How fast can you run a mile while chugging four beers? How about doing it while running with just one shoe?

Canadian beer-mile phenom Corey Bellemore ran an impressive 4:30.80 mile under those conditions on Saturday to win the in Chicago, coming up just short of his 2021 world record of 4:28.10. American Elizabeth Laseter won the women鈥檚 championship race in 6:03.75 to claim her first world title, but Shelby Houlihan, a 2016 U.S. Olympian who is under suspension for a doping violation, stole the show by breaking the women鈥檚 beer mile world record in an earlier heat with a stunning 5:43.81 effort.

What Exactly Is a Beer Mile?

Basically, it鈥檚 a mile race on a track in which each runner chugs a 12-ounce beer, runs one 400-meter lap, and repeats that three more times, a beer for each lap, as fast as possible鈥攁ll without having it come back up, which is politely referred to as a 鈥渞eversal of fortune.鈥� The clock stops for each runner after the fourth lap is completed, unless they spew, when an additional fifth 400-meter penalty lap is typically required.

The Beer Mile World Classic鈥攖he de facto world championship of this quirky discipline鈥攔eturned to the United States on July 1, after an eight-year hiatus of being held in international locales, with the deepest fields ever assembled. The event was hosted by Hope Academy, a private college-preparatory high school with a high-performance track and a view of the Chicago skyline.

RELATED: Should I Give Up Alcohol During Training?

In the championship races that were broadcast via livestream, more than 30 elite beer-chugging runners duked it out for world titles, a variety of records, and, of course, the glory of international bragging rights.

Although Bellemore was disappointed about not being able to take a legitimate shot at the world record, his effort was impressive, nonetheless. He went out hard with a blistering early pace, coming through the initial 400-meter in 60 seconds after chugging his first beer. He remained on record pace with a two-beer, 800-meter split of 2:06.

But one of his Adidas spiked racing shoes slipped off in the first 20 meters of the race when he collided with another runner, so he ran almost the entire race wearing just a sock on his left foot. His victory was never in question, nor was his impressive pace of chugging beers, but he slowed slightly on the final two laps and finished two seconds short of his record.

Bellemore, 28, has been the world鈥檚 most dominant beer mile runner for several years, having won five world titles since 2016. He owns a 3:57:42 personal best in an open mile and ran a 4:24 at the 2018 Beer Mile World Classic in Vancouver, British Columbia. That would have shattered the world record at the time, but he was disqualified for having slightly too much foam left.

How fast did Bellemore run? He actually ran about a 4:02 mile if you consider that he had chugged each beer in about four seconds then averaged 60.50 400-meter splits.

鈥淚 wish it went a bit better, but that’s all right. It is still great showing, and great to be among everyone here,鈥� said Bellemore after winning his third straight world championship title. 鈥淚 don’t like to reflect too much on what could have been, but I think the potential for the beer mile could go to 4:20. When that’ll happen, hopefully soon. I think the top end would be right under 4:20 or right at 4:20.鈥�

American Chris Robertson, the 2017 and 2020 World Beer Mile Classic winner, was second in 4:54:15, followed by Australian Nick Finch (4:59:15), Sweden鈥檚 Jonas Andersson (5:00:82) and American Garrett Cullen (5:03:50). Team USA won the men鈥檚 team title, followed by Great Britain and Canada. ()

Laseter Wins Women鈥檚 Championship

This year鈥檚 stacked women鈥檚 field included hometown favorite Melanie Pozdol of Chicago, the defending champion of the event after being declared the winner (6:41:00) at the 2022 championships in Leuven, Belgium after two runners were disqualified ahead of her. Also running in the women鈥檚 championship were Bend, Oregon鈥檚 Allison Grace Morgan, a three-time Beer Mile World Classic winner and world-record holder (6:16.50), and Elizabether Laseter, of Austin, Texas, who was first across the line in the 2022 championship race but was disqualified on a chug zone technicality.

