Yiannis Kouros
Encyclopedia
Yiannis Kouros is a Greek
ultramarathon
runner based in Melbourne
. He is sometimes called the "Running God" or the "Pheidippides
Successor". He holds every men's outdoor road world record from 100 to 1,000 miles and every road and track record from 12 hours to 6 days. In 1991, he starred as Pheidippides
in the movie The Story of the Marathon: A Hero's Journey, which chronicles the history of marathon running.
Kouros came to prominence when he won the Spartathlon
in 1984 in record time and the Sydney to Melbourne Ultramarathon in 1985 in a record time of 5 days, 5 hours, 7 minutes and 6 seconds. He beat the previous record held by Cliff Young
.
Kouros has also written over 1,000 poems (several of which appear in his book Symblegmata (Clusters)) and the book The Six-Day Run of the Century.
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
ultramarathon
Ultramarathon
An ultramarathon is any sporting event involving running longer than the traditional marathon length of .There are two types of ultramarathon events: those that cover a specified distance, and events that take place during specified time...
runner based in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
. He is sometimes called the "Running God" or the "Pheidippides
Pheidippides
Pheidippides , hero of Ancient Greece, is the central figure in a story which was the inspiration for a modern sporting event, the marathon.-The story:...
Successor". He holds every men's outdoor road world record from 100 to 1,000 miles and every road and track record from 12 hours to 6 days. In 1991, he starred as Pheidippides
Pheidippides
Pheidippides , hero of Ancient Greece, is the central figure in a story which was the inspiration for a modern sporting event, the marathon.-The story:...
in the movie The Story of the Marathon: A Hero's Journey, which chronicles the history of marathon running.
Kouros came to prominence when he won the Spartathlon
Spartathlon
Spartathlon is a ultramarathon race held annually in Greece since 1983 between Athens and Sparta.-Origin:The Spartathlon aims to trace the footsteps of Pheidippides, an Athenian messenger sent to Sparta in 490 BC to seek help against the Persians in the Battle of Marathon...
in 1984 in record time and the Sydney to Melbourne Ultramarathon in 1985 in a record time of 5 days, 5 hours, 7 minutes and 6 seconds. He beat the previous record held by Cliff Young
Cliff Young (athlete)
Albert Ernest Clifford "Cliff" Young was an Australian potato farmer and athlete from Beech Forest, Victoria, best noted for his unexpected Westfield Sydney to Melbourne Ultra Marathon win at 61 years of age.-Early life:...
.
Kouros has also written over 1,000 poems (several of which appear in his book Symblegmata (Clusters)) and the book The Six-Day Run of the Century.
World records
According to the International Association of Ultrarunners, as of October 2010. He says his secret is when other people get tired they stop, I DON'T. I take over my body with my mind I tell it that it's not tired and it listens.Distance
| 100 miles | Road | 11h 46min 37s | 13.665 km/h |
| 1000 km | Track | 5d 16h 17min 00s | 7.338 km/h |
| 1000 km | Road | 5d 20h 13min 40s | 7.131 km/h |
| 1000 miles | Road | 10d 10h 30min 36s | 6.424 km/h |
Time races
| 12 h | Road | 162.543 km | 13.545 km/h |
| 12 h | Track | 162.400 km | 13.533 km/h |
| 24 h | Road | 290.221 km | 12.093 km/h |
| 24 h | Track | 303.506 km | 12.646 km/h |
| 48 h | Road | 433.095 km | 9.023 km/h |
| 48 h | Track | 473.797 km | 9.875 km/h |
| 6 days | Road | 1028.370 km | 7.142 km/h |
| 6 days | Track | 1038.851 km | 7.214 km/h |