Do Gender Differences in Running Performance Disappear With Distance?

Abstract

It has been suggested that gender differences in running should disappear as distances increase, particularly past the marathon. This suggestion is primarily based on differences in fuel utilization, muscle damage following exercise, relative improvements in performance over the past decades, and on the analysis of marathon vs. ultramarathon performances of men and women. We reasoned that the best comparison of the potential of a human is by the use of world best times, which should be reasonable indicators of the effect of distance on relative performance of women and men. We compared current world best running performances at distances from 100 m to 200 km. Records as of December 2002 were obtained. T-tests analyzed speed differences between genders, and regression analysis tested the percent differences between men and women across distance. Speeds were different, with the average difference being 12.4% faster for men. There was a significant slope to the speed difference across distances in that longer distances were associated with greater differences. These results may be confounded by the reduced number of women in longer distance events. Furthermore, the proposed metabolic advantage for women because of increased fat metabolism may be masked by regular feeding during endurance races.

Performance and Age of the Fastest Female and Male 100-km Ultramarathoners Worldwide From 1960 to 2012

“…In the study of Coast et al (6) relating to running distances between 100 m and 200 km, the sex difference accounted to 12.4%. The existing sex gaps in running performance can partly be attributed to physiological sex differences such as the lower skeletal muscle mass and the lower cardiac output in women compared with men (5,39).…”

“…However, the sex difference in performance was only ;20% for the annual top 10 runners over the years (11). In contrast, in the study of Coast et al (6) investigating athletes covering distances between 100 m and 200 km, the sex difference accounted to 12.4%.…”

“…It has been postulated that women may outperform men with increasing race distance (1,6). It has been previously observed that female ultramarathoners were more resistant to fatigue than comparable male ultramarathoners (1).…”

Age and gender interactions in short distance triathlon performance

“…Although some authors have questioned whether the gap in gender difference in endurance performance could be closed (Bam, Noakes, Juritz, & Dennis, 1997;Coast, Blevins, & Wilson, 2004;Whipp, & Ward 1992), more recent studies could not confirm this assumption showing that the gender difference in both endurance performance (Cheuvront, Carter, DeRuisseau, & Moffart, 2005;Sparling, O'Donnell, & Snow, 1998) and anaerobic sprints (Seiler, De Koning, & Foster, 2007) is no longer diminishing. Coast et al (2004) for example analysed the gender difference in running performances at distances from 100 m to 200 km. They found a gender difference in average speed of 12.4% and also showed that longer running distances were associated with greater gender differences.…”

Ultramarathon Running: Medical Issues

“…There was a significant slope to the speed difference across distances where longer distances were associated with greater differences [31]. In 24-hour ultramarathons held between 1977 and 2012, the sex differences were ~5% for all women and men, ~13% for the annual fastest finishers, ~13% for the top ten and ~12% for the top 100 finishers [30].…”