The 55-year-old athlete ran 15,444 kilometers (9,596 miles) in one year.

Finally coming to a halt on the final day of 2024, Belgian ultrarunner Hilde Dosogne feels she has accomplished what it takes to break the world record and become the first female ultrarunner. marathon every day of the year.

Exhausted but seemingly not worn down by the weight of the relentless marathon run, Dossogne emerged from the cold, gray light and crossed the finish line as a crowd of runners celebrated the extraordinary feat.

“I’m just glad it’s over,” she said after crossing the finish line on Tuesday, putting the final incident behind her when she collided with a spectator on her final run.

In addition to being rewarded for running at least 15,444 kilometers (9,596 miles) every year, the 55-year-old has raised about 60,000 euros ($62,438) for breast cancer research.

Now she must collect GPS data, photo and video evidence, and independent witness reports on a daily basis to meet Guinness World Records requirements. If approved, the record will officially be hers in about three months.

The 55-year-old will share the male record of 366 days with Brazilian Hugo Farias, who set the record on August 28, 2023 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

In the women’s category, Dossogne will be in a league of her own as the record is currently held by Australia’s Erchana Murray-Bartlett at 150 days.

One thing’s for sure: She doesn’t want her feat to be a shining example of healthy living — it’s more of a personal perseverance as she’s had to battle the flu, COVID-19, a dozen car accidents, blisters and even bursitis. But overall, the brain is hit hardest.

“The mental pressure is greater than the physical pressure. Of course, physically, everything has to be okay. Otherwise, you can’t run four hours a day. But it’s more energetic to stand on the starting line every day,” she told Beauty Associated Press.

Dossogne completes most of her marathon on a flat loop of water outside the university town of Ghent, where strong headwinds may be her toughest competitor.

Even there, she said, she wasn’t taking any statistical risks, making sure to run 42.5 kilometers (26.4 miles) a day instead of 42.195 kilometers (26.2 miles) a day — just to be safe.

Dossogne wished she could prolong her days in the same way.

A bioengineer at a chemical plant, she starts early so she can squeeze in a marathon every afternoon. Since she can’t run at top speed every day, she sticks to an easy 10 km/h (6.2 mph), which also allows friends and witnesses to run along.

The only time her daughter Lucy thought she might not finish the race was when she crashed 27 kilometers (16.7 miles) in and dislocated her finger and had to be rushed to the emergency room, where she spent too much time. So much so that the game couldn’t be completed. The marathon was held as per regulations. What’s the solution? “She started all over again,” Lucy said.

“It’s still a little bit crooked,” Dossogne said.