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'[[Image:Runner-1-.jpg|thumb|right|300px|A runner in the [[Wyoming]] Ultramarathon]] An '''ultramarathon''' (also called ''ultra distance'') is any sporting event involving [[running]] longer than the traditional [[marathon]] length of {{convert|42.195|km|mi|4}}. There THESE DAMN THINGS SUCK!! 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 and 100 miles, or 50 and 100 kilometers. Other distances/times include double marathons, [[24-hour run|24-hour races]], and [[multiday races]] of 1000 miles or even longer. The format of these events and the courses vary, ranging from single or multiple loops (some as short as a 400-meter track), to point-to-point road or trail races, to cross-country [[rogaining|rogaines]]. Many ultramarathons, especially [[trail running|trail challenges]], have severe course obstacles, such as inclement weather, elevation change, or rugged terrain. Many of these races are run on [[dirt road]]s or [[trail|mountain paths]], though some are run on paved roads as well. Usually, there are [[aid station]]s every 5 to 15&nbsp;km 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 and 6 days (known as ''multi-day'' events). Timed events are generally run on a track or a short road course, often one mile or less. The [[International Association of Ultra Runners]] (IAU) organises the World Championships for various ultramarathon distances, including 50K, 100K, 24 hours and ultra [[trail running]]. These events are sanctioned by the [[International Association of Athletics Federations]] (IAAF), the world governing body of track and field. 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. ==Ultramarathons over the world== Ultramarathons are run all over the world and over 70,000 people complete ultramarathons every year. A list of the most popular ultra marathons can be found under the subsection "Well-known ultramarathons" below. ===Ultrarunning=== ====Africa==== Several ultra distance events are held in [[Africa]]. [[South Africa]] hosts the world's oldest and largest ultramarathon, the 89&nbsp;km [[Comrades Marathon]]. Approximately 12,000 runners complete Comrades each year, with over 24,500 in 2000. It also hosts the 56-kilometer [[Two Oceans Marathon]] in [[Cape Town]] in the southern autumn which attracts approximately 7000 runners. [[Marathon des Sables]] is a 7 day stage race which covers 250&nbsp;km through the [[Sahara desert]] in [[Morocco]]. The Sahara Race in Egypt, part of the [[4 Deserts]] series, is held annually with about 150 competitors from 30 countries competing. There is also an ultramarathon of 250&nbsp;km across the Namib desert. ====Asia==== Ultrarunning has become popular in [[Asia]] recently, and countries such as [[Taiwan]], [[Japan]], and [[Korea]] have hosted IAU World Championships in the last few years. Korea's first ultramarathon was held in 2000. India's first ultra marathon[http://www.BangaloreUltra.com] was held in 2007, in Bangalore. The Gobi March[http://www.4deserts.com/gobimarch], first held in 2003, in northwest China was China's first ultramarathon. Singapore has a double marathons night race called Sundown Marathon [http://www.sundownmarathon.com] since 2008. In Nepal, the Kanchenjunga Ultra Marathon Trail Running Race[http://www.reachsummit.com/welcome/marathon-trail-running-race-kanchenjunga], first held in 2009, started from Phunlin Bazaar (near Taplejung) at the Nepal and Sikkim border. ====Australia and New Zealand==== The first ultramarathon held in [[New Zealand]] was on a 100&nbsp;km track. Australia and New Zealand are host to some 100 ultramarathons each year. One of the most famous Australian ultramarathons was the [[Westfield Ultra Marathon]], an annual race between [[Sydney]] and [[Melbourne]] which was contested between 1983 and 1991. [[Greece|Greek]] runner [[Yiannis Kouros]] won the event five times during that period. Australia is also the home of one of the oldest [[6 Day Race|six-day race]]s 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 6-day race was held between 20–26 November 2005. During that event Kouros beat his existing world record 6-day track mark and set a new mark of 1036.851&nbsp;km. ====Europe==== Ultrarunning is also popular in [[Europe]], where over 200 ultramarathons are held each year. Among the biggest are: * The [[Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc]] which consists of a 166&nbsp;km loop around [[Mont Blanc]] including 9400 m total elevation gain. <ref name="Official Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc Web Site: UTMB - Profile and details">[http://www.ultratrailmb.com/page.php?page=profil Official Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc