Canadian woman slays Arizona Monster 300-miler
King City, Ont.'s Selene Mallone broke the women's course record by five hours, finishing fourth overall
Loralea Mallone
King City, Ont.’s Selene Mallone just crushed a monster of a race. On Tuesday, she won the women’s race at the Arizona Monster 300, finishing fourth overall and setting a new course record in the process. She crossed the line in 99:55:02, cutting roughly five hours off last year’s winning women’s time. This was only Mallone’s second race beyond 200 miles.
A formidable beast
The Arizona Monster 300, hosted by Destination Trail Races, is a 304-mile point-to-point journey through southern Arizona’s Sonoran Desert, starting in the town of Patagonia. “The Sonoran is the most biodiverse in North America, home to towering Saguaro forests, rugged peaks, and the legendary Gila monster—the venomous lizard that inspired this race’s name,” the race website says. Runners climb more than 12,400 metres and must navigate extreme temperature changes over several days of running.
In it for the long run
Mallone, 30, works as a firefighter and took up running about a decade ago after competing in rugby, wrestling and powerlifting through high school and university. She completed her first 100-miler in 2024, and quickly upped her distance to win the women’s race at Sinister Sports’ The Divide 200, held in Crowsnest Pass, Alta., in September. She is signed up for a new Canadian 200-miler, The Ribbon 200, in June.
Early signs of greatness
Mallone has been working with coach Amanda Nelson, who holds the women’s 24-hour Canadian record, for about two and a half years, and their relationship goes beyond a typical coach-athlete setup. The two train together regularly, and Nelson says she realized that Mallone was special early on.
“I saw her potential just three months in,” Nelson says. “I joked that I was training her to be my pacer one day—and now that’s actually happening.” Mallone is set to pace Nelson at Quebec Mega Trail (QMT) 135K later this summer. The 2026 edition of QMT also features distances of 1K, 15K, 25K, 30K, 50K and 80K, as well as a nighttime 15K event and two stage races.
For full results of the Arizona Monster 300, head here.
