Julia Mayer

Marathon record holder: “With heart and soul”

Last year, Julia Mayer broke Austria's marathon record for the first time at the VCM.(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Marathon record holder Julia Mayer has her sights set on another top time at the Vienna City Marathon.In the long term, she wants to storm to the top of Europe.

Julia Mayer's life has changed completely. "I'm running through the Prater and people are taking photos of me or cheering me on," she says, amazed at the attention she is suddenly attracting and the attention she has gained with her performances.

From 5 kilometers upwards, Mayer holds all ÖLV records, in the marathon she ran 2:26:43, around four minutes faster than any Austrian woman before. The 31-year-old only really started running in 2019. "I've been doing everything differently to everyone else for four years," she smiles.

You need a lot of passion and heart and soul, but you can't do it without a brain.

Julia Mayer

Mayer wears four sensors
What makes her successful? First of all, an impressive capacity for suffering. She dropped a toenail during training. "You get used to it," Julia says succinctly. "You need an enormous amount of passion and heart and soul, but you can't do it without a brain," explains Mayer. "Every detail in training and in everyday life is thought through 100 percent." Together with trainer Vincent Vermeulen, she attaches great importance to data. Mayer always wears four sensors. This is not common even among the elite.

Julia wants to break into this category. "I want to be the best European," she says, setting her sights high. Perhaps as early as the Olympics in Paris. Although the world record is currently held by Sifan Hassan from the Netherlands, albeit born in Ethiopia. She is a role model for Mayer. "Because she trains like a deranged person - a bit like me."

"Two to threescenarios"
 At the Vienna City Marathon on Sunday, Mayer is even capable of a top time despite the predicted headwind. "We have two to three scenarios in mind," she explains. She will be accompanied by pacemakers Stephan Listabarth and Simon Stützel. "I've already covered hundreds of kilometers with Stephan, I trust him completely. He even tells me when there's a small stick on the road."