No woman has ever finished but Jasmin Paris completed a ‘fun run’ 12 months ago (three loops inside 40 hours) and she too started well again. Kelly of course was the last person to finish (in 2017), Campbell is a three-time finisher (2012, 20) while Sabbe looked on course last year before hallucinations kicked in. Thanks to the closest thing to an official race feed – Keith Dunn’s Twitter account – we know that three of the biggest favourites, Kelly, Jared Campbell and Karel Sabbe are “all in or near the front group”. Obviously it also involves an incredible amount of ascent – or ‘vert’ – which is in the region of 12,000 feet as the runners tear pages out of hidden books and return them at the end of each lap to ‘Laz’, waiting at the yellow gate.

Sub-9hrs in relatively favourable conditions for the first loop looks a decent benchmark, though the course can change year-on-year and it’s anyone’s guess whether it’s nearer 20 or 26 miles. ‘My plan was always to push a little bit’ – Tom Evans on Ultra-Trail Snowdonia win

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