Web Site: UTMB - Profile and details]</ref> * The 100k of [[Bienne]] * The 72.7k [[Rennsteiglauf]] in the [[Thuringian Forest]]. The second oldest ultramarathon in the world, [[London]] to [[Brighton]], was widely considered to be among the most prestigious titles until its retirement in [[2005]]. The earliest written documentation of ultrarunners came from [[Iceland]]ic sagas. The history of ultrarunners and walkers from the [[Victorian Era]] has also been documented. The IAU hosts annual European Championships for the 50k, 100k and 24 hours. The [[European Ultramarathon Cup|European Ultramarathon Cup (ECU)]] is an annual series covering several of the biggest races in different European countries. *An extreme challenge in [[Germany]] is the annual multiday ''Deutschlandlauf'' (Germany Run) over 1200&nbsp;km. *In [[Portugal]], the "Ultramaratona das Areias" race covers 43 kilometres on the sand of southern beaches under the blazing sun of summer. *In southern [[Spain]], the "La Legion 101KM en 24 Horas" is a popular ultramarathon in and around the Andalucian town of [[Ronda]] in the province of [[Malaga]]. The race in May is organized and supported by the [[Spanish Foreign Legion]]. ====Antarctica==== Due to logistics, environmental concerns and travel costs (also for organisers) there are only a handful of ultramarathons in Antarctica including: [[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, as part of the [[Central American Games]]. Tomas Zafiro and Leoncio San Miguel, both [[Tarahumara]] Indians, ran 100&nbsp;km from [[Pachuca]] to [[Mexico City]] in 9 hours and 37 minutes. At the time, the Mexican government petitioned to include a 100&nbsp;km race in the [[1928 Summer Olympics]] in [[Amsterdam]], however nothing came of these efforts. In 1928, sports agent [[C. C. Pyle]] organized the first of two editions of the 3455-mile-long [[Bunion Derby]] (the first went along [[U.S. Route 66]] from [[Los Angeles]] to [[Chicago]] before heading toward [[New York City|New York]]; the 1929 Derby reversed the route). Neither the race nor the accompanying [[vaudeville]] show was a financial success. 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. ==Well-known ultramarathons== ===Road and dirt paths=== * [[Biel/Bienne 100 km]] * [[Comrades Marathon]] * [[Grand Union Canal 145 mile Race]] * [[Haney to Harrison 100k Ultra]] * [[London to Brighton events|London to Brighton]] * [[Dartmoor Discovery]] * [[Spartathlon]] * [[Two Oceans Marathon]] * [[Way Too Cool 50 Kilometer]] * [[JFK 50 Mile]] * [[Namibian ultra marathon|The Namibian 24h Ultra Marathon]] * [[TW 50k Ultra]] * [http://www.forcesmarch.org.uk FORCES MARCH] ===Mountain and trails=== * [[Addo Elephant Trail Run]] * [[American River 50 Mile Endurance Run]] * [[Angeles Crest 100 Mile Endurance Run]] * [[Barkley Marathons]] * [[Big Horn Trail Run]] * [[Bear 100 Mile Endurance Run]] * [[Burning River 100 Mile Endurance Run]] * [[Canadian Death Race]] * [[Grand Raid de la Réunion]] * [[Grand Canyon Ultra Marathon]] * [[Grindstone 100 Miler]] * [[Hardrock Hundred Mile Endurance Run]] * [[Jay Challenge]] * [http://hatrun.com/ HAT Run] * [[Kettle Moraine 100 Endurance Runs]] * [[Knee Knackering North Shore Trail Run]] * [[Leadville Trail 100]] * [[Lean Horse Ultramarathon]] * [[McNaughton Park Trail Runs]] * [[Miwok 100K]] * [[Mountain Masochist Trail Run]] * [[Oil Creek 100 Trail Runs - 50K, 50 & 100 miles]] * [[Old Pueblo 50 Mile Endurance Run]] * [[Oxfam Trailwalker]] * [[Quad Dipsea]] * [[Rennsteiglauf]] * [[Scorched Sole]] * [[StumpJump 50k]] * [[TransRockies Run, 6 stages, 125m]] * [[Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc]] * [[Vermont 100 Mile Endurance Run]] * [[Wasatch Front 100 Mile Endurance Run]] * [[Way Too Cool 50K]] * [[Western States Endurance Run]] Wickham Park Marathon, 50M, 100M, 200M ===Extreme conditions=== * [[Marathon des Sables]] * [[6633 Ultra]]: [[The Arctic]], [[Canada]] * [[Badwater Ultramarathon]] * [[4 Deserts]] * [[Namibian ultra marathon]] * Pinhoti 100 Mile Endurance Run Alabama * Arrowhead Winter Ultramarathon ===Very long events and multidays=== * [[Bruce Trail]], [[Ontario, Canada]] 800 kilometers in (10–15 days). * The [[Bunion Derby (Race)|Bunion Derby]], Los Angeles to New York 3,455 miles (3 months). * [http://www.budapestmarathon.com/eng/balaton.html Lake Balaton Supermarathon, Hungary (4 days)] * [[Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race]] * [[Spreelauf]] * [[Trans Europe Foot Race]] * [[Trans-Gaule]] ==World or national-record holding or world-championship-winning ultramarathon runners== * [[Tomoe Abe]], 100&nbsp;km female world record holder (6:33:11) <ref name="IAAF: 100 km World and Area