The Barkley Marathon is renowned for its grueling physical and mental demands, requiring unique abilities to endure and complete the event. It’s a 60,000-vertical-foot course that needs to be completed within 60 hours of start. More so, there have been only a few names who have dared to complete the marathon, and in its 38-year history, Jasmin Paris is the only woman in the world who claimed the title of Barkley Marathon winner on Friday.

Despite the event holding all the red flags to not pursue, as indicated by Gary “Laz” Cantrell, the marathon founder, who noted that the marathon went unfinished for four years since its inception until someone finally completed it. With all that being said, there have been several women who have risked it all to stand on the other side of the finish line.

The women who courageously pursued the finish line

As reported by Outside, before the British prodigy Paris became the first woman this month to finish the event, several other renowned ultrarunners like Amelia Boone, Liz Canty, Stephanie Case, Maggie Guterl, Nicki Rehn, and Kaz Williams had tried their luck in the event. Canty, who participated in the 2018 edition, said at the time, “It was exciting to see that Laz let in more women than usual, and competitive women to boot. I would sell a kidney to come back and try again.”

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She also added that Barkley marathon’s confidential entry process and ultrarunning’s historical focus on men were two of the reasons that only a few women attempted it. What makes this competition even more challenging are the impediments that runners encounter during their participation, one of which can be the extreme weather conditions.

“There was a foot of snow two days before, and then it melted. I’d never seen mud like this before. I wasn’t anticipating sliding back down on 40 percent grades,” is what Rehn stated after she courageously ventured to the 2018 Barkley Marathon. The harsh weather had impacted the event so much that no male or female athlete could complete more than two to three loops at the time, and this added more to the already under pressure pack of the aforementioned women, who were trying to carve a path for other aspiring female marathoners.

READ MORE – World’s Hardest Race To Quit? Barkley Marathon 2024’s Dark Side

“I knew a lot of people, particularly other women, were rooting for us. But in hindsight, we were definitely under a microscope,” said Guterl. “Very few men or women finished two loops, within or over the time limit, so the fact that three women were part of that group is pretty darn good!”

This statement from Case implies that in spite of all the adversities the female athletes were going through, three of them managed to cross two loops, and percentage-wise, women also dominated the male pack back in the day, which became an inspiration for female competitors. One other female marathoner competed in the Barkley Marathon in 2018, and she was a complete newbie to the competition and was wondering why people would risk their lives for such a race.

Little did she know that the marathon would prove to be a wholly transformative experience, altering her life forever. “It sounded lonely, brutal, and masochistic. Volunteers cheering me along the way, constant supplies of food, and well-marked trails. That was tough, I thought.” She stated. Despite all these challenges they encountered, the determined ladies expressed their resolve to return and run the marathon again.

Their affection for the Barkley Marathon only deepened thereafter

Liz Canty, the participant in the 2018 competition, had already mentioned that she would sell her kidney to come back to the event, and she later also added that she had worked really hard and had learned so much from the event that she didn’t want to waste all the lessons she had gotten from the Barkley Marathon and concluded, “I’m hooked.” Canty was not the only one who wanted to reappear, but the whole female roster of the 2018 edition wanted to make a comeback if Gary “Laz” Cantrell would allow them to.

The aforementioned “newbie” participant, who said she felt lonely, also made a comeback in 2019 with a much stronger will, even after her friend did not participate with her this time. Following the trailblazing efforts of the aforementioned athletes, Jasmin Paris shattered barriers by completing the marathon in 59 hours, 58 minutes, and 21 seconds, marking a historic achievement, and showcasing women’s ability to compete on par with men and their ability to conquer anything that is humanely possible.

World’s Hardest Race To Quit? Barkley Marathon 2024’s Dark Side