The mountain running world is grieving one of its most fearless competitors.
Megan Kimmel — the Colorado-born skyrunner who shattered a record that had survived for nearly four decades — has died at the age of 45.
The International Skyrunning Federation confirmed the news on Instagram on June 15, 2026, though no cause of death has been made public.
Her loss has sent shockwaves through the global running community, with tributes pouring in from fans, friends, and fellow athletes who knew just how rare she truly was.
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A Legend Remembered
The International Skyrunning Federation didn’t hold back in honoring Kimmel’s impact on the sport.
An extraordinary athlete and true skyrunner whose legacy will live on.
Short words. Enormous meaning.
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iRunFar’s Meghan Hicks put it even more vividly, writing that the San Juan Mountains “will feel vacant without the larger-than-life, straight-talking, takes-no-bullshit Megan Kimmel.” That sentiment has resonated deeply across social media, where condolences have flooded in since the announcement broke.
Born to Run — and Born to Win
Kimmel was born in Denver in 1980 and built a professional career that spanned multiple continents, two major sponsors — ASICS and later Salomon — and a trophy case most elite athletes could only dream of filling.
Skyrunning, for the uninitiated, is a brutally demanding discipline. Races take place at elevations of 6,600 feet or higher, on courses designed to punish everything the mountain can throw at a human body.
Kimmel didn’t just compete in that world. She dominated it.
The Year That Changed Everything
Her international breakthrough arrived in 2014 with a silver medal at the Skyrunning World Championships in Chamonix, France — but 2015 was the year Kimmel truly announced herself on the global stage.
Within a single calendar year, she accomplished what most runners couldn’t manage across an entire career:
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- Full-body training with one weight using swings, squats, and presses
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- Won the Dolomites SkyRace in Italy with a course record of 2:25:57
- Claimed victory at the Matterhorn Ultraks in Switzerland
- Won The Rut in Montana
- Secured her first Skyrunner World Series title
- Finished second at Sierre-Zinal
- Took the North Face Endurance Challenge 50 Mile Championships in San Francisco
She followed that up in 2016 with a second consecutive Migu Run Skyrunner World Series title, racking up wins at Livigno SkyMarathon, Matterhorn Ultraks, Limone Extreme, and The Rut. Back-to-back world series championships. Two years running.
The Record That Defined a Career
For all her international glory, one result stands above the rest in the American running conversation.
In 2018, Kimmel ran the Pikes Peak Marathon in Colorado and crossed the finish line in 4:15:06 — obliterating a women’s course record set by Lynn Bjorklund all the way back in 1981. That record had endured for 37 years. She erased it.
The Pikes Peak course climbs to a staggering 14,115 feet — the kind of altitude that breaks most runners before the halfway point. Kimmel had a different relationship with thin air.
I didn’t expect it, but I also didn’t rule it out because if there’s one thing I’m really good at, it’s performing at altitude. I knew what the race record was, but I didn’t think it was possible. I simply kept a healthy pace because I didn’t know who was behind me.
Calm. Calculated. Unstoppable.
A Career That Spanned Three Continents
The wins kept coming well beyond that historic Colorado day.
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- Full-body training with one weight using swings, squats, and presses
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In 2017 and again in 2019, Kimmel won the Yading Skyrun in western China — a race set in one of the most remote, high-altitude landscapes on Earth. She also secured a podium finish at Japan’s Mount Awa SkyRace, took third at the iconic Transvulcania Ultramarathon in the Canary Islands, and won the Broken Arrow 52K in California.
Her record in a Team USA jersey was equally impressive. Kimmel represented her country at the World Mountain Running Championships on at least three separate occasions, and was part of the U.S. women’s squad that claimed a bronze medal in 2009.
Life After Racing
Kimmel stepped away from professional competition during the COVID-19 pandemic, closing one remarkable chapter while remaining rooted in the landscape she loved most.
She had long called Silverton, Colorado home — a mountain town sitting above 9,300 feet, surrounded by the jagged peaks of the San Juan range. More recently, she had relocated to the nearby community of Ridgway.
The mountains were always where she belonged.
A Legacy Carved Into the Mountains
Kimmel’s name now stands alongside the small, elite group of American women who have genuinely shaped mountain and ultrarunning on a global scale. It’s a short list — and she earned her place on it completely.
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- 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
Her family has not yet released information about memorial arrangements. The running community, meanwhile, continues to mourn and celebrate in equal measure — sharing race photos, finish-line moments, and personal stories of what it meant to witness her compete.
Some athletes win races. Others rewrite what’s possible. Megan Kimmel did both — and the mountains she ran will carry her name long after the grief of this moment fades.
