Sarah Webster runs women's world 24-hour record

The British ultra-distance runner ran an astonishing 278.622km in France, Adrian Stott studies.

Sarah Webster has set a brand new ladies’s world 24-hour report in successful the IAU World 24-hour Championships in Albi, France (October 19).

The world report has been damaged on the previous three IAU World Championships and Webster continued that pattern with an exceptional show of managed distance operating.

This one although will rank as one of many excellent extremely performances by a British athlete in historical past. In a discipline of world-class male 24-hour runners, solely 4 of them ran additional than Webster.

Her distance of 278.622km surpassed the prevailing report of 270.363 km set by Japan’s Miho Nakata on the final IAU championships two years in the past.

Webster handed the earlier mark with slightly below an hour to go and subsequently added over 8km to that tally.

It additionally bettered Patryca Berezknowska’s European report of 263.178 km and obliterated Jo Zakrzewski’s British report of 247.964 Km.

The British report was handed with simply over three hours to go. Subsequent adopted the European report, with slightly below two hours to go, and Nakata’s world mark was handed with slightly below an hour to go.

Girls’s podium (Adrian Stott)

Webster, the bronze medalist from the 2014 IAU World 100km championship, was operating solely her second ever 24-hour occasion. In April this yr, she ran 243.393km on the Crawley 24-hour race. She had began conservatively, and, though at all times within the prime 10 early on, steadily moved by way of the sphere to take the lead round 16 hours and the 200km mark.

She steadily constructed up a lead stretching to 5km, and though noticeably tiring within the final 2 hours, held on for a memorable victory.

Australia’s Holly Ranson additionally bettered the prevailing report when putting second with 274.172 km, A brand new Australian and Oceania report, bettering the mark of 263.548km that she had set in April 2025.

Earlier world record-holder and early race chief Nakata took the bronze medal with a distance of 271.987km. Regardless of additionally surpassing her earlier report, it would solely rank as a brand new Japanese nationwide and Asia report.

Kelsey Worth of Nice Britain ran a well-paced race to maneuver up the sphere within the second half of the race and positioned fourth with 257.129km. It has been a breakthrough yr for Worth, after successful the British 100km title in Might.

With Sophie Energy operating solidly with 232.889 km in seventeenth, it helped safe the workforce title for GB & NI forward of Australia and Japan.

Males’s race

The mens race, though with none world information, was nonetheless eventful.

Early chief Pascal Reuger of Switzerland presumably went out too exhausting on a comparatively scorching autumn day. He retired simply earlier than reaching 100km. This left Ukrainian Andrijj Tkachuk to take over the lead shortly after. He by no means relinquished the lead. At one level, it regarded as if he would possibly attain so far as 300km, however was decreased to a stroll within the final hour and completed with 294.346 km, nonetheless one of many prime ten, all-time male instances.

Behind him, the silver and bronze medal positions modified palms just a few instances in the previous couple of hours. Ultimately, the silver medal went to Norway’s Jo-Inge Norum, who got here by way of very strongly in the previous couple of hours and made an enormous breakthrough with 285.513km.

Finland’s Matti Jonkka took the bronze medal with 283.699km, Hungary’s Tamas Bodas was fourth with 279.780km, whereas Denmark’s Emil Krog Ingelslev positioned fifth in 278.132km. All of those 4 distances had been new nationwide information.

The occasion had a report whole of 397 entries. There have been 222 males and 175 ladies from a report 47 federations. The usual at latest world occasions has continued to rise and this yr was no exception.

Total outcomes (males)

1.Andrijj Tkchuk (UKR) 294.346km

2.Jo Inge Norum (NOR) 285.513km

3.Matti JOnkka (FIN) 283.699km

4.Tamas Bodas (HUN) 279.780km

5.Emil Krog Ingerslev (SWE) 278.132km

6 Andrzej. Piotrowski (POL) 274.313km

Total outcomes (ladies)

1.Sarah Webster (GBR) 278.622km

2.Holly Ranson (AUS) 274.172km

3.Miho Nakata (JPN) 271.987km

4.Kelsey Worth (GBR) 257.129km