Participation and Performance Trends in the Oldest 100-km Ultramarathon in the World

articipation and performance trends in ultramarathon running have been investigated for large datasets and long period of times with an increase in participants and an improvement in performance. However, the analysis of ultramarathons across many decades is missing. We analyzed these trends for 96,036 athletes (88,286 men and 7750 women) from 67 countries competing between 1956 and 2019 in `100 km Lauf Biel' in Switzerland, the oldest 100-km ultramarathon in the world. More men than women participated in all years. The number of male participants reached a peak at around 1985 and a decline in participation occurred thereafter. Women started competing in 1962. Men were always faster than women and both women and men reduced their race times over years. After about 1985, both overall women and men and both female and male winners were not able to improve race times. For men, athletes from all age groups below the age of 49 years old reached a peak of participation in the 1980s, and showed a decrease since then. Regarding age groups, the decrease rst started in age group 20–29 years, followed by 30–39, 40–49, 50–59, and 60–69 years. For athletes in age groups 70–79 and 80–89 years, no decrease occurred. For women, age group athletes in age groups 40–49, 50–59, and 60–69 years increased their participation, whereas age groups 20–29 and 30–39 peaked in the late 1980s and

Regarding age groups, the decrease rst started in age group 20–29 years, followed by 30–39, 40–49, 50–59, and 60–69 years. For athletes in age groups 70–79 and 80–89 years, no decrease occurred. For women, age group athletes in age groups 40–49, 50–59, and 60–69 years increased their participation, whereas age groups 20–29 and 30–39 peaked in the late 1980s and started to decrease or stabilize, respectively. Switzerland, Germany, and France were the countries with the highest numbers of participants throughout the history of the race. In men, race times increased after about 1990 for most nationalities; only runners from Germany seemed to stabilize their performance. In women, runners from Italy, France, and Austria improved their performance over the years. In summary, the analysis of the oldest 100-km ultramarathon in the world showed a decrease in participation and an impairment in performance in the last 60 years. These changes were due to a decrease in the number of male ultramarathoners in around the 1980s, where mainly the number of age group runners younger than 70 years decreased. Keywords:ultra-endurance; sex; running; nationality; motivation; age group 1. Introduction An ultramarathon is de ned as any running event longer than the marathon distance (42.195 km) or taking longer than 6 hours of duration [1]. O cially, ultramarathon running started in 1921 with the `Comrades Marathon', the ultramarathon with the longest tradition and the highest number of nishers worldwide [2]. Since then, ultramarathon running has been gaining popularity [3–5] where Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health2020,17, 1719; doi:10.3390 /ijerph17051719 /journal/ijerph

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health2020,17, 1719 2 of 12 both the number of races and participants increased in recent decades [3]. Ultramarathon races are generally held as time-limited events (e.g., from 6 h to 10 days) [6] or distance-limited events (e.g., 100 km, 100 miles) [3,5,7]. The increase in participants in the last decades was primarily due to female runners and male age group runners [3,5]. However, in recent years, the number of youth ultramarathoners younger than 19 years also increased [8,9]. The increase in the number of races and participants has mainly been documented by analyzing the trends by calendar years for di erent kinds of speci c races such as 100 miles [3,5], 100 km [7], or 24-h [6] races. To date, only one study investigated the historic trends in ultramarathon running by analyzing participation trends in all 100-mile ultramarathon running competitions held in North America between 1977 and 2008 [3]. Investigations of longer time frames are missing. Similarly, the performance trends in ultramarathon running have been investigated for di erent kinds of races such as 100 miles [3], 100 km [7], or 24-h [6] races. While large datasets, including numerous races of di erent distances have been investigated o identify participation and performance trends in ultramarathon running for distance-limited races such as 100-km ultramarathons [7,10] or 100-mile ultramarathons [10], and time-limited ultramarathons such as 24-h ultramarathons [11], one must be aware that ultra-endurance races can appear and disappear, can move from one place to another, and a speci c discipline in ultra-endurance (e.g., ultra-triathlon) can have ups and downs regarding the number of races, participants, and nishers [12]. Taking this into account, exclusive analyses of these trends in the evaluation of one of the world's oldest ultramarathon is missing. The `100 km Lauf Biel' in Switzerland [13] has been held at the same location without interruption since 1959. Switzerland is a small country with around 8.5 million inhabitants [14] and is located in the middle of Europe. Although Switzerland is very small, it has a very active scene with endurance and ultra-endurance competitions such as half-marathons

