Breaking the Swiss 100km Record @ 3:47/km Pace

In this episode, we sit down with Pascal Rüeger, the Swiss ultra runner who ran 100km in 6:18:27 earlier this year, beating a record held since 1985 by almost 9 minutes and winning the race by over 30 minutes.

Pascal only started running competitively in 2018, in his late thirties. Today he holds the Swiss national records at 100km, 6 hours (91.6km), and 12 hours (161.2km), plus the M45 world record for 100km. He is self-coached, science-based, and trains twice a day, every day.

We talk through his race-day execution in Italy, his pacing strategy at 3:40/km, and how he uses heart rate zones to manage a sub-7-hour 100km.

Pascal also walks us through his weekly training (160-200km, with "Crazy Thursdays" of double 50K sessions), his low-carb daily diet paired with carb-targeted race fueling, and the entrepreneurial mindset that lets him fail repeatedly and come back stronger.

For anyone curious about ultra running, late-starter performance, or what consistency at the limit actually looks like, this conversation delivers.

Follow Pascal: @swissultrarunner