From the team behind the World’s Deepest Marathon, this latest effort flips the script from below sea level to nearly 7,000 metres above it.
There are marathons… and then there are runs that probably shouldn’t be marathons.
Running 42.2km is brutal enough for most of us.
Running it from nearly 7,000 metres up the side of the tallest volcano on Earth is something else entirely.
But on 11 February, five runners did exactly that and completed what is now officially recognised as the highest marathon ever run on Ojos del Salado in Chile.
The event has been awarded two Guinness World Records titles:
Highest Marathon and Highest Marathon Distance Run (Team).
Nearly 7,000 Metres. Then a Marathon.
When you first read the numbers, they don’t really land cognitively until you sit with them a while.
Think about this: The start line sat at 6,893 metres above sea level which, by all accounts, is well into the zone where standing still feels like hard work because of the altitude. Breathing is compromised, you can’t move as fast and decision-making gets a bit fuzzy.
Now add a marathon on top of that. Even though runners spent about two weeks acclimatising to the altitude it’s a huge physical challenge to take on.
Then came an 11.5-hour overnight climb to reach the start line in winds pushing 100km/h and wind chill dropping to -30°C.
Out of an original team of 18, only five made it to the start.
That’s before a single kilometre was run.
“One of the Toughest Things I’ve Ever Done”
The five who did make it weren’t exactly casual entrants. Each is well-versed in pushing into uncomfortable territory. And they delivered when it counted.
BecomingX CEO Paul Gurney, TV adventurer Aldo Kane, and world record holding cyclist Mark Beaumont all crossed the line first after 16 hours and 34 minutes.
Sibusiso Vilane (seven summitter) and ultra marathon runner Sara Storey followed 90 minutes later having spent more than 28 hours on their feet across two nights.
Kane didn’t sugar-coat it when he said:
“That was one of the toughest things I have ever done in my life… Even moving at that altitude is so draining – attempting a marathon at that altitude is unlike anything I’ve experienced.”
Which feels like the understatement of the year.
This Isn’t Just a Stunt (Even If It Sounds Like One)
The event was created by BecomingX who is the same group behind the World’s Deepest Marathon and is part of a broader attempt to explore human limits.
From more than a kilometre below sea level to nearly 7,000 metres above it, the concept is simple: test what happens when you push endurance into environments it was never designed for.
According to Gurney:
“This challenge was about redefining what people believe is possible… and hopefully encouraging others to challenge themselves to achieve something extraordinary.”
There’s also a full expedition ecosystem behind it — guides, medical teams, vehicles, logistics — because this isn’t a case of pinning a bib on and hoping for the best.
Out there, things go wrong quickly.
The Real Story Isn’t the Record
Yes, the records matter. They’re clean, official, headline-friendly.
But the more interesting part is what didn’t make it into the stats.
Thirteen runners didn’t make the start because the conditions were so brutal. In fact, the team spent weeks just trying to function at altitude. Then the marathon itself came after an overnight climb most people would call the main event.
And then they ran.
It’s easy to frame this as a spectacle, and it is to a degree. But it also sits in that same weird space as backyard ultras and multi-day sufferfests:
It’s clearly not logical. Most people don’t wake up and decide they want to push their bodies to the absolute brink. But despite that, or maybe because of that, it’s hugely compelling. It asks a question most runners quietly carry around anyway:
How far can you actually go when things get properly hard?
What’s Next?
A documentary on the expedition is already in the works, which should give a clearer look at what this actually felt like on the ground (and in the lungs).
Because right now, even with all the numbers, it still doesn’t quite compute.
A marathon is hard enough. But a marathon at 6,893 metres?
That’s something else entirely.
Then in May 2027, the team at BecomingX are taking on an even higher challenge in Boliva nearly 5km above the summit of Mt Blanc. Find out more in the links below.
