98 yards at Big’s Backyard Ultra
Covered 657.188 km at the individual world championship and placed ninth in a race won by Phil Gore.
Source-checked athlete record · Updated Oct 19, 2026
Brecht Vandamme
98-yard Big’s finisher and three-time Antwerp Backyard winner
Brecht Vandamme is a Belgian backyard ultrarunner from Oud-Turnhout who placed ninth at Big’s Backyard Ultra in 2025 with 98 yards.
BelgiumOud-Turnhout, BelgiumM35
Still running at the World Team Championship · 51 yardsBackyard Ultra World Team Championship 2026 · Still running
51 yards completed and still in the race
Belgium is 3rd with 753 yards and 12 runners still in.
From the organizer’s live results after yard 52 (15:53 UTC, 19 October). Live results ↗ Championship guide →
The record so far
Brecht Vandamme is a Belgian backyard ultrarunner from Oud-Turnhout. His best mark came at Big’s Backyard Ultra in October 2025, where he completed 98 yards for 657.188 km and placed ninth in the race won by Phil Gore. A year earlier he reached 92 yards and fifth place at Belgium’s site of the Backyard Ultra World Team Championships, where Belgium won the team title.
Vandamme has been a fixture at the front of Belgian backyard races since 2022. He won Antwerp Backyard Ultra in 2023, 2024 and 2025, setting a 46-yard course record in 2024, and took the assist there in 2026 with 64 yards behind Bert Verbist. At Legends Backyard Ultra in Retie he was runner-up to Szilard Fodor with 63 yards in 2023 and shared the assist at 52 yards in 2024. He also races long trail events, including sixth place at the 275 km Legends Trail in 2025.
Vandamme is on Belgium’s team for the 2026 Backyard Ultra World Team Championship, which started on 17 October 2026. His 98-yard run at Big’s ranks fourth on Belgium’s official selection list, where his name appears as Vandamme Brecht.
Defining performances
↗
92 yards for Team Belgium
Finished fifth of 15 starters at Belgium’s World Team Championship site with 616.952 km, which Yardlore lists as a Belgian M30s record at the time.
Antwerp Backyard Ultra course record
Won with a 46-yard course record that stood until Bert Verbist reached 65 yards in 2026.
63-yard assist at Legends
Was the last runner to stop behind Szilard Fodor’s 64-yard win in a field of 77 in Retie.
Performance history
| Date | Event | Performance | Result | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Great Escape 200km206.4 km trail | 35:57:46 | 11th overall | View ↗ | |
| Vloethemveld BackyardBackyard ultra | 30 yards · 201.180 km | 11th overall | View ↗ | |
| Antwerp Backyard UltraBackyard ultra | 64 yards · 429.184 km | Assist | View ↗ | |
| Legends Backyard UltraBackyard ultra | 50 yards · 335.300 km | 20th overall | View ↗ | |
| Big’s Backyard UltraBackyard ultra | 98 yards · 657.188 km | 9th overall | View ↗ | |
| Antwerp Backyard UltraBackyard ultra | 32 yards · 214.592 km | Winner | View ↗ | |
| Legends Trail 250275 km trail | 2d 05:29:00 | 6th overall | View ↗ | |
| Backyard Ultra World Team Championships — BelgiumBackyard ultra | 92 yards · 616.952 km | 5th overall | View ↗ | |
| Antwerp Backyard UltraBackyard ultra | 46 yards · 308.476 km | Winner · course record | View ↗ | |
| Legends Backyard UltraBackyard ultraMatthias Pelgrims also stopped at 52 yards behind Merijn Geerts’s 53-yard win. | 52 yards · 348.712 km | Shared assist | View ↗ | |
| Big’s Backyard UltraBackyard ultra | 50 yards · 335.300 km | 44th overall | View ↗ | |
| Antwerp Backyard UltraBackyard ultra | 35 yards · 234.710 km | Winner | View ↗ | |
| Legends Backyard UltraBackyard ultra | 63 yards · 422.478 km | Assist | View ↗ | |
| Backyard Ultra World Team Championships — BelgiumBackyard ultra | 60 yards · 402.360 km | 5th overall | View ↗ | |
| Antwerp Backyard UltraBackyard ultra | 38 yards · 254.828 km | Assist | View ↗ |
Related coverage
Runner directory
More athlete records
Mark DowdleLast Soul Ultra 2026 champion and Arrowhead 135 winnerHendrik BouryGerman backyard record holder and elite 48-hour runnerNorman Mascher-AspensjöBack-to-back German 24-hour champion and Last Soul podium finisherMartin StillerGreenLoop winner and Last Soul final-five runnerAyyoub El OsroutiLast Soul assist and Germany’s No. 2Harvey LewisTwo-time Big’s champion, US backyard record holder and Badwater 135 winner