ultramarathon is missing. The `100 km Lauf Biel' in Switzerland [13] has been held at the same location without interruption since 1959. Switzerland is a small country with around 8.5 million inhabitants [14] and is located in the middle of Europe. Although Switzerland is very small, it has a very active scene with endurance and ultra-endurance competitions such as half-marathons [15], city [16] and mountain [17] marathons, di erent ultramarathons such as mountain [18] and 24-hour ultramarathons [19], cross-country skiing events [20], long-distance swimming [21], and cycling [22,23] events and multi-sports events such as the oldest Ironman triathlon in Europe [24] and the Duathlon World Championship `Powerman Zo ngen' [25]. In these Swiss races, di erences in participation and performance have been found. An increase in participants has been reported mainly due to an increase in female and age group athletes for the Duathlon World Championship [25], for `Ironman Switzerland' [24], for half-marathoners but not for marathoners [16]. However, in recent decades, world-famous races with a pioneering character such as one of the rst mountain bike ultramarathons in the world, the `Swiss Bike Masters' [26], and the longest inline skating race, the Inline 111' [27], have disappeared. Furthermore, a study investigating master athletes in the `100 km Lauf Biel' showed a decrease in participation of younger age group runners [28]. In relation to the famous `Jungfrau Marathon', a mountain marathon with worldwide participation that also hosts the World Championship in mountain marathon running, participation increased in age group runners, but performance was found to be impaired [29]. Obviously, for some races held in Switzerland, important changes took place in both participation and performance with a decrease in participation. Regarding the `100 km Lauf Biel', local media reported in recent years a decrease in participants. In 2002, the race director argued that changes in society, concurrence of other ultra-distance running races, and new and trendy sports disciplines such as triathlon and inline skating had led to a decrease in the number of participants [30]. This decrease in the 100-km ultramarathon led to the decision to o er both half-marathon and marathon

a decrease in participants. In 2002, the race director argued that changes in society, concurrence of other ultra-distance running races, and new and trendy sports disciplines such as triathlon and inline skating had led to a decrease in the number of participants [30]. This decrease in the 100-km ultramarathon led to the decision to o er both half-marathon and marathon races as well [31]. In 2015, the race director reported that the number of participants had continued to decrease, especially runners from Germany. However, the race saw more participation in recent decades from Germany than Switzerland, indicating that fewer local athletes were competing than in earlier years [32]. Recent studies investigated the participation and performance trends in 100-km ultramarathons held worldwide [7,33,34]. Between 1959 and 2016, most of the nishes were achieved by runners from Japan, Germany, Switzerland, France, Italy, and USA with more than 260,000 runners [7]. Between 1998

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health2020,17, 1719 3 of 12 and 2011, the number of nishers from Japan, Germany, Italy, Poland, and USA increased exponentially during the studied period [33]; between 1960 and 2012, 100-km ultramarathoners became faster [34]. What is missing, however, is the knowledge of the participation and performance trends of the world's oldest 100-km ultramarathon with a detailed analysis of di erent aspects such as nationality and participation, and performance of age group athletes. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the participation and performance trends of the world's oldest 100-km ultramarathon held in Biel, Switzerland. Based upon the above-mentioned ndings regarding participation and performance for speci c Swiss races and comments in newspapers, we expected to nd a decrease in participation in this speci c 100-km ultramarathon. We also expected to nd changes in participation by nationality over calendar years. 2. Materials and Methods 2.1. Ethical Approval This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Kanton St. Gallen, Switzerland, with a waiver of the requirement for informed consent of the participants, as the study involved the analysis of publicly available data. 2.2. The Race `100 km Lauf Biel' is the oldest 100-km ultramarathon in the world and has been held for the past 60 years in the same place and without a break. Participants must be 16 years or older with no other restrictions or limitations. The race takes place annually on the rst weekend in June, with all runners starting on Friday evening at 10:00 p.m. The race ends on Saturday at 07:00 p.m. with a time limit of 21 h. The weather conditions at that time of the year are normally favorable with air temperature of 15–20 C at night. The fast nishers usually complete the race within ~7 h and arrive early in the morning at around sunrise on the following day. The athletes are allowed to be supported by a cyclist for additional food and clothing. The race is held as one large loop of 100 km with a total change in altitude of ~645 m. The organizer

