Julie Sager becomes first person to complete ultra-marathon series in Australia and USA in 12 months

A Cairns ultra-marathon runner has achieved a world first, to the shock of other seasoned endurance athletes. This is how she pulled it off.

Julie Sager, pictured during the 2023 Tahoe 200 ultra-marathon event, has recently become the first person in history to complete triple crown ultra-marathon series in the US and Australia within 12 months. Picture: Supplied

Cairns woman Julie Sager has become the first person in the world to complete the triple crowns of ultra-marathon running in both the US and Australia inside 12 months.

The triple crown series involve three races in both countries of 200 miles or more, the equivalent of about 320km.

Ms Sager, 52, completed the last of the six races, the Moab 240, on October 18, a mere eight months after the first race in February.

“I felt like I’d been hit by a bus,” Ms Sager said.

“But I could of kept running. I was loving it out there.”

Julie Sager during the 2023 Moab 240. Picture: Supplied

Julie Sager during the 2023 Tahoe 200. Picture: Supplied

Ms Sager climbed up to 10,000ft (3048m) twice as part of the Moab 240, considered one of the toughest endurance events in the world.

She completed the event in four days and 12 hours.

She battled through subzero temperatures and several sleepless nights to get to the finish.

At one point, looking at the competitors around her, she said everybody was in “zombie mode”.

Julie Sager (right) during the 2023 Tahoe 200. Picture: Supplied

“I’ve got little bits of toenails left. Some people don’t have soles on their feet anymore. I don’t know how they’ve done it,” she said.

“At one point, everyone was down, dying or delirious. Seventy people pulled out.

“Your oxygen levels get so deprived, you’d get so exhausted. I would take three steps and then I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move. So I went down and had a 15-minute nap. I was lucky I didn’t freeze. But it helped.

“The sunrise the next morning was amazing. The Utah desert glows red. The scenery is so stunning.”

Julie Sager before the Bigfoot 200. Picture: Supplied

Julie Sager's feet after the Bigfoot 200 race in Washington state, USA. Picture: Supplied

When asked why she puts her body through extreme punishment, Ms Sager said the drive to complete the challenge was enough for her.

“I love this community. You meet incredible people,” she said.

“I’m looking for longer races.

“People always ask me how I get my body ready. I just say ‘I don’t know, I’ll just start the race’.

“I went from triathlon to ultra running, up to 100 miles. Then jumped straight to 200 milers … you just give it a crack. It’s not for everyone, but I love the endurance.”

Ms Sager completed three of the events, including one in Cairns, within five weeks – two of those races were separated by just five days, and an international flight.

Shaun Kaesler, the event director for the ultra series in Australia, described Ms Sager’s history-making achievement as “unfathomable”.

“It’s just crazy she’s done it inside of a year. For some of them, she only had a week’s rest,” Mr Kaesler said.

“She’s an absolute legend in the ultra scene. She’s got universal kudos. I don’t know if this will ever be done by anyone again.”

In June, Ms Sager set herself the goal to climb Walsh’s Pyramid to raise funds for the FNQ Hospital Foundation.

She climbed it 20 times in just over 90 hours.

Originally published as Julie Sager becomes first person to complete ultra-marathon series in Australia and USA in 12 months