For 2nd Year in a Row, Nobody Finished Notorious Race

For the second straight year, no one conquered Tennessee's Barkley Marathons, the cult ultrarace designed to break even the sport's elite. Some 40 runners from 15 states and 15 countries set out Saturday at Frozen Head State Park after race founder Gary "Lazarus Lake" Cantrell started the race in the traditional way by lighting a cigarette, Runner's World reports. More than 38 hours later, the 40-year-old event ended as it has 26 times before: with zero official finishers.

• Barkley's rules remain as punishing as its terrain. Runners must complete five brutal loops—typically around 100 miles, though this year's course was closer to 130—within 60 hours, navigating unmarked, steep, bramble-choked slopes using only paper maps and compasses while collecting pages from hidden books to prove they stayed on course. Just 20 people have ever finished.
• This year, Frenchman Sébastien Raichon was the only entrant to complete three loops, earning the race's "fun run" designation in 38:05:46 but missing the time cutoff to start loop four. The result follows 2024's history-making finish by Britain's Jasmin Paris, the first woman ever to complete all five loops. She finished with 99 seconds to spare.
• "It's pretty hard," Cantrell told the CBC last month. Asked why people do it, he said, "Because it's a tremendous challenge. When someone makes it you feel elevated just by witnessing what someone else can do."