'99% Failure Rate' Hellish Marathon... Mother of Two Breaks the 'Wall of Exclusion'

Completing the race with 99 seconds remaining
A race to complete 160km within 60 hours
5 finishers is the highest in the 35-year history of the race

Jasmine Paris from the UK became the first woman to complete the Barkley Marathon, a race where participants must cover 160 km (100 miles) within a 60-hour time limit. On the 22nd (local time), BBC and CNN reported that Jasmine Paris (40), a British veterinarian and mother of two, successfully finished the race at Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee, USA, with just 99 seconds to spare before the deadline.

This year's race, which started on the 20th, saw five participants, including Paris, cross the finish line within the time limit. Since 1989, only 20 people have completed this marathon, with Paris being the only woman among them.

On the 22nd (local time), Jasmine Paris sitting on the ground after completing the Barkley Marathon held at Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee, USA.
[Photo by @howiesternphoto on Instagram]

Paris crossed the finish line with a time of 59 hours, 58 minutes, and 21 seconds, just 99 seconds short of the 60-hour limit. BBC reported, "Paris collapsed on the ground immediately after finishing the race. She had to run through extreme terrain and unmarked land throughout the night," adding, "Photos captured her legs scratched from pushing through sharp bushes."

The Barkley Marathon, known as one of the toughest ultramarathons in the world, allows only 35 participants each year. The entry fee is $1.60 (about 2,200 KRW), but participants must pass a screening process regarding their motivation to join. The race begins when the organizer, Cantrell, lights a cigarette. Runners must tear out the page corresponding to their bib number from books placed at various points along the course to prove they completed the route.

Paris, who started running in 2010, became the first woman to complete the Barkley Marathon in 14 years. She also participated in the race in 2022 and last year. However, in 2022, she completed 3 out of 5 loops, and last year, she finished 4 loops but exceeded the time limit.

The Worst Course Challenging Human Limits with Approximately 18,900m of Elevation Gain and Loss

Five people who completed the 'Barkley Marathon' held on the 22nd (local time) at Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee, USA.
[Photo by Instagram @howiesternphoto]

The Barkley Marathon, held annually at Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee, is notorious as an extreme course testing human willpower. Participants run five loops of a 32 km (20 mile) course, ascending and descending about 18,900 meters of mountainous terrain?more than twice the height of Mount Everest. Inspired by the 1977 prison escape of James Earl Ray, the assassin of Martin Luther King Jr., this marathon was extended to 160 km in 1989. Since then, only 20 people have managed to finish within the 60-hour time limit. The dropout rate is about 99%, making it nearly impossible to complete.

Jasmine Paris, 40 years old this year, is a veterinarian and mother of two. In January 2019, she became the first female winner of the Montane Spine Race, running approximately 429 km (268 miles) from Derbyshire to the Scottish border in 83 hours, 12 minutes, and 23 seconds, breaking the previous record by more than 12 hours.

The winner of this year's race was Ihor Beris from Ukraine, who finished in 58 hours, 44 minutes, and 59 seconds. John Kelly (59 hours, 15 minutes, 38 seconds), Gerard Campbell (59 hours, 30 minutes, 32 seconds) from the USA, and Craig Hamilton (59 hours, 38 minutes, 42 seconds) from New Zealand also crossed the finish line ahead of Paris, securing their places in history.