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The 61-year-old farmer who outran the pros
In 1983, the Sydney-Melbourne ultramarathon stretched over 865 km. The favorites were professional athletes, trained to run day and night without sleep.
Cliff Young, a 61-year-old Australian farmer, showed up at the start line in overalls and work boots. He had never run a marathon before, only long-distance races across his fields to round up his sheep.
For five days, the runners slept four hours a night. Cliff didn’t stop. He jogged relentlessly, overtaking exhausted leaders one by one. He crossed the finish line in 5 days, 15 hours, and 4 minutes, shattering the race record by nearly two days.
The organizers changed the rules the following year: no more running without sleep.
Source: secouchermoinsbete.fr
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