Cincinnati native and 2010 Sycamore High School graduate Ben Dhiman has reached the pinnacle of trail ultrarunning.
One year after finishing as the runner-up in the Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc in Chamonix, France, Dhiman set a new event record by traversing the 174-kilometer (108-mile) race with almost 32,000 feet of vertical gain in 18 hours, 16 minutes and 29 seconds.
“I quickly found myself alone, but I decided to stick to my own pace without slowing down. One of the main goals of my preparation was to become more comfortable on technical sections, and I think that helped me become faster and gain confidence. I feel very lucky to be able to run these trails, in these incredible mountains, and do what I love,” Dhiman told the media after his victory.
While it's not an official course record (a section of the course was rerouted over the last two years due to weather concerns), he is the first person to finish in under 19 hours, knocking more than an hour off of Britain's Tom Evans's previous event record which was set in 2025.
Dhiman had a 31-minute margin of victory as three men finished under the 19-hour mark, including fellow American Caleb Olson.
In a 2024 interview with The Enquirer, Dhiman revealed that he has always desired to outwork his competitors, a seed that was planted during his youth soccer career. He also dove into his love for endurance athletics, beginning with his hikes on the Appalachian Trail, the western Continental Divide, and a 2018 walk across Nepal, all three contributing to his rise to the top of the ultrarunning world.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati native Ben Dhiman wins top trail race in historic fashion
