Six months after giving start to her daughter, Canadian human rights lawyer and ultrarunner Stephanie Case shocked even herself by successful the Extremely-Path Snowdonia (UTS) by UTMB 100K in Eyri, Wales— and she or he didn’t even comprehend it till after she crossed the end line. Case, who has beforehand stood on the rostrum at Hardrock 100 and was the primary girl (and third total) to complete the 2021 version of 450-kilometre Tor des Glaciers, is not any stranger to racing with grit—and on little sleep.
Beginning half-hour behind the elites within the third wave of runners, Case powered by way of 6,300 metres of climbing and a brutally technical course in 16:53:22, breastfeeding her daughter Pepper at support stations, and pacing herself with no information of the place she stood within the race. “It was meant to be my warm-up for Hardrock,” she wrote on Instagram post-race. “I began within the final wave… however I may go at my very own tempo in blissful ignorance of my inserting.”
By the point she reached the end line, she’d leapfrogged all the elite area on chip time— together with British runner Lauren Graham, who completed in 16:57:44 and Japan’s Kimino Miyazaki, who crossed the road in third in 17:06:34.
“I wished to point out her how wonderful mother runners will be”
Case, who stepped away from racing for 3 years whereas going by way of IVF and a number of miscarriages, stated the expertise was emotional and empowering. “Each kilometre that handed jogged my memory that I hadn’t misplaced a factor… I’ve gained extra pleasure and power from this sport as a mother than I ever did earlier than.”
She additionally acknowledged the bodily realities of postpartum working with attribute honesty: “Let’s be actual—once I began dry heaving, I misplaced all bladder management after 95km.” She hopes her efficiency encourages new mothers to chase large objectives: “There is no such thing as a ‘comeback’ after childbirth. There may be simply the subsequent section.”
Mat Blanchard is again
Within the males’s race, British athlete Jonathan Albon stormed to victory in 11:34:51, however Mathieu Blanchard, a twin citizen of France and Canada, made a robust assertion of his personal. After tackling the Yukon Arctic Extremely earlier this yr and taking an extended restoration break, the Salomon athlete returned in fashion. Blanchard completed second in 12:03:09, a outstanding 40 minutes forward of the earlier course report.
Even a fall 20km into the race couldn’t gradual him down. “Engraved reminiscence of the eighth kilometer / First time down, thrill of the grasp,” he wrote on Instagram after the race. His subsequent cease: Hardrock 100 in July.
Fernie’s Ethan Peters crushes UTS 100-miler
Ethan Peters, a 26-year-old from Fernie, B.C., quietly stormed the UTS 100-mile race, crossing the end in 23:59:20. It was a gritty run over a few of Wales’ wildest mountains, and Peters held sturdy to assert the win by almost two hours. Behind him had been Austria’s Florian Grasel (25:43:20) and the U.Ok.’s Tom Joly (27:21:40).
Peters ran his first 100-miler at 19, and has quietly constructed a formidable resume. In 2024, he was the highest Canadian finisher at UTMB, inserting thirty sixth total in a stacked worldwide area. His win in Wales locks in an automated qualification for the 2026 UTMB Finals.
For full outcomes of Extremely Path Snowdownia, head right here.
