One of the standout performances for me this weekend was the return to the podium for Nikki Kimball. Nikki has pretty much done it all at the major ultras around the world. Her 3 wins at Western States and course record at UTMB are my highlights. An accomplished athlete with a skiing background, she loves the tougher courses and the harsher the conditions the better she seems to go.
More recently she has been struggling with a knee injury that seems to have taken the edge off her impressive string of running results. We caught up with her post the race and it was great to see that she has pulled up well and looking forward to renewing some old challenges at WS100 this year and a few new ones. In her opinion, if the conditions are tough enough on race day then the field is equalised she doesnt see why a female athlete cant win WS100.
Here is a taste of Nikki’s achievements courtesy of wikipaedia
Ultra Marathon
- Member of United States 100K Team 2001-2006; 8th overall and 1st American at World Cup 2003, Tainan, Taiwan; 7th at World Cup 2005; scoring member of gold medal 100K team at World Cup 2005
- Western States 100 Champion 2004, 2005, 2007
- 50-Mile Trail National Champion 2003, 2004, 2005, Crystal Mountain, Washington
- 50-Mile Road National Champion 2005, State College, Pennsylvania. Broke course record by 23 minutes
- Set course records at numerous 50-milers
- 1st place, American River 50-Mile, 2003 (fastest time by an American woman in 2002-2003
- 2nd Place, National 100K Championships, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2001
- 3rd Place International Skyrunning Ultra Series Transvulcania 83km 2012
Mountain Running
- Member of United States Mountain Running Team 2001-2003; 24th overall, 2nd American, World Mountain Running Trophy 2003, Girdwood, Alaska
- Mt. Washington Road Race 2003, 2nd place, 1st American
- New England Mountain Running Champion 2001, runner-up 2003
Trail Running
- Bridger Ridge Run, 1st place, Bozeman, Montana, 2004 (course record)
- Grand Tree Trail Race Series: undefeated in all races run in 2000-2002
- Set course records in 9 New England Grand Tree races, 2000-2003
- Pennsylvania State Trail Running Champion, 1998
Road Running
Road marathon wins also include Adirondack Marathon, Schroon, NY; Green Mountain Marathon, Grand Isle, VT; Great Potato Marathon, Boise, ID, Salt Lake City Marathon; Lewis and Clark Marathon, Bozeman, MT
Snowshoe Racing
- U.S. National Champion 2001, 2004, 2005; runner-up 2003
- Member of U.S. National Team 2003-2005
Awards, Other Athletic Achievement and Running Community Involvement
- Member of USATF Mountain/Ultra/Trail Council 2002 to 2005; Championship Chair 2005
- Member of the 100K Task Force for USATF
- Member of U.S. Snowshoe Association advisory board 2004-2005
- 1st place team Moab Adventure Xstream, 2005
- North American Female Ultra Runner of Year 2003, 2004 (Ultrarunning magazine)
- USATF Ultra Runner of the Year 2004
- 15K Biathlon U.S. Olympic Team Trials, 13th place, 1994
- Williams College Ski Team 1989-93; skied to top-20 finishes in Division I NCAA National Championships all four years
- Two-time winner of the Williams College Alumnae Ski Award
