Harvey Lewis Wins the USATF 24-Hour National Championship Again

Vegan ultrarunner Harvey Lewis is the US 24-hour national champion again. He ran just over 130 miles at the NorthCoast 24-Hour Endurance Run in Cleveland, Ohio, which hosted this year's national championship. He also won the title in 2015 and 2017.

That's more than five marathons back to back, with no sleep. Lewis is a regular on the US national 24-hour team, and in 2014 he won the Badwater 135, the 135-mile race through Death Valley often called the toughest footrace in the world.

Lewis was vegetarian from 1996 and went fully vegan three years ago. He told VegNews his diet is the reason he's still winning:

It's the single most important ingredient to my longevity in the sport. My health, energy, and performance as a runner changed dramatically when I became vegetarian [and, more recently, vegan]. I truly believe it's possible that I could win 24-hour races for many years to come.

He has plenty of role models. He points to his friend Marco Olmo, who won the famous UTMB at 57 eating plant-based, and Mike Fremont, who is still setting half-marathon records at 97 on a vegan diet.

Great Vegan Athletes has more on his long list of course records and race wins.

In May, Robbie Balenger ran 3,175 miles across America on a vegan diet, and last year Catra Corbett set the fastest known time from San Francisco to Yosemite at 53. Back in 2017, vegan athletes set world records and won a huge medal haul.

130 miles in a day, fueled by plants. No meat, no problem.