Quiet, unassuming and modest, Jasmin Paris is a British runner and mum-of-two young children who unexpectedly shot to international sporting prominence in January 2019 when she won the brutal 268-mile Spine Race outright. She obliterated the course record by more than 12 hours, despite having given birth to her first child 14 months earlier and having to express milk at checkpoints along the way. Get to know the record-breaking ultra runner a little more with this interview done shortly before she took on the 2022 Barkley Marathons.
Where are you from originally and where are you based now?
I’m originally from Hadfield, which is a small town on the edge of the Dark Peak. I’m half Czech, so parts of my childhood were also spent there, at our family cottage in the hills of Šumava National Park. Now I live with my husband Konrad and our two children just south of Edinburgh, on the edge of the Scottish Borders.
What do you do for a living?
I’m a small animal vet specializing in Internal Medicine, I work in the teaching hospital at the University of Edinburgh. I do a mixture of clinical and research work, which means work is always interesting, and busy!
Do you have any hobbies or interests outside of sports?
I like to paint, bake and read, although currently these pleasures are limited to drawing fairies, baking cupcakes and reading bedtime stories!
How did you get into running?
I was working as a new graduate in a small animal practice in Glossop, when a colleague (Richard Patton) suggested I try a local fell race. I did, and fell in love with the sport, and the people. I joined a local club (Glossopdale Harriers) and fell-running quickly became an integral part of my life.
How long have you been doing it?
Almost 14 years.
What have been your best results to date?
Probably winning the Montane Spine Race outright in 2019, winning the World Extreme Skyrunning Series in 2016, coming second overall at the Dragon’s Back in 2015, and breaking the record at the Jura Fell Race in 2015.
What have been your best achievements to date?
Running the fastest female times for the Bob Graham, Paddy Buckley and Charlie Ramsey rounds in 2016 (although Beth Pascall has since broken the Bob Graham record) and setting a female 24-hour Munro Record in 2021.
What have been the highlights of your career thus far – not necessarily a win, but maybe an event somewhere special etc?
I just love running in the fells and mountains, so there are too many happy memories to answer this question. A recent adventure that I remember with a smile was running the Petite Trotte à Léon with Konrad and Jim Mann in 2019. It was hard, but beautiful and wild, and the journey was shared with two very special people.
What are your future goals and aspirations?
I mainly aspire to continue to love running and time spent in the mountains, and to share that with friends and family. Races and challenges are less important.
What do you see as your strengths as an athlete?
I think I am determined (one could also say stubborn!) and competitive, besides having reasonable stamina. Probably more importantly though, is that I run for the love of it.
And what do you see as your weaknesses, and how are you addressing them?
Being stubborn has its downsides, particularly when it comes to being injured. I’ve tried to learn from past mistakes and back off training early when I feel a niggle, but it’s not easy! In the last year I’ve been doing strength classes consistently 2-3 times a week, which has probably helped my body cope with increasing training load as I’ve come back following the birth of my second child.
What is the best bit of advice someone has given you to date?
Joss Naylor has offered several pieces of advice over the years, including salty egg sandwiches to ward off cramp. Most useful have probably been his descending tips, which have included ‘don’t think’ and ‘let the stones [in your shoe] bed in!’.
Do you have any lucky charms/ things you do before competing?
Since having children there’s so much to organize for them before a race, that I’m just happy to make it to the start line on time! They are always a huge incentive to get to the finish as quickly as I can.
Is there someone in your sport who you look up to, and if so, why?
I am generally most inspired by the people at the back of the race, especially on multi-day races. I remember being struck by it for the first time on the Dragon’s Back, seeing runners arriving just before the cut-off each night and leaving at dawn, with only a few hours in camp to eat and sleep. I think being a hero is about the effort you put in, not necessarily the outcome.
What’s your favourite type of race?
Long, rough, wild and low-key.
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