Research has found that as running distances increase, female athletes narrow the speed gap with male athletes, and at ultra-long distances (300 km and above), women actually run faster than men.
Traditionally, it is believed that men run 10-12% faster than women at any distance. However, research conducted by scientists indicates that the performance gap between genders shrinks at ultra marathon distances.
A female athlete and others participating in the Marathon des Sables in the Sahara Desert in southern Morocco on April 12, 2019. (Photo: AFP/Getty Images).
A study by RunRepeat in collaboration with the International Association of Ultra Marathon (IAU) shows that at certain ultra marathon distances, female athletes tend to run faster than male athletes.
The researchers reached this conclusion after analyzing over 15,000 ultra marathon races over 23 years. They discovered that as the running distance increased, the speed gap between female and male athletes narrowed, and at extreme distances (300 km and above), women actually ran faster than men.
According to the study, at a distance of 5 km, men run 17.9% faster than women. At the marathon distance (42 km), the difference is only 11.1%. In races of 161 km, men are just 0.25% faster than women, and at the ultra marathon distance of 314 km, women run 0.6% faster than men.
Explaining this phenomenon, researchers state that men are faster than women in sprinting and typical marathons because they have larger hearts that can supply more oxygen to the body than women.
Men also have higher levels of testosterone – a sex hormone that contributes to muscle mass and plays a crucial role in glycogen storage, which is the main energy source in competitions.
However, while glycogen can help men accelerate faster over short distances, it depletes quickly.
“The natural glycogen stored in your muscles will help you maintain performance in the first four hours of the race. After that, you need to replenish energy or burn stored fat to sustain endurance,” says Dr. Mimi Winsberg, a neurologist and Ironman triathlete who has participated in 25 races.
For female athletes, the situation is different; thanks to estrogen, the fat in their bodies is burned faster to provide energy for activity.
A female athlete running in San Juan De La Costa in Chile. (Source: Getty Images)
David Rowlands, a scientist at Massey University (New Zealand), explains that women’s bodies have more fat than men’s due to the demands of pregnancy and breastfeeding. As a result, the energy reserves of female athletes are more sustainable in the long run.
Moreover, female estrogen may help enhance long-distance running performance as it protects muscle membranes, allowing muscles to function more consistently and reduce fatigue during prolonged runs.
Women also have another advantage in trail running and ultra marathons: their ligaments and muscles are more flexible than those of men. Due to their higher elasticity, the risk of injury among women is lower than for men.
Additionally, the smaller physique and lighter weight of women help their musculoskeletal systems endure less stress compared to men while running.
Finally, psychological factors may also play a role in long-distance races, as many female athletes have a mental edge over their male counterparts.
According to research from the German Sports University Cologne, women tend to run intuitively at a gentle pace rather than pushing themselves as hard as men. They often listen to their bodies and run with a more relaxed mindset.
Studies show that female athletes maintain stability and consistency throughout their journeys, avoiding sudden accelerations or decelerations. This helps them manage the race better and reduces the risk of injury.
