Courtney Dauwalter
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Courtney Dauwalter (born February 13, 1985) is an American
ultramarathon An ultramarathon is a footrace longer than the traditional marathon distance of . The sport of running ultramarathons is called ultra running or ultra distance running. Various distances, surfaces, and formats are raced competitively, from the ...
runner and former teacher. Widely regarded as one of the world's best ultra trail runners, Dauwalter became in 2023 the first person to win Western States 100, Hardrock 100 and the
Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc The Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) is a mountain ultramarathon race, first held in 2003, that follows the route of the Tour du Mont Blanc. It has been regarded as the most competitive trail ultramarathon in the world. Renamed in 2023 as UTMB W ...
in the same year.


Early life

Dauwalter was raised in
Hopkins, Minnesota Hopkins is a suburban city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, located west of Minneapolis. The population was 19,079 at the 2020 census. The city is four square miles in size and is surrounded by the larger suburban communities of ...
and competed in track, cross-country, and Nordic skiing in high school. She was a four-time Minnesota state champion in
Nordic skiing Nordic skiing encompasses the various types of skiing in which the toe of the ski boot is fixed to the binding in a manner that allows the heel to rise off the ski, unlike alpine skiing, where the boot is attached to the ski from toe to heel. Re ...
during her high school career. She attended the
University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1864, it has an enrollment of approximately 5,700 undergraduate students and 7,200 graduate students. It is classified among "R1: D ...
on a cross-country skiing scholarship studying biology, and then earned a master's degree in teaching from the
University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (Epithet, byname Ole Miss) is a Public university, public research university in University, near Oxford, Mississippi, United States, with a University of Mississippi Medical Center, medical center in Jackson, Miss ...
in 2010 while participating in the
Mississippi Teacher Corps The Mississippi Teacher Corps (MTC) is a two-year alternate route teaching program that recruits college graduates to teach in critical-need areas of Mississippi. As of May 2017, 569 participants have graduated from the program. Upon completion of ...
. She taught for several years, following in her mother's footsteps who was also a teacher, teaching biology, chemistry, and physical sciences for middle and high-schoolers in the
Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
area, before becoming a full-time professional runner in 2017.


Personal life

Dauwalter lives and trains above 10,000 ft in
Leadville, Colorado Leadville ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Statutory city, statutory city that is the county seat, the most populous community, and the only List of municipalities in Colorado, incorporated municipality in Lake County, Colorado, Lak ...
. She is married to Kevin Schmidt, who supports her in ultrarunning events. She does not have any children or pets. She is known for her positive attitude and sense of humor during races, following a relaxed approach to
nutrition Nutrition is the biochemistry, biochemical and physiology, physiological process by which an organism uses food and water to support its life. The intake of these substances provides organisms with nutrients (divided into Macronutrient, macro- ...
. Dauwalter is well known for wearing baggy long shorts for comfort, including during her racing. She is also known for embracing the "Pain Cave," the mental space she refers to when entering the most challenging parts of a race. She has said she has reframed the "Pain Cave" as a place she wants to reach because it signifies where real work and growth happen. Dauwalter's mother Tracy also has become involved in ultrarunning, the two running Javalina Jundred 100 km race in Fountain Hills, Arizona in 2023.


Trailrunning

In 2016, Dauwalter set a course record at the Javelina Jundred 100K and won the Run Rabbit Run 100-mile race, finishing 75 minutes ahead of second place. She also won the 2017 Run Rabbit Run while battling temporary blindness when running the final 12 miles. She won the 2017 edition of the Moab 240 race in 2 days, 9 hours, and 59 minutes, finishing first overall and beating the second-place finisher by more than 10 hours. In 2017, she set the then-record for the longest run in 24 hours, at 155.391 miles during the Riverbank One Day Classic. In 2018, Dauwalter won the Western States 100-mile race, with a finishing time of 17h27m. She competed in the Big's Backyard Ultra in 2018, finishing second overall and completing a total of 67 laps, setting the women's course record at 279.268 miles. She also placed second in the Tahoe 200, beating the previous women's course record by over 18 hours. In 2019, she won the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc in a time of 24 h 34 min 26 sec, coming in 21st overall. In 2021 she would return to set the women's course record. She competed for the United States at the IAU 24 Hour World Championship in
Brive-la-Gaillarde Brive-la-Gaillarde (; Limousin dialect of ), commonly known as simply Brive, is a commune of France. It is a sub-prefecture and the largest city of the Corrèze department. It has around 46,000 inhabitants, while the population of the aggl ...
,
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in October 2019, finishing 12th. In 2020, she won the American section of Big's Backyard Ultra. She ran 68 laps for 283.3 miles for a finish time of 56 hours, 52 minutes, and 29 seconds, setting the record for the longest distance recorded by a female runner in the race. In 2021, Dauwalter entered the Hardrock 100 but did not finish. In 2022 and 2023 she entered again and won, beating the previous women's course records for the Hardrock 100 set by Diana Finkel by over an hour, in each direction. Her time for the Hardrock 100 in 2023 was 26:14:08, beating the previous counter-clockwise course record (Hardrock changes the direction of its course each year) by an hour and four minutes. Also in 2023, she won the Western States 100, besting the previous women's course record set by
Ellie Greenwood Ellie Greenwood (born 14 March 1979) is a British and Canadian ultramarathon runner. She is a four-time 100km World Champion, winning both individual and team titles in 2010 and 2014. She won the 90 km Comrades Marathon in South Africa i ...
in 2012, finishing in a time of 15:29:34. This set the overall record for the Western States–Hardrock double. With this she became the first athlete to set course records at Western States and Hardrock in the same year. In September 2023, she then won the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc again, making her the first person in history to win the triple of Western States, Hardrock, and UTMB in a single year. In 2024, Dauwalter continued her winning streak by securing first place at the Mt. Fuji 100 Mile in Fujiyoshida, Japan, completing the 165.4 km race in 19:21:22 and finishing 3rd overall. She also won the Transgrancanaria in the Canary Islands, Spain, finishing the 126 km race in 15:14:54. As of 2019, she was sponsored by Salomon.


"Shortney" Shorts

Dauwalter is famous for her distinctively long, "baggy" shorts, which she frequently wears during ultrarunning competitions. These shorts were dubbed "Shortney" shorts by Salomon, when it launched a "Shortney"
capsule collection A capsule wardrobe is a minimalist collection of clothes that can be put together in different ways to cover a variety of outfits and occasions. The aim is to have an outfit suitable for any occasion without owning excessive items of clothing. Thi ...
in 2023 including oversized technical trail shorts and a T-shirt. Her shorts have been described as making runners feel "rebellious" against the trend of shrinking women's running shorts.


Awards and recognition

Dauwalter was named Ultra Runner of the Year in 2018 by Ultrarunning Magazine after winning 9 of the 12 races that she entered, including two where she finished first overall. She was awarded Ultra Runner of the Year also in the years 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023. In 2020, she received the George Mallory Award at the Wasatch Mountain Film Festival for pushing the boundaries of physical human achievement.


Selected race results


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dauwalter, Courtney Living people American female ultramarathon runners 1985 births 21st-century American sportswomen Female ultramarathon runners