The fast nishers usually complete the race within ~7 h and arrive early in the morning at around sunrise on the following day. The athletes are allowed to be supported by a cyclist for additional food and clothing. The race is held as one large loop of 100 km with a total change in altitude of ~645 m. The organizer o ers 17 aid stations o ering food and beverages, including hypotonic sports drinks, tea, soup, ca einated drinks, water, bananas, oranges, energy bars, and bread. 2.3. Dataset Data were obtained from the o cial race website (www.100km.ch) in the speci c section (www. 100km.ch/index.php/de/newsletter/bestenliste-1) for 1959–2019. Available data were year of the race, rst and family name, sex, age group, race time, nationality, and age of the athlete. Only o cial nishers were considered. 2.4. Data Analysis Data were analyzed using SPSS 25.0 (IBM, IL, USA). The Kolmogorov–Smirnov test identi ed normal distribution of the data. Two-way ANOVAs were used to assess performance in four models (Sex Calendar Year; Sex Age-group, Sex Nationality, Nationality Calendar Year). Non-linear regressions were applied when plotting two variables (performance ratio, calendar year, nationality, age-group) for all analyses, except when plotting the male and female champions of the year. In that particular case, two linear regressions were performed for each sex considering two stages of the race: 1959–1984 and 1985–2018; this intersection was determined for being the years with the highest number of participants. Statistical signi cance below 0.05 was accepted for all tests. 3. Results A total of 96,036 athletes (88,286 men and 7750 women) from 67 countries o cially nished the race between 1956 and 2019. More men than women participated across all years. The number of

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health2020,17, 1719 4 of 12 male participants reached a peak at 1984 and a decline in participation started in 1985. Women started competing in 1962 (FigureA). The men-to-women ratio (MWR) for participation decreased over the years with an increase in female and a decrease in male participation (FigureB). Switzerland, Germany, and France were the countries with the highest numbers of nishers throughout the history of the race. During this time, mainly runners from European countries started the race, while runners from non-European countries started very rarely (FigureC).Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, x 4 of 13 The men-to-women ratio (MWR) for participation decreased over the years with an increase in female and a decrease in male participation (Figure 1B). Switzerland, Germany, and France were the countries with the highest numbers of finishers throughout the history of the race. During this time, mainly runners from European countries started the race, while runners from non-European countries started very rarely (Figure 1C). Figure 1. Participation of men and women in ‘100 km Lauf Biel’ over calendar years (A), men-to- women ratio (B), and participation of different countries (C). CAN = Canada, ESP = Spain, LUX = Luxembourg, BEL = Belgium, NED = Netherlands, CZE = Czech Republic, SLO = Slovenia, POL = Poland, GBR = Great Britain, ITA = Italy, AUT = Austria, FRA = France, GER = Germany, SUI = Switzerland. The performance analysis of men and women showed a significant time-effect (F6058 = 22.4; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.958), sex-effect (F1471 = 235.7; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.333) and interaction Time × Sex (F 5,795,917 = 2.732; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.002). Men on average were faster than women, and both women and men reduced their race times over the years. Both overall women and men (Figure 2A) and both male and female winners (Figure 2B) were not able to improve race times after about 1985. The performance ratio between men and women showed a positive slope throughout the years, indicating a reduction in the

were faster than women, and both women and men reduced their race times over the years. Both overall women and men (Figure 2A) and both male and female winners (Figure 2B) were not able to improve race times after about 1985. The performance ratio between men and women showed a positive slope throughout the years, indicating a reduction in the gap in performance between women and men (Figure 2C). Figure 3 shows the participation trend of men and women by age group. For men, all age groups below the age of 49 years reached a peak of participation in the 1980s, and showed a decrease since then. The decrease started first in the 20–29 years age group, followed by 30–39 years, 40–49 years, 50–59 years, and 60–69 years. There was no decrease in the age groups of 70–79 years and 80–89 years. For women, age group athletes in 40–49, 50–59, and 60–69 years increased participation, whereas age groups 20–29 and 30–39 peaked in the late 1980s and started to decrease or stabilize, respectively. All other female age groups always had low inconsistent number of participants along the years. Figure 1. Participation of men and women in `100 km Lauf Biel' over calendar years (A), men-to-women ratio (B), and participation of di erent countries (C). CAN=Canada, ESP=Spain, LUX=Luxembourg, BEL=Belgium, NED=Netherlands, CZE=Czech Republic, SLO=Slovenia, POL=Poland, GBR= Great Britain, ITA=Italy, AUT=Austria, FRA=France, GER=Germany, SUI=Switzerland. The performance analysis of men and women showed a signi cant time-e ect (F6058=22.4; p<0.001; p 2=0.958), sex-e ect (F1471=235.7;p<0.001; p 2=0.333) and interaction Time Sex (F5,795,917=2.732;p<0.001; p 2=0.002). Men on average were faster than women, and both women and men reduced their race times over the years. Both overall women and men (FigureA) and both male and female winners (FigureB) were not able to improve race times after about 1985. The performance ratio between men and women showed a positive slope throughout the years, indicating a reduction in the gap in performance between women and men (FigureC). Figure below the age of 49 years reached a peak of participation in the 1980s, and showed a decrease since then.

