Jasmin Paris - Trail Runner Profile
Jasmin Paris is a British fell and ultra runner who in March 2024 became the first woman ever to finish the Barkley Marathons, completing five loops in 59:58:21 with 99 seconds inside the 60-hour cut-off. She had already won the 268-mile Montane Winter Spine Race outright in 2019 in a record 83:12:2
Jasmin Paris quick facts
- Nationality: United Kingdom
- UTMB Index: 611 (as of 6 October 2026, UTMB profile)
- Key results: Barkley Marathons: First female finisher, 2024; Spine Race: Outright winner 2019, 83:12:23
UTMB Index and ITRA scores change after every race. The dates are when each number was read from the official profile.
Country: United Kingdom · Team: Inov-8 · Specialities: 100 miles+, Multi-day, Winter ultras
Right now: Holder of the sport's most talked-about first: a woman's Barkley finish.
Key facts
- Barkley Marathons: First female finisher, 2024
- Margin: 99 seconds inside the 60-hour cut-off
- Spine Race: Outright winner 2019, 83:12:23
Barkley, at the third attempt
The Barkley Marathons had run for decades without a female finisher. Paris completed the three-loop Fun Run on her first attempt in 2022, became only the second woman to start a fourth loop in 2023, and in 2024 finished all five loops in 59 hours, 58 minutes and 21 seconds, 99 seconds under the limit, in the edition that also produced the most finishers in the race's history.
The Spine Race record
In 2019 she won the Montane Winter Spine Race, 268 miles along the Pennine Way in January, outright, beating the entire field and taking around 12 hours off the previous record with 83:12:23. That record stood until 2024.
What her results represent
Both of her signature performances are in formats where navigation, sleep management and decision-making under extreme fatigue matter as much as running fitness. They are also both overall wins or firsts rather than category results, which is why they carry the weight they do.
How Jasmin runs
Paris is a fell runner at heart, and her skill set is broader than running fitness. On unmarked, navigation-heavy, often bad-weather courses, she combines strong climbing and descending on rough ground with excellent navigation, self-sufficiency and an exceptional ability to keep thinking clearly while sleep-deprived.
Her races are won by problem-solving as much as by pace. At the Barkley Marathons, where finishing in time depends on route-finding, book-collecting and managing the 60-hour cut-off, she finished with 99 seconds to spare after three years of learning the course. At the Spine Race, she won outright over 268 miles of the Pennine Way in winter.
She also fits her running around the rest of her life. She is a small-animal vet and senior lecturer at the University of Edinburgh's Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, combining clinical and research work, and she won the 2019 Spine Race 14 months after the birth of her first child, expressing milk at checkpoints along the way. Efficient, focused training is a necessity for her rather than a choice.
Where Jasmin is strongest
Unmarked, navigation-heavy, multi-day events in difficult conditions: the Barkley, the Spine Race and long British fell rounds. These formats reward her blend of navigation, endurance, rough-ground skill and decision-making under fatigue.
She is less naturally suited to fast, marked, runnable courses where pure speed decides the result. Her greatest performances come where the challenge is as much about the mountains and the clock as about other runners.
The edge. Cognitive endurance. Her margins have come from making fewer mistakes at hour 50 than anyone else.
What you can learn from Jasmin
1. Learn to navigate
On unmarked routes and in poor weather, navigation decides races more often than fitness. Practise with a map and compass on familiar ground, then on routes you do not know, and learn to read terrain rather than relying only on GPS. It also makes you safer in the mountains.
2. Make sleep part of your plan
For anything beyond about 30 hours, sleep strategy matters as much as pace. Decide in advance when and how long you will rest, and practise staying alert and making decisions when tired, for example on night runs or long days out.
3. Repeat attempts build course knowledge
She finished Barkley on her third attempt, having learned the course over three years. If you fail at a hard objective, the experience is valuable. Write down what you learned about the route, the timing and your own limits, and use it on the next attempt.
4. Train efficiently around a full life
She has combined elite running with a demanding career and family. When time is short, focus on what matters most for your goal, such as long days on rough ground, and fit consistent shorter runs around everything else.
Selected results
| Year | Race | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Barkley Marathons | Finisher (59:58:21, first woman ever to finish) |
| 2019 | Montane Winter Spine Race (268 miles) | 1st overall (83:12:23, a record that stood until 2024) |
| 2023 | Barkley Marathons | Started lap four (second woman ever to do so) |
| 2022 | Barkley Marathons | Fun Run finisher (three loops) |
A selection, not a complete race history.
Official profiles
Compare yourself with Jasmin
- ITRA index calculator: estimate the km-effort and an indicative performance band for your own race result (not an official ITRA Performance Index).
- Trail pace calculator: turn your road pace into a trail pace and finish time for a given elevation profile.
Frequently asked questions
Who was the first woman to finish the Barkley Marathons?
Jasmin Paris, in March 2024, in 59 hours 58 minutes 21 seconds, 99 seconds inside the 60-hour cut-off.
What is Jasmin Paris's Spine Race record?
She won the 268-mile Montane Winter Spine Race outright in 2019 in 83:12:23, roughly 12 hours faster than the previous record. It stood until 2024.
Runners with a similar profile
- Courtney Dauwalter (United States): The only athlete to win Western States, Hardrock and UTMB in the same year, and still winning course records a decade into her career.
- Franco Collé (Italy): Four-time Tor des Géants winner who added the 450km Tor des Glaciers at 48, on his first attempt.
- Ludovic Pommeret (France): Won UTMB at 41 after being 50th at halfway, and at 50 broke the Hardrock course record on his way to a third straight win.
- Manuela Vilaseca (Brazil): Holder of the women's 200-mile Triple Crown record, and third at the 2026 Tor des Géants.
Sources and verification
Checked against the following sources on 2026-08-27:
- iRunFar: 2024 Barkley Marathons results
- CNN: Paris becomes first woman to finish Barkley
- ITRA runner profile
- Wikipedia: Jasmin Paris
- inov-8: Meet Jasmin Paris, record-breaking ultra runner, mum and vet
- UTMB Index profile (official)
Canonical page: https://trailia.run/best-trail-runners/jasmin-paris
Published by Trailia (https://trailia.run), a personalised trail running coaching platform. This profile is a factual reference, not a ranking.