Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Advnture
Advnture
Julia Clarke

A bit of an overcorrection? This year's Barkley Marathons proves too tough for every last runner with not a single finisher

The Barkley Marathon. Here, the legs of Jim Nelson are cut and bleeding from the thorns of the sawbreyer bushes throughout the course.

The 2025 Barkley Marathons has ended without a single finisher as the new course picked off every last runner over a 40-hour period.

After Jasmin Paris made history in 2024 by becoming the first woman to complete the 100-mile course – something founder Laz said would never happen – the course was made harder than ever.

It worked.

The 40 runners who start at Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee have just 12 hours to complete each 25-mile lap, and this year only nine made it to the second lap in time. Keith Dunn, who provides the only commentary of the obscure race via X, announced no runners had completed the second lap within 24 hours.

However, three exceptionally tough runners continued to fight on for the Fun Run (and that's Type 2 fun, if you're wondering), which is achieved if you manage three laps within 40 hours. John Kelly, who was going for his fourth finish, made it in time in 39:50:27, while Sébastien Raichon tapped himself out without finishing the third loop and at last report, Tokyo's Tomokazu Ihara was still out on the course somewhere.

Dunn had earlier reported that navigation was more of an issue than usual on the overgrown and poorly marked trail, probably owing to the fact that they're not allowed to use their GPS watches, or any GPS navigation at all for that matter.

"Seems a few people this year had ‘follow a veteran’ as their navigation plan. It didn’t work out for them. laz was unimpressed and described that mindset in strong words," says Dunn, later reporting that "a runner may be running down Hwy 62."

No finishers is nothing new for the race, which has seen zero finishers over a dozen times since the first race in 1986, however recent years have seen an uptick of finishers with an unprecedented five in 2024.

In the end, the only winner of this year's Barkley Marathons was the Barkley Marathons itself.


Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.