Sports
Record Drops in Trail Running and the Rise of Women
On Stemma Na Trilha, Depa and Sidney Togumi analyze falling ultramarathon times and female runners leading the sport.
Rapidly falling records in major mountain ultramarathons and women climbing overall standings demonstrate trail running's fast evolution. On Stemma Na Trilha, broadcaster Depa explores this dynamic shift alongside Sidney Togumi.
Rapidly improving times across the world's premier mountain races are transforming trail running at an accelerated pace. In a conversation with Sidney Togumi on Stemma Na Trilha, Spanish journalist and broadcaster José Antonio de Pablo, widely known as Depa, analyzed the falling records across 100-mile ultramarathons and drew a direct parallel to the history of road marathons.
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Falling records and 100-mile potential
Recalling that running a sub-two-hour marathon seemed improbable just a decade ago, Depa emphasized that trail running is far younger than road athletics yet is already achieving once-unthinkable milestones. In iconic events such as UTMB, where breaking the 20-hour barrier was a standalone milestone attempt only a few years ago—most notably led by Pau Capell—multiple athletes now finish under that threshold, with winning times dipping into the 18-hour range.
According to Depa, these benchmarks are bound to drop even further with the arrival and consolidation of East African athletes on the mountain circuit, a shift already emerging in competitions like the Golden Trail Series. On the road, European dominance throughout the 1990s and early 2000s eventually gave way to African hegemony, substantially lowering the marathon world record—a trajectory that could likewise transform ultra distances on the trails.
Female leadership and performance at the front
Another central pillar of the discussion was the strong presence and high performance of female runners near the top of overall classifications in ultra-distance events. Athletes like Courtney Dauwalter regularly challenge the overall frontrunners in 100-mile races, alongside historic overall victories and podium finishes in grueling challenges like Cocodona and the Tor des Géants.
Depa stressed that this impact is not limited to the longest formats. In technical and fast events like the Zegama-Aizkorri mountain marathon, standout women's times around 4h08 show that the competitive level of female athletes is closing the gap on overall race leaders. For the broadcaster, this representation and athletic parity bolster the sport while serving as inspiration to attract more women to trail running.
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