British Runner Jasmin Paris Becomes First Woman To Finish Barkley Marathons, Just 99 Seconds Before Time Limit Expired

A British runner, Jasmin Paris, became the first woman to complete the famed Barkley Marathons on Friday.

According to Keith Dunn, who attends the race and publishes updates on X (previously known as Twitter), Paris completed the difficult course in 59 hours, 58 minutes, and 21 seconds, barely 99 seconds, before the 60-hour time restriction expired.

The 40-year-old veterinarian was photographed collapsing over the finish line as she finished the event.

British Runner Jasmin Paris Becomes First Woman To Finish Barkley Marathons, Just 99 Seconds Before Time Limit Expired

Paris was one of five finishers in the 2024 Barkley Marathons, with Ukrainian Ihor Very first, Americans John Kelly and Jared Campbell second and third, and Greig Hamilton of New Zealand fourth.

Verys, who finished at 58:44:59, said that Dunn added a sixth loop.

Campbell, who finished the Barkley Marathons for the fourth time in 59:30:32, claimed the new part was “brutal.” “You are a bad man.”

Paris made waves in 2019 when she won the 2019 Spine event. She became the first woman to win the 268-mile event and shaved 12 hours off the previous record.

The Barkley Marathons are notable for their arduous, near-impossible nature. Many consider it the world’s toughest and most punishing foot race.

British Runner Jasmin Paris Becomes First Woman To Finish Barkley Marathons, Just 99 Seconds Before Time Limit Expired

Every year, the renowned ultramarathon that racer Gary Cantrell created takes place at Tennessee’s Frozen Head State Park. James Earl Ray’s 1977 jailbreak during which he assassinated Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. served as inspiration for the path.

Ray barely walked eight miles just over two days after escaping Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary before being apprehended, prompting Cantrell to speculate that he could travel 100 miles in the same amount of time.

The course is lengthy and indistinct, the inclines steep, and the terrain harsh, but only if you can manage the confusing admission system and earn a seat at the starting line.

The race consists of five circuits of about 20 miles each, for a total distance of 100 to 130 miles in brushy mountains with an elevation gain of roughly 63,000 feet. Athletes complete the race over three sleepless days and nights, with no aid stations, phones, or GPS to assist with navigation. Getting lost, as well as falling and being injured in the brush, is normal.

British Runner Jasmin Paris Becomes First Woman To Finish Barkley Marathons, Just 99 Seconds Before Time Limit Expired

The ultramarathon is marked with distinct unmanned checkpoints containing a paperback book. Athletes must rip out a page according to their bib number and have all the book pages in hand at the end of each loop to demonstrate that they reached each checkpoint.

Many need help to finish the races because of their difficulty, with no finishers between 2017 and 2023. It has a 99% dropout rate.

SOURCE – (CNN)