 100-mile Tevis Cup horse race came up lame. He decided to travel the course on foot, finishing in 23 hours and 47 minutes.

One of the first documented ultramarathons in North America was held in 1926, and at the time was part of the Central American Games. Tomas Zafiro and Leoncio San Miguel, both Tarahumara Indians, ran 100 km from Pachuca to Mexico City in 9 hours and 37 minutes. At the time, the Mexican government petitioned to include a 100 km race in the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam; however, nothing came of these efforts.

100 Mile Footraces in the Contiguous United States, 2011

In 1928, sports agent C. C. Pyle organized the first of two editions of the 3,455-mile-long Bunion Derby (the first went along U.S. Route 66 from Los Angeles to Chicago before heading toward New York; the 1929 Derby reversed the route). Neither the race nor the accompanying vaudeville show was a financial success.

Since 1997, runners have been competing in the Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race, which is billed as the longest official footrace in the world. They run 100 laps a day for up to 50 days around a single block in Queens, NY, for a total distance of 3,100 miles (5,000 km).[14] The Latest Trans-American Footrace (2015) winner was Robert HP Young (Marathon Man UK) Winning in a time of 482 hours 10 minutes 00 seconds [17]

In April 2006, the American Ultrarunning Hall of Fame was established by the American Ultrarunning Association (AUA). Candidates for the Hall of Fame are chosen from the 'modern era' of American ultras, beginning with the New York Road Runners Club 30 Mile race held in 1958. The Inaugural inductees were Ted Corbitt, a former US Olympian, winner of the aforementioned race in 3:04:13, and co-founder of the Road Runners Club of America, and Sandra Kiddy, who kicked off her ultra career at age 42 with a world record at 50 kilometers, 3:36:56, and who went on to set a string of US and world ultra records.

South America

There are few ultramarathons in South America, but the sport is getting more popular every day. The Brazil 135 Ultramarathon is a single-stage race of 135 miles ( 217 km) with a 60-hour cutoff, held in Brazil. This is a Badwater "sister race".[52] Several ultramarathons are held in Chile and the activity is becoming more popular among Chileans.[53] Ultramarathons held in Chile include:

There are six stages in seven days, with almost four marathons run in the first four days, then a 74 km stretch, then a rest day and a final stage of 11 km. It is part of the 4 Deserts Series, which, as the name suggests, is a desert race series.[55] The Atacama Crossing take place in terrain that is rarely flat underfoot, with a harsh climate and an altitude that averages 2500 m (8000 ft). The race uses the town of San Pedro de Atacama as its host town, and in 2012 the race began at its highest point of over 3,000m in the Arcoiris Valley.

View from the Atacama Crossing 2011.

The event, organized by NIGSA, aims to promote the conservation of Chilean Patagonia and contribute to the sustainable development of the region. For each runner, a tree will be planted in the Torres del Paine National Park through the "Corre y Reforesta" (Run and Reforest) campaign[57] run by the organization "Reforestemos Patagonia" (Let’s Reforest Patagonia)[58] which aims to raise awareness of the importance of preserving these areas and contribute to the reforestation of native trees in Chilean Patagonia.

List of ultramarathons

This is only a partial list of events. For a full list, see Ultramarathon Running's Calendar and local countries' ultrarunning websites.

