Congratulations to James Izzard on a phenomenal race and winning the 2023 Jungle Ultra. He has won every single stage over the 5 days and looked stronger than ever on the final day. He set a blistering pace and finished the 75km course in 9 hours 56 minutes, over 2 hours 30 minutes faster than his closest competitor. He’s been focused and diligent all week and stuck to a clear race strategy. A fantastic performance and an athlete to watch. 

Gabriella Mathisen crossed the finish line at 21:55 having endured a 17 hour day on the course to win first woman and 6th overall. From addiction to one of the toughest ultras in the world, amputee Gabriella Mathisen has conquered the jungle with everything she had. Her drive is to inspire others to do extraordinary things. She has done nothing other than that during this race. 

John Belton finished the race with a fantastic performance on the final stage to take 2nd place in the stage as well as overall. John and close friend Spencer Matthews had been racing closely together, but for the final day John had plenty left in the tank and crossed the finish line in a time of 12 hours 37 minutes.  

3rd place in the 5th stage goes to Julian Eley from South Africa. He is a runner that has gotten quicker and stronger as the week has gone on. Today he put in the performance of his life to finish in 3rd position on the 75km course.

In joint 4th place on the final stage is Spencer Matthews and Matthew Knight. Spencer Matthews suffered an ankle injury and has had to give every ounce of himself to maintain his pace. He finishes 3rd place overall having put in a consistently brilliant performance over the 5 staged event. 

Matt Knight in joint 4th in this stage has come back to face his jungle demons where he retired on the 3rd day 8 years ago due to heat exhaustion and dehydration. But he put everything right this time and was meticulous with his preparations and ongoing management of himself through the race. Matt has been a great athlete through out the race.

The Jungle Ultra race never disappoints and consistently provides those brave enough who toe the line, an experience of a lifetime. Our runners have endured suffering like they they’ve never experienced before, but they’ve come away with a deep and profound feeling of having achieved something remarkable.

Stage Five Results

Overall Leaderboard After Stage Five