Athletes

 

	Carla Molinaro. Carla is a Hoka sponsored road runner and self-employed strength coach who seeks out challenges that are slightly harder than the average. She is the current ladies record holder of Land’s End to John O’Groats (874 miles in 12 days) and has also ran across South Africa. She has represented Great Britain at the 100km World Championships and in early 2021 ran a 100km P.B. of 8:01 in the Hoka Project Carbon X2. In 2023 she has ran P.B.s over 10km (36’46”), half marathon (77’14”), and marathon (2hrs 46mins). Carla finished an outstanding 3rd in the 56km Two Oceans Marathon and 3rd in Comrades Marathon in a staggering 6 hours and 23 seconds! She ended 2023 by winning the IAU World 50km Championships in India in 3 hours 18 mins!
	Fiona Pascall. Fiona is a pilates teacher and personal trainer at The Fitness Bubble, see here. She has been running competitively for only four years. In July 2021, she completed the Bob Graham Round in 19 hrs 48 mins. Since then she has finished 1st in the 100km Fellsman Ultra in 12 hrs 8 mins, 1st in the Wendover Woods 50 in 8hrs 33mins, 1st in the Arc of Attrition 50 in 8hrs 18mins, and ran two FKTs in the Lake District – the George Fisher Tea Round (6 hrs 2 mins) which she ran in winter, and the Lake District 24 Hour Fell Round (68 Peaks in 23 hrs 26 mins)! In her first race overseas, the 2023 World Mountain and Trail Running Champs in Innsbruck (85km / +6500m), she finished 18th and first British athlete. She won her first 100 miler (the Julian Alps Trail Run) in 24hrs 39mins.
	Rebecca Di-Luzio. Based in the Peak District, Rebecca has a varied and impressive sporting history which includes open-water swimming, a gold medal in the Commonwealth Regatta for rowing, and a few years racing as a semi-pro cyclist. Rebecca only started running in late 2019 and in that time won her first two races (The Fox Ultra 42km and the Endurancelife Sussex 55km). In May 2021 she competed in her first ultra-marathon (the South Downs Way 100km), finishing 4th in 10hrs 19mins. In March 2022 Rebecca ran her first mountain ultra, finishing 9th in the Transgrancanaria 65km. And in July 2022 she won the Ultra Trail Snowdonia 100km. She has started 2023 really well with a marathon debut in Seville of 3hrs 5mins, and a win in the South Downs Way 50 miler in a superb time of 7hrs 15mins.
	Eve Moore. From the UK but living in Dubai, Eve has competed in a number of different branches of athletics in recent years, including Crossfit and Spartan racing. She started running ultras in late 2020. Her first few races were shorter events in the UK and the UAE. Her first proper ultra was the Swiss Engadin Ultra Trail (102km and +5740m) in 2021, which she finished in 17 hours and 30 minutes. In 2022 Eve put in a couple of really great performances. She took the overall win in the 90km Iznik Ultra in Turkey in 10 hours and finished second in her first 100 miler, the Lakeland 100, in an excellent 24 hours and 47 minutes. Eve has started 2023 in great form with a commanding win in the prestigious Mozart 100 (108km / +5400m) in 12hrs 54mins.
	Fan Xiang. One of the most recent additions to the VO2max Coaching team, Fan is an ultra trail runner based in Canberra, Australia. Fan has been running competitively for less than two years but has already strung together some very good results. These include a win in the Grand Trail Nocturne des Hauts-de-France 56km, 9th in the Trail de Galiniette 47km, and 3rd in the Buffalo Stampede Ultra Sky Marathon 75km. In 2022 Fan competed in her first 100km race, the Elephant Trail Race, which is widely regarded as Australia’s toughest 100k. She won the race overall in 18 hours 34 minutes. The performance secured her a place on the Australian team for the World Trail running Champs in Thailand.
	Charlotte Firth. Charlotte has been running competitively for 15 years and is a member of Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow. She currently balances a hard job with a busy racing calendar and training schedule. This summer she has been racing mostly on the track over 3000m. She has track P.B.s of 4’49” for 1500m, 9’51” for 3000m, and 16’59” for 5000m. Charlotte is also a very keen road and cross country runner, and will be focusing on half-marathon and marathon for the second half of 2023. Her P.B.s on the road are 17’31” for 5km, 35’51” for 10km, 78’56” for half marathon, and 2hrs 44mins for the marathon. Ultimately, Charlotte would like to step up in distance to ultra-marathons and trail racing.
	Katie Kaars Sijpesteijn. From Yorkshire, Katie is sponsored by Salomon and is most well-known for her record-breaking performances in some of Britain’s most competitive ultras. She is the current record holder in the Lakes Traverse, Lakeland 50 and Lakes In A Day (a race which she won outright in 2018). She has represented G.B. at the World Trail Running Champs four times. She has also competed at a very high level in some of the world’s toughest mountain races including the Madeira Sky Marathon, Matterhorn Ultraks, Trofeo Kima, Mt Olympus Skyrace, Glencoe Skyline, Transgrancanaria, 80km du Mont Blanc, Reventon Trail El Paso, and the Maxi Race du Lac Annecy.
