Lucy Gossage has produced an incredible record-breaking performance to claim victory in the women’s race at the South Downs Way 100.
British ace Lucy – cancer doctor, tireless charity campaigner and 14-time IRONMAN triathlon champion – is now also a bona fide ultrarunning star after adding yet another title to her growing collection in what is turning out to be a sensational 2025.
Gossage started the year with a huge bang by claiming victory in the brutal Montane Winter Spine Race – a 268-mile journey of discovery up the Pennine Way in snow and ice. It was a spectacular effort, improving on her third-place finish in 2024.
This weekend saw Lucy once again hitting the headlines with a fantastic performance to ace SDW100 – the 100 mile non-stop foot race taking in the entire South Downs Way National Trail. It is also part of the GranCanaria World Trail Majors Series.
A new record time for Gossage
Lucy took the tape in a time of 16:30:35 – smashing the previous women’s course record of 16:49:57 set by Bethan Male back in 2022.
It was not an easy victory for Gossage – as her fantastic updates via her Instagram account illustrate. She also had invaluable support from crew Tom Vickery, and some much-needed energy thanks to Calippo and Pringles at around mile 70.
The early stages of the race had seen a gripping battle between Gossage and Julia Davis, and at one stage Davis moved ahead. But Lucy remained composed to eventually reclaim the advantage and hold it all the way to the finish.
Another record in men’s race
The men’s race was won in another incredible new course record time as Mark Darbyshire came home in 13.42.54 – taking more than 20 minutes off the record previously held by Mark Perkins (14.03.54) from 2014.
