German runner smashes first 200 mile ultramarathon in Canada

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A German man is the first person to conquer a 200 mile race on Canadian soil at Hamilton’s Sulphur Spring Trail Race.

Runners had 72 hours to complete the 200 mile race, which is 322 kilometres, around the Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

Georg Kunzfeld finished the race in 51 hours and 20 seconds with only a few hours of sleep.

Sleep isn’t the only thing Kunzfeld will likely lose from the ultramarathon but he said he isn’t disappointed.

“I have severe blisters and I’ll probably lose some toe nails” Kunzfeld said. “Apart from that I’m fine.”

The 200 mile race began on Thursday, which brought soggy weather for the runners. Participants had to run the 200 miles in 20 kilometre laps in under three days. Like Kunzfeld, many chose to skip sleep and run throughout the night.

The Sulphur Springs Road Race offers different distances including 10 kilometres, 50 kilometres, 50 miles, 100 miles and 200 miles.

Over 1,200 racers signed up but only 28 runners took part the 200 mile race.