Ruth Croft

About

Ruth Charlotte Croft (born 15 January 1989) is a New Zealand ultrarunner from Greymouth, on the West Coast of the South Island. Raised in the tiny settlement of Stillwater, she was the New Zealand under-20 national steeplechase champion and represented New Zealand at the 2006 World Junior Championships in Athletics in the 3,000 metres steeplechase. A full athletic scholarship brought her to the University of Portland in Oregon, and after graduating she moved to Taiwan, where she spent five and a half years teaching English and later working in marketing at Garmin — all while building her trail running career on Taiwan's mountain race circuits. She became a Garmin-sponsored athlete and, on returning to elite international competition, made rapid progress: in 2022 she won Western States 100 in 17:21:30, the third-fastest women's time in the race's history. Three years later she crowned her career with a commanding victory at UTMB Mont-Blanc 2025, finishing in 22:56:23 and winning by 32 minutes over a field that included three-time champion Courtney Dauwalter. That win made her the first woman and only the second person ever to have won all three major UTMB races — OCC, CCC, and UTMB. A three-time Tarawera Ultramarathon champion and 2025 Worldwide UltraRunner of the Year, Croft is admired for her calm, calculating racing style.

Notable Wins

• — Western States 100 2022 (17:21:30
• — 3rd-fastest women's time)
• — RMB Ultra-Trail Cape Town 2023
• — Tarawera Ultramarathon by UTMB 2024
• — UTMB Mont-Blanc 2025 (22:56:23)
• — Tarawera Ultramarathon by UTMB 2025
• — 2025 Worldwide UltraRunner of the Year

Race History