During the 24 ore di Torino, the longest 24 hour running event in Italy, Robbie Britton broke the record with a distance of 277.439km (172.392 miles) in one day.
The event took place on Saturday, February 25, 2023 in Turin, Italy. After 24 hours, Britton took the record on Sunday, February 26th. The previous record stood since 1982 by David Dowdle with a distance of 274.480km.
The race in Italy also has a six hour event along with a 100km race in Parco Ruffini, which is a fairly flat course which loops around.
Britton is seen crawling to a bench on his Instagram after finishing the 24 hour run. While his legs gave out by the end, the record was his.
Britton told Runner’s World:
“The psychological battle was as hard as the physical one out there this weekend. The legs start hurting early doors and you still have 18 hours to go. The mind wants you to stop, or slow down, and I had to take it one hour at a time to convince myself it was all worth it, that the record was still possible. I love 24hr running, but at times in the race I just wanted to curl up in a ball on the side of the road.”
Britton is an avid runner with highlights from the 5k to 24 hours. He’s run a 2:29 marathon and previously a 261km 24 hour best, which earned a World and European bronze medal.
He’s also an ultra-distance running coach and the author of “1001 Running Tips: the essential runner’s guide.”
