Hall, the winner of the Spine Race a couple of months ago, exited early on the last loop after an incredible display on his first appearance at the event. Until now the Frenchman had been best known as the holder of the record for the self-supported fastest-known time for the south-to-north route on the John Muir Trail – a 213-mile route through the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California.

He’d started the final loop just a few minutes behind Kelly and was forced to go counter-clockwise as the first to set off chooses their direction and it alternates after that. Remarkably it was Sanchez’s first appearance in the event and he had over an hour and a half to spare at the end, stopping the clock in 58:23:12.

No one had been able to emulate Kelly until now, though Sanchez had one final challenge near the end as a day hiker, who believed the race was over, had removed one of the books the competitors have to tear pages from. There was a record-equalling third finisher too as Belgium’s Karel Sabbe just made it back in the nick of time.

France’s Aurelien Sanchez has become the first finisher of the notorious Barkley Marathons since 2017 – and the 16th in the race’s history – after a closely-fought battle.Īnd the man he pipped to first place was none other than John Kelly, the last person to make it through five 20-mile loops inside 60 hours six years ago at Frozen Head State Park in Morgan County, Tennessee.

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