Records">[http://www.iaaf.org/statistics/records/inout=O/discType=5/disc=100K/detail.html IAAF: 100 km World and Area Records]</ref> * [[Gordy Ansleigh]], [[Western States Endurance Run]] pioneer, 'inventor' of the trail ultramarathon * [[Suprabha Beckjord]] 3100 mile race record holder * [[Edit Berces]], world record holder, 24 hour treadmill; holds several Hungarian records * [[Ted Corbitt]], "father of American ultrarunning"; 1952 US Olympic team member; former American world record holder at various distances * [[Bruce Fordyce]], nine time [[Comrades Marathon]] winner; African 100K record holder (6:25:07) * [[Mark Godale]], 24 Hour Road American Record Holder 162.4 Miles, 1999 USA Track & Field Ultra Runner of the Year. * [[Wally Hayward]], Multiple winner of Comrades Marathon, London to Brighton, many other ultramarathons; set early world records * [[Bernd Heinrich]], US 100 mile track record holder (12:27:01), [[natural history|naturalist]] * [[Serge Girard]], trans-USA (4,597&nbsp;km - 1997), trans-South America (5,235&nbsp;km - 2001), trans-Africa (8,295&nbsp;km - 2003/2004) and trans-Eurasia (19,097&nbsp;km - 2005/2006) record holder * [[Scott Jurek]], seven time winner and current course record holder of the Western States Endurance Run; two-time winner and former course record holder of the [[Badwater Ultramarathon]]; winner and former course record holder of the [[Hardrock Hundred Mile Endurance Run]]; two-time winner of the [[Spartathlon]] 152-mile race from Athens to Sparta, Greece * [[Vladimir Kotov]], former Comrades Marathon winner * [[Yiannis Kouros]], multi-day race legend, holder of numerous world records and world bests from 24 hours to 1,000 miles, course record holder of the Spartathlon since its inception in 1983 * [[Frith van der Merwe]], set Comrades Marathon records for both directions * [[Stu Mittleman]], US record holder for six day race (578 miles) * [[Arthur F. H. Newton]], 5 times Comrades Marathon winner * [[Jesper Olsen (runner)|Jesper Olsen]], has run around the world in 22 months (2004-'05), documenting his progress via phone GPS updates, daily logs and photos. He also participated in many official races en route and won the Australian 6-days race (2004). * [[Takahiro Sunada]], 100&nbsp;km male world record holder (6:13:33) <ref name="IAAF: 100 km World and Area Records"/> * [[Ann Trason]], thirteen time Western States Endurance Run winner and current female course record holder; holds numerous world records, including 100 mile (13:47:41 1991), 50 mile (5:40:18, 1991), and 12 Hours (147.6k, 1991); American 100k record holder (7:00:48) * [[Hilary Walker]], holder of six world records at various distances * [[Cliff Young (athlete)|Cliff Young]], former winner Westfield Sydney to Melbourne; holds numerous world age records ==Ultracycling== Extra long distance bicycle races are also referred to as "ultramarathons" or "ultracycling" events. In cycling, there is no specific distance that is directly analogous to runners' 26 miles (42&nbsp;km), so the definition of cycling ultramarathon is not set in stone. Generally, all events that last 12 hours or longer or cover distances of over 200 miles (so-called "double century") can be considered ultramarathons. Some examples of ultramarathons include [[Race Across America]] and its [http://www.ultracycling.com/events/raamqualifiers.html qualifying races]. ==See also== * [[International Association of Ultra Runners]] * [[Multiday race]] * [[UltraRunning magazine]] ==References== {{Refimprove|date=August 2009}} <references/> ==External links== * [http://www.TheUltraMarathon.com/ TheUltraMarathon.com] - International Web-Links & Ultra Running Art Gallery by Robert Orcutt * [http://www.RealEndurance.com/ RealEndurance.com] - UltraRunning All Time Result Lists * [http://www.ultramarathonrunning.com/ ULTRAmarathonRunning.com] Global Ultramarathon Races & Events Calendar * [http://theultramarathonstore.com/ The Ultramarathon Store] - Ultramarathon calendars covering North America * [http://multidays.com/ Multidays.com] - Multiday and ultrarunning news from around the world {{Athletics events}} {{Racing unassisted human}} [[Category:Events in athletics (track and field)]] [[Category:Ultramarathons|*]] [[Category:Running]] [[Category:Endurance sports]] [[af:Ultramaraton]] [[cs:Ultramaraton]] [[da:Ultramarathon]] [[de:Ultramarathon]] [[es:Ultramaratón]] [[eo:Ultradistanca kuro]] [[fr:Ultrafond]] [[ko:울트라마라톤]] [[it:Ultramaratona]] [[hu:Ultramaraton]] [[nl:Ultralopen]] [[ja:ウルトラマラソン]] [[no:Ultraløp]] [[pl:Ultramaraton]] [[pt:Ultramaratona]] [[simple:Ultramarathon]] [[sk:Ultramaratón]] [[sr:Ултрамаратон]] [[sh:Ultramaraton]] [[fi:Ultrajuoksu]] [[sv:Ultramaraton]] [[tr:Ultra maraton]]'