
Other runners, like Amelia Boone, Gary Robbins, and Johan Steene, were originally slated to compete in this year’s race but dropped out due to injuries, moving on, and testing positive at the airport for COVID, respectively. This included a mix of Barkley veterans like Courtney Dauwalter, and 2017 and 15th-person-ever Barkley finisher John Kelly, and strong Barkley virgins like Big’s Backyard record holder Harvey Lewis, 2017 Big’s champion Guillaume Calmettes, and Appalachian Trail fastest-known-time holder and Belgian dentist Karel Sabbe. An incredibly deep field was lined up to face the beast. For the fifth consecutive year, there were no finishers at the infamous Barkley Marathons.
