New GB 24-Hour Record for Robbie Britton

Robbie Britton set a new GB record in the Turin 24-hour race on 25/26 February. He ran a total distance of 277.439 Km/172.392 Miles, breaking a record set over 40 years ago.

In this post, I look at the breakdown of Britton’s performance in Turin. I also look at the progression of the British record and where his new mark sits in the global scheme of 24-hour running. 

The bare stats of Britton’s new record 

It added 2.959 km to the previous record of Dave Dowdle from Gloucester AC. Thirty-Six-year-old Britton was not even born when Dowdle set his record, which in 1982 was also a new World Record. Dowdle’s mark of 274.480km/170.553 Miles was set on 23 May 1982 and stood for over 40 years. 

The Turin race was on a 1.013 km road loop at the Parco Ruffini in the Italian city. Britton completed 273 laps of the course within the 24 hours and also a partial lap before the finish hooter ended the race.

 Dowdle’s record run was on a 400-metre track.

Britton’s previous PB was set in Turin.

Britton had previously run on the same course in Turin when representing GB in the World 24-hour Championships in April 2015. He recorded 261.140km/162.264 miles on that occasion securing the individual bronze medal and leading the British team to Gold medals. That distance was to remain his 24 hr PB for almost eight years.

Detail of the GB record performance.

Split times for the new British 24-hour record 

From the lap splits, his approximate split times at intermediate distances were

100km. 8:03:13

100Miles 13:27:27

 200km 17:10:39

Below are 6-hour splits taken to the nearest completed lap. They are a few metres short of actual distance. 

6-hour split. ( 74 laps) 74.962 km 74.962km

12-hour split. (143 laps) 144.859 km. 69.897 km

18-hour split. (206 laps) 208.678 km 63.819 km

24-hours. Exact. 277.439 km 68.761km

The stats are consistent with Dowdle’s race, where he ran a split of 13:31:29 for 100 miles in his record attempt. A slightly more conservative first few hours might have conserved energy to make the third quarter easier. Between 12-18 hours is where Britton faded a little. He then came back strong in the last few hours. 

Full results from Turin are HERE

Progression of the Men’s GB 24-hour record. 

I am indebted to Andy Milroy for the historical records of the distances by Charles Rowell and Arthur Newton.Also to Mark Pickard for pointing out some discrepancy’s on distances and dates.

 While the global mark has moved steadily forward in the last 40 years, attempts by several very competent British runners have always come up short in improving the GB record.

You can read my post on the progression of the 24-hour world record HERE

Dan Lawson, European 24-hour champion in 2016, came the closest in recent years when he came within 1500 metres of the mark when running 273.003 Km.169.636  Miles in the 2022 European 24-hour championships at Verona. 

The legendary Don Ritchie made a few attempts, his best coming within 4 Miles of Dowdle’s mark in 1991. Ritchie, a world beater and holder of multiple ultra records up to and including 200km in his career, never quite nailed the 24-hour event. His front-running style usually resulted in a fade in the last 6 hours, having been on course for the record.  

Mark Pickard, a prolific racer from the same time, had set the previous British record of 263.466 km in the year before Dowdle’s effort. He was the early leader in the Gloucester World Record Race, reaching 100 miles in 13:10:43, 20 minutes ahead of Dowdle’s 13:31:29. A steadier pace was to prove beneficial for Dowdle, as Pickard faded in the last 8 hours to only record 253.138 KM 157.292 miles on that occasion.

 As to who could challenge the new mark? Read my short conversation with Robbie Britton HERE.

Men’s All-time British 24-hour rankings.

NOTE This list has sunsequently been updated with some amendments. it can be seen at 

Britton becomes only the second Britain with Dowdle to break the 170-mile barrier.

In total, 13 British athletes have broken the 160-mile barrier to date. Don Ritchie achieved it on three occasions. Dan Lawson, Damian Carr, Alex Whearity, and now Robbie Britton have twice each. 

Current Global 24-hour all-time rankings.

Britton is the 13th-ranked athlete on the updated World All-Time 24-hour list. Multiple individual performances ahead of him, making his 277.439 km the 27th-best time ever recorded globally.

Current world record holder Aleksandr Sorokin has three, and the Polish runner Andrzej Piotrowski has 2. However, the phenomenon that is Yiannis Kouros has an incredible 12 marks all over 280 km and a further three over 275 km. Over a ten-year period, he dominated distances over 100 miles. He could run hard at 24-hour races, and even longer races up to 1,000 miles regularly. He could also recover quickly.

Our post on the progression of the World 24-hour record is HERE.

With Jo Zakrzewski breaking the GB women’s 24-hour record in Verona last September, British 24-hour running is on a roll just now. Long may it continue.

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