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CONTACT: John Trent, WSER Media Relations, press@wser.org
FASTEST WESTERN STATES EVER: COURSE RECORDS FALL AT WSER
AUBURN, Calif. – Course records fell in both the women’s and the men’s races during the 53rd Western States Endurance Run on June 27-28, with the top three finishers in the men’s race led by champion Vincent Bouillard shattering the 14-hour barrier as Jennifer Lichter made her 100-mile debut equally historic in eclipsing the women’s course record.
Bouillard, 32, of Annecy, France, passed runner-up Francesco Puppi of Italy late in the race to finish in 13 hours, 46 minutes and 15 seconds to become the first runner to ever complete the 100.2-mile course in under 14 hours. Puppi, 34, finished in 13:51, with Ryan Montgomery, 32, of Hanover, New Hampshire, finishing third in 13:53. All three runners, as well as fourth-place Thomas Cardin, 31, of Cognin, France, broke the previous course record of 14:09 set by Jim Walmsley in 2019.
Lichter, 30, of Missoula, Montana, running in her first 100-miler, ran a strong and confident race and took the lead for good at the Devil’s Thumb aid station at mile 47. Running at or near record pace throughout, she finished with a flourish on the Placer High School track in Auburn, California, sprinting by Courtney Dauwalter’s 2023 course record of 15:29:33 by a little more than a minute. Lichter’s course record time: 15:28:06.
Lichter was followed by Riley Brady, 31, of Boulder, Colorado, who finished in 15:42 (third-fastest ever at Western States), and Marianne Hogan, 36, of Canada, who finished in 15:51 (fifth-fastest all-time). In all, the women’s field saw seven of the fastest top 10 times ever recorded at Western States, with the men’s race recording five of the fastest top 10 times ever at the run, which was first held in 1974.
In addition to the two most competitive fields ever assembled at Western States, weather conditions were considered prime for the 370 runners who assembled in Olympic Valley, California on Saturday morning. The remnants of a low-pressure system from Alaska still buffeted the high country with cool temperatures and high winds early in Saturday’s run. As the day wore on, things calmed down and made for prime running. The high temperature struggled to break into the 70s at the finish line in Auburn, reaching only 73 degrees – nearly 20 degrees below the historical high average for June 27. The result was 322 runners who finished, with an all-time high finish rate of 87% percent.
Among the other notable performances was a new 50 to 59 age group record, set by Jeff “Bronco Billy” Browning, 54, of Flagstaff, Arizona, who ran 18:03. The run’s final official finisher was Mike Smith, 68, of Santa Fe, N.M., who ran 29:58:31, just under the official race cutoff time of 30 hours. The oldest female finisher was 64-year-old Stephanie Irving of Trout Lake, Washington, who finished in 29:27. 136 runners finished in under 24 hours, earning them a coveted silver belt buckle. All other finishers under 30 hours received a bronze belt buckle.
ABOUT WESTERN STATES: First held in 1974, the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run has a 369-runner field from throughout the United States and more than 30 countries. Western States is considered one of the world’s preeminent 100-mile trail races. Its mission is to stage a transformational and quality world-class event for its runners, as well as perform trail stewardship and conduct medical research studies for the betterment of the sport. Held on the last full weekend in June starting in Olympic Valley, California, the 100.2-mile event travels through the Sierra high country and the canyons of the American River on the ancestral lands of the Washoe and Nisenan tribes, before finishing at Placer High School in Auburn, California.
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