There is no stopping 14-time IRONMAN champion Lucy Gossage as she continues to star in a new field, the brutal world of ultrarunning.
The swim/bike/run star, cancer doctor and tireless charity campaigner has been absolutely spectacular since she decided to go even longer in her quest for a sporting endurance kick.
The highlight so far was a sensational victory in the absolutely brutal 268-mile Montane Winter Spine Race in January, but she continues to set new standards.
Her latest epic exploit came in the 2025 South Downs Way 100 – 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.
South Downs Way 100 was another incredible victory for Lucy Gossage [Photo credit: Lucy Gossage]
Gossage sets a new standard
Lucy took the tape in a time of 16:30:35 after an epic battle with Julia Davis – 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!
As she reflected on another amazing performance, Lucy wrote: “Centurion South Downs Way 100. 🥇and a course record. A race I’ll remember for a while!
“The night before I dreamt that I was racing an Ironman and stopped half way round because I got tired and I didn’t want to push. In the dream my friend Tom (who was my real life 5* crew for this race) looked at me and said ‘Goss, you’ve changed’. Yesterday, I learnt I really haven’t.
“My first 100 was a ‘can I do it?’ prep for the first Spine. My second was a ‘put something in the diary’ coping strategy for everything that happened last year. My third, this one, was partly to make me stop digging a hole of adventures and rest, was partly to see what a ‘runnable’ 100 feels like, and partly because, once I’d entered, I realised I was up for a race! And race I did.”
Epic course and epic battle
Lucy spoke about the sheer challenge the course presented, and also that incredible head-to-head battle with Julia.
“100 miles, 3800m elevation and 16.5 hours of neck and neck racing. Julia Davis and I ran together, then yo-yo-ed but I don’t think were ever more than a few minutes apart until the elastic stretched at the end.
“Never in a million years did I think I would enjoy racing head to head for 100 miles – they’re hard enough to survive, let alone race- but I honestly loved it.
“Yesterday took me back to Ironman days in more ways than one. The tactical nuances of pacing under pressure; balancing bravery against stupidity; trusting your gut (and fuelling it!); and a lot of self talk and belief when it got tough.
“I’m genuinely surprised I enjoyed the racing aspect so much. I thought those days were done for me. Yesterday reminded me how lucky I am to have the triathlon career I did, but it also emphasised what an utter privilege it is to have a body and mind that allows me to dip back into sport at a high level, without sacrificing everything else in life to do that . Completely bonkers.”
