ArticleExtreme physiology & medicine2012
Participation and performance trends in multistage ultramarathons-the 'Marathon des Sables' 2003-2012.
Article in Extreme physiology & medicine, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 31 papers.
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Who cites it
31 citing papers in PubMed.
- 24-Hour Ultra-Marathon Running: A Narrative Review of Performance Factors and Physiological Impacts.Sports medicine - open · 2026Review
- What if gastrointestinal complications in endurance athletes were gut injuries in response to a high consumption of ultra-processed foods? Please take care of your bugs if you want to improve endurance performance: a narrative review.European journal of applied physiology · 2024Review
- Does pain sensitivity correlate with gastrointestinal symptoms in runners? An observational survey study.British journal of pain · 2022Article
- The Sex Difference in 6-h Ultra-Marathon Running-The Worldwide Trends from 1982 to 2020.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2022Article
- Recommendations on Youth Participation in Ultra-Endurance Running Events: A Consensus Statement.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2021Article
- Musculoskeletal Injuries in Ultra-Endurance Running: A Scoping Review.Frontiers in physiology · 2021Article
- Participation and Performance Analysis in Children and Adolescents Competing in Time-Limited Ultra-Endurance Running Events.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Article
- Different Predictor Variables for Women and Men in Ultra-Marathon Running-The Wellington Urban Ultramarathon 2018.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2019Article
- Mental Toughness and Associated Personality Characteristics of Marathon des Sables Athletes.Frontiers in psychology · 2019Article
- Changes in Pain and Nutritional Intake Modulate Ultra-Running Performance: A Case Report.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2018Article
- Article
- Physiology and Pathophysiology in Ultra-Marathon Running.Frontiers in physiology · 2018Review
- Reported Hydration Beliefs and Behaviors without Effect on Plasma Sodium in Endurance Athletes.Frontiers in physiology · 2017Article
- Pacing strategy in male elite and age group 100 km ultra-marathoners.Open access journal of sports medicine · 2015Article
- Performance differences between sexes in 50-mile to 3,100-mile ultramarathons.Open access journal of sports medicine · 2015Article
- Relationship of anthropometric and training characteristics with race performance in endurance and ultra-endurance athletes.Asian journal of sports medicine · 2014Article
- Runners in their forties dominate ultra-marathons from 50 to 3,100 miles.Clinics (Sao Paulo, Brazil) · 2014Article
- Analysis of swimming performance in FINA World Cup long-distance open water races.Extreme physiology & medicine · 2014Article
- Age, sex and (the) race: gender and geriatrics in the ultra-endurance age.Extreme physiology & medicine · 2014Article
- Will women outrun men in ultra-marathon road races from 50 km to 1,000 km?SpringerPlus · 2014Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe purpose of this study was to investigate participation and performance changes in the multistage ultramarathon 'Marathon des Sables' from 2003 to 2012.
methodsParticipation and performance trends in the four- or six-stage running event covering approximately 250 km were analyzed with special emphasis on the nationality and age of the athletes. The relations between gender, age, and nationality of finishers and performance were investigated using regression analyses and analysis of variance.
resultsBetween 2003 and 2012, a number of 7,275 athletes with 938 women (12.9%) and 6,337 men (87.1%) finished the Marathon des Sables. The finisher rate in both women (r2 = 0.62) and men (r2 = 0.60) increased across years (p < 0.01). Men were significantly (p < 0.01) faster than women for overall finishers (5.9 ± 1.6 km·h-1 versus 5.1 ± 1.3 km·h-1) and for the top three finishers (12.2 ± 0.4 km·h-1 versus 8.3 ± 0.6 km·h-1). The gender difference in running speed of the top three athletes decreased (r2 = 0.72; p < 0.01) from 39.5% in 2003 to 24.1% in 2012 with a mean gender difference of 31.7 ± 2.0%. In men, Moroccans won nine of ten competitions, and one edition was won by a Jordanian athlete. In women, eight races were won by Europeans (France five, Luxembourg two, and Spain one, respectively), and two events were won by Moroccan runners.
conclusionsThe finisher rate in the Marathon des Sables increased this last decade. Men were significantly faster than women with a higher gender difference in performance compared to previous reports. Social or cultural inhibitions may determine the outcome in this event. Future studies need to investigate participation trends regarding nationalities and socioeconomic background, as well as the motivation to compete in ultramarathons.
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