Jasmin Paris is not built like ordinary mortals. In March, the British ultra-runner won a moment of fame after completing the Barkley Marathons, a race so brutal that only 19 men have managed to finish it in the past 35 years. Paris is the first woman to complete the race.

It is not Paris’ first brush with greatness. Five years ago, she won the Spine Race: 268 miles, or about 431km, along the Pennine Way in January, when it is dark 16 hours a day, cold enough to be covered in snow but warm enough for the rain to soak through everything, and where every snatched minute of sleep is a minute conceded to one’s rivals.