Something extraordinary just happened in the Italian Alps — and if you haven’t heard about it yet, you’re going to want to sit down for this one.
German ultrarunner Katharina Hartmuth didn’t just return to defend her title at the Tor des Géants 330K in Italy’s Aosta Valley — she obliterated her own women’s course record by more than 12 hours.
She also made history in a way no woman ever has before.
And the men’s race had its own jaw-dropping story, with China’s Jiaju Zhao crossing the finish line while describing the experience as something worse than death — and meaning every word of it.
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Hartmuth Rewrites the Record Books in Courmayeur
Hartmuth completed the TOR330 in 67 hours, 10 minutes, and nine seconds — finishing third overall, just 75 minutes behind the race winner.
That’s not a typo. A woman finished third overall in one of the most brutal mountain ultras on the planet.
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To put the record-breaking performance in perspective, Hartmuth’s previous women’s record — set in 2024 — was 79 hours, 10 minutes, and 40 seconds. That run had already made her the first woman to finish the race in under 80 hours.
This time, she stripped more than 12 hours off that already-historic mark. She became the first woman to break the 70-hour barrier and the first woman ever to stand on the overall TOR330 podium.
Fifteen Minutes of Sleep. Over 330 Kilometers.
The TOR330 is not a race for the faint of heart. Starting and finishing in Courmayeur, Italy — the same town featured on the UTMB 170 and CCC courses — this year’s route stretched approximately 336 kilometers through the Italian Alps.
Runners climbed roughly 24,000 meters of elevation, with up to 150 hours to complete the course.
Hartmuth reportedly slept for only about 15 minutes during the entire race. That single detail says everything about what kind of competitor she is.
A Season That Was Already Legendary Before This
What makes this achievement even more staggering is what Hartmuth’s 2026 season already looked like before Courmayeur.
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She had already claimed a victory at the Madeira Island Ultra-Trail and set a women’s fastest known time on England’s iconic Bob Graham Round. Add in two UTMB podium finishes — second in 2023, third in 2025 — and you have one of the most formidable ultrarunners in the world operating at an entirely different level right now.
Zhao’s Winning Run Came at an Unimaginable Cost
While Hartmuth was rewriting women’s history, China’s Jiaju Zhao was making his own at the front of the race.
The 31-year-old crossed the finish line in 65 hours, 55 minutes, and 22 seconds — slashing 13 minutes off Victor Richard’s 2025 course record and becoming the first Chinese runner ever to win the TOR330.
Zhao led from early in the race and never relinquished that position. But the cost of victory was written all over him at the finish.
It feels like a living hell. This is the last time I will run more than 168 kilometres. It’s worse than death.
In his post-race interview, Zhao described battling persistent nosebleeds, excruciating pain on the soles of his feet, and overwhelming fatigue so severe that he resorted to slapping his own face to stay awake.
Raw. Brutal. And somehow, still faster than anyone in the race’s history.
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The Rise of One of Ultra Running’s Hottest Names
Despite Zhao’s vow to never again tackle distances beyond 168 kilometers, his long-distance résumé suggests he was built for exactly this kind of suffering.
His recent results read like a highlight reel most runners can only dream about:
- Winner of the 170.7-km Chongli 168 in Zhangjiakou, China (2026)
- Second place at Mt. Fuji 100 earlier this season
- Winner of the 96.4-km Ultra-Trail Xiamen by UTMB (March 2026)
- 10th at UTMB, plus wins at Mount Yun by UTMB and the 164-km Chengdu Trail (2025)
- Winner at Doi Inthanon by UTMB in Thailand
- Second place at the grueling 400-km Ultra Gobi in China
Switzerland’s Jonathan Schindler rounded out the overall podium, finishing second in 66 hours, 55 minutes, and six seconds — a performance that would have been the headline story of almost any other race weekend.
A Race Weekend That Will Be Talked About for Years
Records fell in both the men’s and women’s races. History was made on the overall podium. And two athletes pushed themselves to the absolute outer edge of human capability in the mountains of northern Italy.
Hartmuth’s transformation from record-holder to barrier-breaker — moving from sub-80 hours to sub-70 in a single year — is the kind of athletic progression that reframes what’s considered possible in the sport.
As for Zhao, whether or not he keeps his promise to step back from ultra-distances, his performance in Courmayeur has firmly announced him as a force in global ultrarunning.
If you want something simple that actually works, this is one of the most effective tools I’ve used to build strength, conditioning, and endurance without needing a full gym setup.
- Full-body training with one weight using swings, squats, and presses
- Solid cast iron build that feels stable and lasts for years
- Comfortable grip that makes high-rep workouts easier to handle
One finish line. Two records. And a weekend that the world of ultrarunning won’t forget anytime soon.
