These are the top 4 FKTs Of the Year in Europe! Selected by voters, out of 1,308 FKTs in Europe in 2020.
The stories are great - click through to read the runner's own works, see their photos, and links to killer videos.
Listen to each on the podcast.
#2 Female
Stephanie Kröll - Berliner Höhenweg
Stats: 20hr 18min 28secs; 56.97mi; 23,363' vertical gain
Context: An alpine loop in Zillertal, Tirol, Austria. Due to good infrastructure but high technical difficulty, it is one of the most desired FKTs in Austria. Two weeks prior, Kristin Berglund (2nd UTMB 2019) ran it in 23h 50min.
Stephanie: https://youtu.be/ng2HqX9ky_I
Voters: Steffi lives in the Zillertal, so this is her hometurf. She stopped the first attempt due to horrific weather. And came back even stronger on the successful attempt.
#2 Male
Damian Hall - Pennine Way
Stats: 2days 13hr 35min 15secs; 260.52mi; 38,835' vertical gain
Context: One of the most historic routes and venerated FKTs in the UK. 3hr 11min under a FKT set only 8 days prior that had stood for 31 years.
Damian: https://www.summitfevermedia.com/pennine-way-fkt
Voters: The Pennine Way is competitive and fast.
#1 Female
Beth Pascall - Bob Graham Round
Stats: 14hr 34min 26secs; 63.65mi; 26,070' vertical gain
Context: The BGR is a world classic (first done in 1932) 'Open Course' traverse of 42 peaks in England’s Lake District. This is the 5th fastest ever, out of 2,400 registered completions. 1hr 42min slower than Kilian, 49min faster than Jasmin Paris from 2016.
Beth: "I didn't want to make my attempt public, because I was afraid I would be laughed at."
Voters: "BGR is THE FKT in Europe and Beth's time was unbelievable. The Bob Graham Round is an iconic UK Round and the records have been stout for many years...for Beth to beat Jasmin's time so stoutly is quite the FKT!"
#1 Male
Finlay Wild - Ramsay Round
Stats: 14hr 42min 40secs; 57.45mi; 25,283' vertical gain
Context: Ramsay's Round is generally considered harder than the Bob Graham; despite being a little shorter, the terrain is much rougher. Solo, Unsupported, and took 90min off the Supported time.
Finlay: "I live in these hills, I run in these hills, I love these hills. And I set an FKT in these hills."
Voters: "Finlay's low profile Unsupported Ramsay blew everyone away. He went 90 minutes quicker than the Supported record on a round that has existed for decades. A world class mountain runner."
Voters Overall Comments:
"A lot of Brits on this list, but it was a hot scene the UK in 2020, so have to vote for what was the best. I look forward to Spain and France opening up in 2021!"
"A huge number of routes were added in Europe this year. It's getting harder and harder to compare these amazing accomplishments!"