Road and dirt paths

Location Name
 Canada Deer Lake 67
 Philippines All Women Ultra Marathon
 Philippines Bataan Death March Ultra marathon
 Germany Berlin 100 Miles
  Switzerland Biel/Bienne 100 km
 South Africa Washie 100
 Australia Coast to Kosciuszko
 South Africa Comrades Marathon
 Singapore Craze Ultra 100 Miles
 United Kingdom Dartmoor Discovery
 Canada Tynehead 5, 8 and 12 Hour Races
 United States FANS 6, 12, 24 Hour Races Fort Snelling State Park / Minneapolis / St. Paul, MN
 United Kingdom Grand Union Canal 145 mile Race
 United States Graveyard 100
 Canada Whistler 50 Relay and Ultra
 United States JFK 50 Mile
 United States Keys 100
 Japan Lake Saroma Ultramarathon 100 km / 50 km [60]
 United Kingdom London to Brighton
 United Kingdom Marlborough Downs Challenge
 Japan Miyakojima Ultra Marathon 100 km etc.
 Italy 100km del Passatore
 Japan River Shimanto Ultramarathon 100 km / 60 km[61]
 Netherlands RUN Winschoten, Netherlands
 Italy Strasimeno
 Greece Spartathlon
 Singapore Sundown Ultra Marathon Singapore 100 km
 India The Taj Mahal Marathon 222k Ultra
 South Africa Two Oceans Marathon
 United States TW 50k Ultra
 Japan Trans Okinawa Foot Race 353 km/292 km
 Brazil 100km Volta ao Lago Caixa (website in Portuguese)
 Lithuania Ultramarathon Baltic cup 100 km
 United States Way Too Cool 50 Kilometer
 India Bangalore Ultra
 Malaysia Putrajaya 100 Miles, Watergate 16 Hours

Track Ultramarathons

Location Name
 United Kingdom Barry 40
 Canada Self-Transcendence 24 Hour Race Ottawa

Mountain and trails

Location Name
 South Africa Addo Elephant Trail Run
 Vietnam Vietnam Mountain Marathon
 Australia Alpine Challenge
   Nepal Annapurna 100
 United States American River 50 Mile Endurance Run
 United States Angeles Crest 100 Mile Endurance Run
 Canada Arc'teryx Squamish 50
 United States Barkley Marathons
 United States Bear 100 Mile Endurance Run
 United States Bighorn Trail Run
 Australia Bogong to Hotham
 United States Bull Run Run 50 Mile
 United States Burning River 100 Mile Endurance Run
 Canada Canadian Death Race
 United States Cascade Crest 100 Mile Endurance Run
 United States Chimera 100 Mile
 Philippines Clark-Miyamit Falls Trail Ultra
 Australia Cradle Mountain
 United States Elizabeth's Furnace Fat Ass 50K
 United States Evergreen Trail Runs
 Nicaragua Fuego y Agua 25k,50k,100K & Survival Run
 United States Grand Canyon Ultra Marathon
 Réunion Grand Raid de la Réunion
 United States Grindstone 100 Miler
 Philippines Hardcore Hundred Miles
 United States Hardrock Hundred Mile Endurance Run
 Japan Hasetsune Cup 71.5 km
 United States HAT Run
 Japan Hida Takayama Ultra Marathon
 United States HUFF 50K Trail Run
 United States Hunter Gatherer Ultras & Survival Run
 United States Jackson County 50-50
 United States Javelina Jundred
 United States Kesugi Ridge Traverse
 United States Kettle Moraine 100 Endurance Runs
 Papua New Guinea Kokoda Challenge Race
 Canada Knee Knackering North Shore Trail Run
 Iceland Laugavegur Ultramarathon
 United States Leadville Trail 100
 United States Lean Horse Ultramarathon
 United States Massanutten Mountain Trails 100
 United Kingdom Mourneway Ultra Marathon
 United States McNaughton Park Trail Runs
 United States Miwok 100K Trail Race
 United States The Mountain Ultra
 United States Mountain Masochist Trail Run
 Japan Muraoka Ultra Marathon 100 km/88 km/44 km
 United Kingdom North Downs way 50,100
 United States Oil Creek 100 Trail Runs - 50K, 50 & 100 miles
 United States Old Dominion 100 Miler
 United States Old Pueblo 50 Mile Endurance Run
 Hong Kong Oxfam Trailwalker
 Australia
 United States Pillar Mountain Run, Kodiak, AK
 United States Pinhoti 100 Mile Endurance Run Alabama
 Germany Rennsteiglauf
 United States Resurrection Pass Ultra Trail Races
 United States Rio Del Lago
 United States Rocky Raccoon 100
 Japan Shin'etsu Five Mountains Trail 110km
 United Kingdom South Downs Way 100
 Canada Scorched Sole
 Canada Sinister 7 100 mile
 United Kingdom The Spine Race (268 miles along the Pennine Way
 United States StumpJump 50k
  Switzerland Swiss Alpine Marathon
 Australia The North Face 100
 United Kingdom Thames Path 100km
 Japan Trans Japan Alps Race (TJAR) 415 km
 United States TransRockies Run, 6 stages, 125m
 Japan Ultra-Trail Mt. Fuji 168 km / 88 km
 France Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc
 Italy
  Switzerland
 Basque Country ehunmilak Ultra-Trail
 Serbia Fruškogorski maraton - Ultra Extreme Marathon; 125,213 km; 5.611 D+; 4 UTMB points
 United States Vermont 100 Mile Endurance Run
 United States Wasatch Front 100 Mile Endurance Run
 United Kingdom West Highland Way Race
 United States Western States Endurance Run
 United States Wickham Park Marathon, 50M, 100M, 200M
 Malaysia Borneo TMBT Ultra Trail Marathon 50K, 100K
 Turkey İznik Ultramarathon
 Turkey Lycian Way Ultramarathon
 Turkey TNF Cappadocia Ultramarathon
 Japan Yatsugatake (Mount Yatsuga) Nobeyama Highland 100km Ultra Marathon