	Robbie Simpson. Robbie is a pro trail runner with Adidas Terrex. He has finished 3rd in the WMRA World Mountain Running Champs and 2nd at Sierre-Zinal, the world’s most competitive mountain race, four times and has a best time here of 2hrs 32mins. On the roads he has run 14’25” for 5km, 29’22” for 10km, 64’27” for the Half Marathon, and 2:14’56” for the Marathon. Robbie has also won the prestigious Jungfrau Marathon four times and in 2018 won a marathon bronze in the Brisbane Commonwealth Games. After a great first ultra in 2019 (5th in the TNF50 in 6hrs 48mins), he has finished an excellent 2nd and 3rd at UTMB OCC, 7th at Templiers, and has won the Eiger Ultra North Face Trail, The Otter, and the Ultra Trail Cape Town 55km twice.
	Harry Jones. From representing Wales on the track to running professionally for Hoka in ultra trail, Harry has been a runner for nearly 2/3 of his life. He ran his first 100km race in Thailand in 2014. Since then he has steadily improved and chalked up an impressive CV. He has won the Translantau 100km, the TNF 100 Thailand, and the Nine Dragons 50. He has also finished 2nd in the Mozart 100 and the TNF Hong Kong 100, 3rd at Ultra Trail Australia, the Cappadocia Ultra and the Tarawera 100k, 4th at Penyagolosa and Transgrancanaria, 7th at Lavaredo, 8th at CCC, and 15th at UTMB! In 2022 he won the Mozart 75k, was 3rd in the 60km Garda Trentino Trail, and 11th in the World Trail Running Championships. He got off to a flying start in 2023 with an impressive 67 minute half marathon.
	Mark Walsh. Mark hails from West Cumbria and races on the roads for England’s greatest running club, Salford Harriers. Mark has been running competitively for about seven years and has recently joined the veteran ranks. In 2021 he ran a 5km P.B. (14’53”), a 10km P.B. (31’11”) and a three minute Half Marathon P.B. He finished 2021 with an excellent 10 mile P.B. of 50’42” at Brampton to Carlisle. Mark has started 2022 in much the same way as he ended 2021, with a big 10km P.B. in Trafford of 30’26” and a 5km best of 14’49”. He finished 4th in the World Masters Athletics Championships 10km road race and knocked another minute off his Half Marathon P.B. with 67’51” at Lake Vyrnwy. He recently ran an excellent marathon debut of 2:23 in Valencia and a 5 mile P.B. of 25’01”. Mark does not have a blog.
	Oliver Stenning. I bumped in to Oli during his first 100 miler, the 2022 Western States Endurance Run, where he ran an excellent 23hrs 16mins. He decided to join the VO2maxCoaching team not long after that. Based in London, Oli has been running ultras for about five years. In that time he has finished some of the toughest ultras in the world. These include Transgrancanaria, the TDS, Grand Trail des Templiers, Trail Verbier St. Bernard, Ultra Trail de Mexico, the Lavaredo Ultra Trail, and Lakes In A Day. Over the winter Oli turned his attention briefly to the roads, and ran a great marathon in 2hrs 48mins in Girona, Spain. He has recently performed really well in the Garda Trentino Trail (62km / +3800m) and the Andorra Trail 100 (105km / +6900m).
	Matt Elkington. In his 10 years as a competitive runner, Matt has racked up an impressive array of performances in Orienteering and Fell Running. As a member of Ambleside A.C. and the Octavian Droobers, Matt has podiumed in too many races to mention here. Since joining the VO2max Coaching team in 2021 Matt has really upped his game. After a promising first full cross-country season, in which he competed in several national level competitions, he performed excellently with the map and compass, culminating in a historic team win in the prestigious Jan Kjellstrom Orienteering Festival. Matt started the 2022 fell running season with a win in the Coledale Horseshoe, secured 2nd place overall in the British Fell and Hill Champs, and ended his season as English Fell Running Champion!!!
	Josh Bakker-Dyos. Based in Edinburgh, Josh is an anaesthetist and a Royal Navy Commando. He has been a runner for most of his life and started ultra-running in 2019, finishing 7th in the Glencoe Skyline. In 2020 Josh recorded solo half-marathon (78’43”) and marathon (2hrs 43mins) P.B.s, ran two FKTs (5hrs 12mins for the Pentland 500s and 9hrs 34mins for the Mullardoch Round), won the Lakes Mountain 42 race, and completed an impressive Rigby Round (20hrs 44mins). 2021 and 2022 were great years with a win in the Cairngorms 60km Ultra, 4th in the Lakeland Trails 100km, a win in the Ultra Trail Snowdonia 100 miler, and 2nd in the Highland Fling race. In 2023 Josh put in great performances in two of the world’s toughest 100kms – Ultra Pirineu and Ultra Trail Cape Town.
	Chris Steele. Based in Cumbria, Chris is a seasoned road, fell and mountain runner and first joined the VO2max Coaching team way back in 2014. Over the years he has ran PBs for 5km (14’55”), 10km (30’14”), Half Marathon (68’29”), and Marathon (2hrs 32mins). Chris has several record-breaking runs on the fells to his name. He has put in several outstanding performances at an international level in races such as the Jungfrau Marathon and Thyon-Dixence in the Swiss Alps. He has also finished 7th and 8th in British Mountain Running Championships. After a brief and successful spell competing in the sport of extreme triathlon, Chris has decided to return to roots and focus on cross country running and road running.