If Hilde Dosogne is participating in the event, it is because, since January 1, 2024, the fifty-year-old has run a marathon every day to raise funds for breast cancer research. In all humility, the Gantoise told us the story of the feat she is currently accomplishing with a view to establishing a world record: becoming the first woman to have run 366 marathons in a row, the record held by a man being at present 365.
Now aged 55, although already sporty, Hilde Dosogne only started running at the age of 41. “I was 43 when I ran my first marathon, she tells us. Then, I did the Marathon des sables. That’s when I was asked to write a little book to raise funds for BIG against breast cancer. Since then, I have continued to run for this cause. I have participated twice in the Sportathlon, a 246 km race which takes place in Greece. I then asked myself what more I could do. And as I always need to surpass my limits, I challenged myself to run a marathon per day for a year starting January 1, 2024 and thus break the world record“.
Since that first day of the year, whether it rains, winds, snows or heatwaves, Hilde Dosogne has not missed an appointment. Every day, the 55-year-old from Ghent puts on her running sneakers and most of the time takes a circuit of 42 km or so around the Watersportbaan in her region, when she is not registered for a marathon organized here or there, like recently that of Brussels. All races are recorded on her connected watch and two witnesses must each time provide their signature to authenticate the race, which Hilde must also film and take photos as proof of her daily performance. The current record being 150 days for a woman, Hilde is already well beyond this month of November, with already some 320 races to her credit.
And when asked what motivates her above all else in this feat, she answers: “I am motivated by the personal achievement but also of course by running for the good cause of breast cancer research. Especially since I have a friend who suffers from it.” However, there were also periods of discouragement, injuries following falls, recognizes the marathon runner: “Since I can’t take breaks, it’s sometimes very hard. It’s still very hard because I work and I have four children.”.
To date, some 27,000 euros have already been raised, with the goal being to reach the sum of 36,000 euros.