winners (FigureB) were not able to improve race times after about 1985. The performance ratio between men and women showed a positive slope throughout the years, indicating a reduction in the gap in performance between women and men (FigureC). Figure below the age of 49 years reached a peak of participation in the 1980s, and showed a decrease since then. The decrease started rst in the 20–29 years age group, followed by 30–39 years, 40–49 years, 50–59 years, and 60–69 years. There was no decrease in the age groups of 70–79 years and 80–89 years. For women, age group athletes in 40–49, 50–59, and 60–69 years increased participation, whereas age groups 20–29 and 30–39 peaked in the late 1980s and started to decrease or stabilize, respectively. All other female age groups always had low inconsistent number of participants along the years.

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health2020,17, 1719 5 of 12Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, x 5 of 13 Figure 2. Performance of overall men and women (A) and annual winners (B) from 1959 to 2019; C: Performance ratio during the same period. ***: sex, age and interaction effect (p < 0.05). The performance analysis of men and women by age group showed a significant age-effect (F = 301.5; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.022) and sex-effect (F = 4.362; p = 0.037; η p 2 = 0.000), but no interaction Age×Sex (F = 1.686; p=0.107; η p 2 = 0.000). Age-groups 30–39 and 40–49 were the fastest for both men and women (Figure 4A). Additionally, the performance ratio between men and women had the highest ratio at 70 years of age and older (Figure 4B). An analysis by age group with the fastest athletes in the 10-year age groups showed that all groups reduced their race time along the years for both men and women (Figure 5). The performance analysis by nationality showed a significant sex-effect (F 1225 = 31.9; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.124), nationality- effect (F 1514 = 53.4; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.983) and an interaction Sex × Nationality (F 1,396,006 = 3.00; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.000). The fastest men were from Spain and Poland and the fastest women from Germany and Poland (Figure 6). Considering only the top 10 men, the performance analysis with nationality throughout the years showed a significant nationality-effect (F = 1071; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.651), time-effect (F = 43.1; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.429) and interaction Nationality × Time (F = 6.99; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.385) for men (Figure 7A). Similarly, women also showed a significant nationality-effect (F = 266.5; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.541), time-effect (F = 27.1; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.533) and interaction Nationality × Time (F = 2.57; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.312)

= 6.99; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.385) for men (Figure 7A). Similarly, women also showed a significant nationality-effect (F = 266.5; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.541), time-effect (F = 27.1; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.533) and interaction Nationality × Time (F = 2.57; p < 0.001; η p 2 = 0.312) (Figure 7B). In men, race times increased after about 1990 for most nationalities; only runners from Germany seemed to stabilize their performance. In women, runners from Italy, France, and Austria improved their performance over the years. Figure 2. Performance of overall men and women (A) and annual winners (B) from 1959 to 2019; (C) Performance ratio during the same period. ***: sex, age and interaction e ect (p<0.05).Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, x 6 of 13 Figure 3. Participation by age group for men (A) and women (B) with second-order polynomial non- linear regressions. Figure 4. Performance of men and women in different age groups (A) and performance ratio (B) in the Biel ultramarathon. *: age-group effect (p < 0.05). 4. Discussion This study investigated the participation and performance trends in the world's oldest 100-km ultramarathon. The main findings were: (1) the number of men increased from 1959 to reach a peak around 1985 with a continuous decline thereafter, (2) women started competing in 1962, (3) a decrease in male age group runners since around the 1980s, (4) performance decreased for all male runners where only runners from Germany were able to stabilize their performance, and (5) there was a reduction in the gap in performance between women and men over the years. Figure 3. Participation by age group for men (A) and women (B) with second-order polynomial non-linear regressions. The performance analysis of men and women by age group showed a signi cant age-e ect (F=301.5;p<0.001; p 2=0.022) and sex-e ect (F=4.362;p=0.037; p 2=0.000), but no interaction Age Sex (F=1.686;p=0.107; p 2=0.000). Age-groups 30–39 and 40–49 were the fastest for both

This study analyzes trends in participation and performance in the world's oldest 100-km ultramarathon.