Extreme conditions

Location Name
 Italy Tor des Geants
 Morocco Marathon des Sables
 Brazil Jungle Marathon
 Canada 6633 Ultra: The Arctic, Canada
 United States Badwater Ultramarathon
 South Africa Kalahari Augrabies Extreme Marathon
 United States Arrowhead Winter Ultramarathon
 Spain Al Andalus Ultimate Trail
 United States Beast of Burden Winter and Summer 100 Miler "DoubleBuckle"
 New Zealand Northburn100
 Finland Rovaniemi 150 Arctic Winter Race
 Finland The Lapland Extreme Challenge Race, 900 kilometers (15 days)
 Turkey Runfire Cappadocia Ultramarathon
 China 4 Deserts
 Egypt
 Chile
 Antarctica

Very long events and multidays

Location Name Description
 Canada Bruce Trail Ontario, Canada 800 kilometers in (10–15 days).
 United States The Bunion Derby Los Angeles to New York 3,455 miles (3 months).
 Hungary Lake Balaton Supermarathon 195.4 km around Lake Balaton in 4 days
 Hungary Ultrabalaton 220 km around Lake Balaton
 United States Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race
 United States Self-Transcendence 6- & 10-day Race
 Japan Trans Japan Alps Race (TJAR) 415 km/7–8 days
 Germany Spreelauf
 Europe Trans Europe Foot Race
 France Paris-Colmar 450 km march (Racewalking).
 France Trans-Gaule
 Australia Big Red Run 6 days 250 km in the Simpson desert

International Trail Running Association (ITRA)

International Trail Running Association (ITRA)[62] aims to give a voice to parties involved in trail running in order to promote its values, its diversity, the safety of races and the health of runners, as well as to further the development of trail running and ensure the coordination between the national and international bodies with an interest in the sport.

ITRA provides with a service of evaluation of the difficulty of an ultramarathon according to a number of criteria, such as the distance, the cumulative elevation gain, and the number of loops and stages. ITRA maitains a calendar of ultramarathon events.

Born to Run

In 2009, Christopher McDougall's book Born to Run was released. Written from both anthropological and scientific angles, this book is a story of an entire people of ultramarathoners. While other books had previously been written specifically about ultramarathons, McDougall made conclusions about humanity's roots in long distance running that were just controversial enough to excite the masses who had never heard of the sport. It quickly became a national bestseller and a Forbes and Washington Post book of the year, helping spread the idea of ultramarathons.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "– 100 Kilometres Records". Iaaf.org. Retrieved 2013-10-05.
  2. If the loop is less than 1 kilometre (0.62 mi), run direction changes every 2–4 (sometimes 6) hours
  3. "IAAF Ultra Running Disciplines".
  4. http://www.4daagse.nl/en/register/distance-rewards.html
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 "IAU World Best Performances" (PDF). Retrieved 2013-10-05.
  6. IAU Championships. International Association of Ultrarunners. Retrieved on 2015-03-21.
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