The World 24hr Championships

Running for 24 hours in a circle may seem something that should be reserved for the criminally insane but Run247 columnist Robert Britton, member of the Great Britain 24hr Running Squad, Team inov-8 and Team Centurion brings you five top tips for 24hr racing and ultra-marathoning in general

It was once said that attempting the Hour record in cycling was the closest you could come to death without actually dying, although I'm hazarding a guess that Jack Bobridge has never attempted a 24hr running race.

This Saturday the World and European 24hr Running Championships is taking place in the Pacro Ruffigio in Turin, Italy. 334 Athletes from over 40 countries, including Brazil, Kenya, USA, New Zealand, Estonia, Japan and Great Britain, will run around a 2km loop for 24 whole hours, hopefully, without stopping at all. Or vomiting.

Team GB will be sending out a squad of 12 athletes to compete. Seven female and five male athletes will be toeing the line in the Red, White and Blue vests, with high hopes and thousands of miles of training in preparation.

When asked for some top tips for 24hr racing and ultra-marathoning in general here are five that they came out with:

1. Sharon Law said to "set a high, yet achievable aim" and not to get caught up in the "buzz & testosterone" at the start. Fionna Ross agrees that "the last four hours are when you really need to dig deep and where you'll really suffer if you've been a bit over enthusiastic at the start." The race starts at 20 hours.
    
2. Steve Holyoak, Team Captain and top scorer in 2013, reckons that, apart from "don't do it", the best advice is to "avoid racing the first half" as it can feel like your legs are "encased in 26 tons of concrete in the second half whilst you are vomiting cheesy mash down your hallowed GB vest".
    
3. Someone, who did not wish to be named, believes the golden ticket is "to put sudocrem in your bum cheeks" and she's not one to be ignored with her race record. Just use a different hand to eat your sandwiches though...
    
4. Music can be a great help in the latter stages and Isobel Wykes uses the top cheesy tunes to keep her going and "a sing along to Abba's Dancing Queen has seen me though many a 'bad patch'". This may also have a demoralizing effect on your opponents, especially if I was singing.
    
5. Food is vital and 2011 Commonwealth 24hr Champ John Pares reckons you need a minimum of 300kcal per hour, with runners eating anything from malt loaf, homemade rice cakes, jelly tots and sausage rolls to a whole wheel of Brie (This was an Algerian runner at the Barcelona 24hr race and he did not have a very good day).

Ultimately, pace yourself, do not worry about others, eat and drink well and keep moving. The night may be tough but the sunrise is always worth it.

Running for 24 hours in a circle may seem something that should be reserved for the criminally insane, but it really is all about finding just what you are capable of in a single day. I, for one, cannot wait to find out.

Team GB are happy to be supported by Big Balls Beanies. They are also supported by Nike.

For more information on the IAU 24H World and European Championships (Turin, 11/12th April 2015) please visit: www.iau-ultramarathon.org