Ultrarunning
The day Fernanda Maciel ran up and down the 6,692m Aconcagua peak
When the Brazilian ultrarunner set a new record on the highest mountain in the Americas, she took women's endurance endeavour to a new level.
The achievement:
On February 22, 2016, Fernanda Maciel became the first woman to run up and down the 6,692m Aconcagua peak in Argentina, the highest mountain in the entire Americas. From the entrance of the Aconcagua Park to the summit and back, she covered 45 very, very steep kilometres in 22h 52min.
"Running in wild and high places with temperatures of -30ºC degrees and 50kph winds, all alone and without oxygen: it was the hardest run I've done in my life," she said.
Others might consider that experience a nightmare, but for Maciel, moments like that are what make her feel alive.
Listen to the story of another record-breaking woman – Jasmin Paris is the first woman to win the 268-mile Spine Race:
The background:
A gymnast, capoeira fighter and Brazilian jiu-jitsu champion, Maciel started trail running at 23. Now 40 years old, she was the first woman to run the Camino de Santiago Compostela (860km in 10 days) and took second on the Ultra Trail Mount Fuji (169km).
As a Brazilian, she had heard Aconcagua tales since she was a kid, and knew it was a challenge just to get there. So once she'd become a world-class mountain runner, that mountain was first on her list.
Cerro Aconcagua towers over Maciel as she starts her record-breaking run
© Gustavo Cherro/Red Bull Content Pool
The training:
Maciel had tried to reach the summit twice before her final attempt, in 2015 and in January 2016. By the time her final push came around, she'd spent 45 days acclimating and training at high altitude.
“I was running and exploring around 5,000m and 6,000m every day,” she said, “contemplating magic landscapes and feeling strong.”
The emotional rollercoaster:
Running Aconcagua is the kind of challenge that pushes the best athletes to their limits.
“I got altitude sickness very easily,” said Maciel, “because the level of oxygen drops to 43 percent close to the summit. It was difficult to control the pressure in my brain and lungs. I lost energy due to the temperature and my pace was slower the nearer I got to the summit.
“Sometimes, it felt like I was drunk. I spent a few hours running in a zigzag, very slowly.”
But in the end, it’s that difficulty that makes reaching the summit all the more worthwhile. She says it best herself: “I feel fulfilled and happy to be able to do it. We weren't born to fail; we can do much more than we imagine."