Timothy Olson is an American ultra-runner who was the former recordholder (

fastest known time A Fastest Known Time (FKT) is the speed record for a running, hiking or cycling route. Unlike most endurance sports competitions such as marathon world records, FKTs are self-organized and done alone or in small groups. FKTs are most popular on long ...

) for the

Pacific Crest Trail The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), officially designated as the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail, is a long-distance hiking and equestrian trail closely aligned with the highest portion of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges, which lie ...

in 51 days, 16 hours and 55 minutes. He won the

Western States 100 The Western States Endurance Run, known commonly as the Western States 100 or Western States, is a 100.2-mile (161 km) ultramarathon that takes place on California's Sierra Nevada Mountains trails each year on the last full weekend of June. ...

in 2012 and 2013, including the former course record of 14 hours, 46 minutes and 44 seconds in 2012.

Personal life

Olson was born in

Amherst, Wisconsin Amherst is a village in Portage County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,117 in the 2020 census. Amherst is at the core of the Tomorrow Valley area. History The name Amherst was established in 1853 by Adam Uline, after General J ...

. While at school he took up cross-country running in order to get fit for

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

but then found running appealed to him more. After problems in his personal life, he dropped out of college but things improved when he took up coaching in Amherst. Moving with his wife Krista to

Ashland, Oregon Ashland is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. It lies along Interstate 5 in Oregon, Interstate 5 approximately 16 miles (26 km) north of the California border and near the south end of the Rogue Valley. The city's population w ...

he met a group of ultra-runners and joined them in training.

Career

In 2009, Olson ran his first fifty kilometer race and came in sixth. The following year, he won his first one hundred mile race. In 2011 he first attempted the Western States 100. The route goes from

Olympic Valley, California Olympic Valley (historically and informally known as Squaw Valley) is an unincorporated community located in Placer County, California, United States. It lies northwest of Tahoe City along California State Highway 89 on the banks of the Truckee ...

Auburn, California Auburn is a city in and the county seat of Placer County, California, United States. Its population was 13,776 during the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Auburn is known for its California Gold Rush history and is registered as a Califo ...

and attracts an international field and he completed the course in 16 hours 18 minutes to finish sixth. In 2012, Olson won the 39th annual Western States 100 race in the record time of 14:46:44, trimming the course record of 15:07:04, set by

Geoff Roes Geoff Roes (born April 14, 1976 in central New York) is an American ultramarathon runner. Career Roes grew up in Cleveland, New York which is by Oneida Lake. Cleveland is northeast of Syracuse. He excelled in track and cross country at Paul V. M ...

two years earlier, by over twenty minutes. He won the race again in 2013, and also competed in 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 ...

, where he came fourth with a time of 21:38:23. In 2014, Olson won the "Male Runner of the Year" award at the Endurance Live sports awards organised by the Competitor Group, Inc. On Thursday, July 22, 2021, Olson set a new men's supported fastest known time (FKT) on the 2,653-mile Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) in the western United States. His time of 51 days, 16 hours, and 55 minutes beat the previous record set by Karel Sabbe of 52 days, 8 hours, and 25 minutes in 2016. Olson started at the PCT's southern terminus on June 1, hiking and running an average of 51.3 miles per day. This record is now back in the hands of Karel Sabbe.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Olson, Timothy American male ultramarathon runners Sportspeople from Ashland, Oregon Sportspeople from Wisconsin Living people People from Amherst, Wisconsin 1983 births