© Copyright – 2025 – Athletics Illustrated
Americans Caleb Olson and Abby Hall each won the Western States Endurance Run on Saturday.
Olson, a 29-year-old from Draper, Utah, won the 100-plus-mile (162-kilometre) race that starts in Olympic Valley, California and ends in Auburn, California.
He finished in 14 hours, 11 minutes and 25 seconds.
Olson told race organizers, “It’s pretty unbelievable. I was not sure how the day would go, and I set a really high goal for myself. And I thought, ‘It’s probably going to take a course record to win today. And if I’m going to go for a course record, sub-14 would be pretty cool.’”
Here’s a flyover of the 2025 Western States 100 course.
— Stephen Searer (@stephensearer) June 4, 2025
Starting at Olympic Valley near Lake Tahoe and finishing in Auburn, the 100.2 Mile (161km) course racks up 18,090 feet (5500 m) of vertical gain while descending a total of 22,970 feet (7000 m).
The race begins at… pic.twitter.com/JddHKQQELO
“And I held that up until mile 80. I was up on those (course record) splits. And then I started paying for it. Turns out sub-14 is really fast. Jim’s record is really fast … Eventually, I saw it probably wasn’t going to happen and I’d rather have a nice, enjoyable experience running it in.”
Hall 34 took the women’s race in 16:36:16, two years after suffering a broken leg while training in Flagstaff, AZ.
“The quote I kept repeating to myself and thinking of this whole week was something like what’s for you, will find you,” said Hall.
“I have really felt like I was meant to be here. I pushed through two hard Golden Ticket events, and I just felt so fortunate at the way it worked out with the ticket roll down. It’s really surreal.”
For the competitors in this race, there is over 5,486 metres of elevation gain (18,000 feet). There is another 7000 metres of loss (23,000 feet). One hundred and sixty-two kilometres is arduous enough in hot temperatures. The elevation changes on top of the warmth require a special form of training for all competitors.
The temperature topped out at approximately 35°C (95°F). However, organizers estimated “99 degrees” at one point.
For Olson, it was the second-fastest time in the history of the 52-year-long running race. In 2024, Olson finished fifth in 14:40:12.
This year, the goal was about breaking the course record. The current record was set in 2019 by Jim Walmsley at 14:04:28. On a cooler day, Olson may have been able to do it.
Finishing in second place was Chris Myers, who clocked a new personal best of 14:17:39. He finished more than eight minutes ahead of Spain’s Kilian Jornet.
Hall’s finish time was over an hour slower than Courtney Dauwalter’s 2023 course record. Finishing in second place was Fuzhao Xiang of China. She finished in 16:47:09, the sixth-fastest women’s time in history, followed by Canadian Marianne Hogan in third in 16:50:58.
Amazingly, Hall, who attempted to earn a golden ticket to the Western States 100, had to enter like everyone else. A golden ticket is a qualification ticket that is earned at other designated qualifying ultramarathon races.
The heat
The heat ended the race for several top runners, including Vincent Bouillard, Heather Jackson, and Eszter Csillag, among others.
The race was first held in 1974. The Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run is considered one of the world’s preeminent 100-mile trail races. According to organizers, the race’s mission is to stage a transformational and quality world-class event for its runners.
But, also perform trail stewardship and conduct medical research studies for the betterment of the sport.
The 162-kilometre (100.2-mile) race travels through the Sierra high country. And passes through the canyons of the American River on the ancestral lands of the Washoe and Nisenan tribes. Runners finish at Placer High School in Auburn, California.
