Ontario runner smashes Canadian women’s 100-mile and 12-hour records at Tunnel Hill 100
Toronto's Julie Hamulecki beat the Canadian 100-mile record by more than an hour, finishing third overall
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Julie Hamulecki
On Saturday at Tunnel Hill 100 in Vienna, Ill., Toronto’s Julie Hamulecki crushed both the Canadian women’s 100-mile and 12-hour records, finishing third overall in 13:32:07. (The previous record was 14:45:51, set in 2022 by Woodstock, Ont.’s Amanda Nelson.) Hamulecki dominated the women’s 100-mile race, with the second-place finisher, Michigan’s Erica Aikman, more than three hours behind her in 17:01:30, and Mallory Servais of Berkley, Calif., taking third in 17:47:15.
The Tunnel Hill 100 is a 50-mile loop course that runners complete twice for the full 100-mile race. According to the race website, the nature of the course has sparked plenty of debate, especially after Camille Herron’s world record-breaking performance in the women’s 100-mile (12:42:40). The course is classified as both a road and a trail; it’s sanctioned by USATF and IAU-certified and ratified as a road or open course. Because it’s unpaved, it’s also classified as a trail by the American Trail Runners Association and the International Trail Runners Association.
Julie Hamulecki wins Ontario’s Sulphur Springs 50-mile outright, breaks course record
In May, Hamulecki was the first finisher overall in the 50-mile race at Sulphur Springs in Hamilton’s Dundas Valley, completing the distance in 7:08:00–almost 40 minutes ahead of the first male finisher, and capturing the course record. Hamulecki is also the Canadian 100K record holder on the road.
Adam Takacs, Hamulecki’s partner and coach, says that Hamulecki is the most high-functioning person he knows—as well as being the most modest. “She showed an extreme level of discipline and patience during this effort,” Takacs told Canadian Running. “Not afraid to run behind and then mop up the mess other runners make of themselves.”
Hamulecki wasn’t the only woman crushing records at Tunnel Hill on Saturday. Courtney Olsen of Bellingham, Wash., set a new women’s 50-mile world record, running 5:31:56 to beat Anne Trason‘s long-standing record of 5:40:18, set in 1991. In June, Olsen took third at the iconic Comrades Marathon in South Africa; and she will compete in the IAU 100K World Championships in December.
In the men’s 100-mile race, Iowa’s John Donovan took first in 12:36:26, followed by Phil Young (also of Iowa) in 12:48:45; Ohio’s Adam Gloyeske took third (and fourth overall) in 14:25:46.
For full results of the 2024 Tunnel Hill 100 and 50-mile races, head here.