RELATED: American Women Dominate the 2022 World Beer Mile Title

Laura Riches of England set the pace on the first beer and a fast initial lap, but Laseter took command of the race on the second beer and never looked back. She ran away from the field, setting a huge personal best while surpassing Morgan’s official world record going into the event. Unlike many runners who try to pound the beers without stopping, Laseter uses a stop-and-start chugging method. Her splits broke down to roughly 72 seconds of beer chugging time (or an average of 18 seconds per beer) and running a 4:51 mile.

Grace Morgan, 40, finished as the runner-up in a new masters (40+) world record of 6:19:07, while Pozdol rounded out the podium in third (6:34.58) and American Kassandra Marin took fourth (6:39.27), making it a clean sweep for Team USA of the top four spots and securing another team world title. ()

Laseter, who competed collegiately for Johns Hopkins University, runs for the Bat City Track Club running club in Austin. She owns a 5:11 personal best in an open mile and has run a 2:48:58 marathon. But the 34-year-old food writer and photographer is also an exceptional beer chugger, a critical skill when it comes to running a beer mile for the podium.

鈥淚t always hurts, but it extra hurt this time,鈥� Laseter said. 鈥淚 had a blast. I love this event. I love my teammates. I love the community. I’m so thankful for this event and everyone who puts it on every year. I know a lot of work goes into it, and it gets better and better every year. 鈥�

Houlihan Sets New Women鈥檚 World Record

In the 鈥淟egends and Elites鈥� division鈥攕peedy runners who weren鈥檛 considered fast enough to run in the championships flight鈥擳eam USA’s Bud Lightning (yes, that鈥檚 the name he entered at registration) dominated the race, clocking a 5:00:23 beer mile, a 17-second personal best that would have placed him fourth overall in the men’s championship heat. Former world-record holder Jim Finlayson (Canada) battled it out with Todd Rose (USA) for the 50+ beer mile world record. Finlayson came out on top, clocking a 5:44.10, with Rose finishing in 5:54.44. They are now the top two 50+ beer milers of all time.

But it was Houlihan, a 30-year-old suspended former Nike professional, who stole the show. She became the first woman in history to break the six-minute barrier, That鈥檚 roughly 1:18 of total drinking beer time and running a mile in roughly 4:25.

Houlihan, a 2016 U.S. Olympic in the 5,000-meter run who owns a 4:23.68 personal best in an open mile, is currently about two and a half years into a four-year suspension from track and field for a failed drug test in December 2020. Because of that, organizers said she was not eligible for the women’s championship race, although the World Beer Mile Classic is still working to develop a formal policy for athletes competing under suspension.

However, race organizers said the have never required athletes to test in order to have their results ratified. For more than 25 years, has relied on video evidence alone to prove legitimacy of a beer mile result and have it marked as 鈥渙fficial鈥� in the database. Thus, organizers said Houlihan’s time was world record eligible as she followed all rules outlined. Houlihan did not violate any rules regarding her ban and got pre-approvals ahead of the event by the required governing bodies.

鈥淗onestly, it was really fun,鈥� Houlihan said after her first competitive beer mile. 鈥淚 think running past all the puke spots [from previous heats], though, was a little nerve-wracking. I was trying not to look at ’em. I had a great time and I just felt really good and everything kind of was clicking.鈥�

Celebrity Non-Alcoholic Beer Mile

The Celebrity Non-Alcoholic (N.A.) Beer Mile heat featured a field of notable personalities all trying their hand at a beer mile for the first time. They drank Athletic Lite, Athletic Brewing鈥檚 25-calorie non-alcoholic light brew that contains less than 0.5 percent ABV.

Elite masters marathoner and podcast host Ken Rideout led wire-to-wire, cruising a 6:50.12, less than a week after winning the Gobi March in Mongolia, a 155-mile stage race across the Gobi Desert. U.S. Rugby National Team member Carlin Isles took runner-up in 8:06.20.

There was a close battle for third on the final lap between TV personality Nev Schulman, sports analyst Cynthia Frelund, and comedian/actor Francis Ellis. In a sprint finish down the home stretch, Ellis barely edged out Schulman to finish third in 9:28.43. Schulman finished in 9:29.06, Frelund in 9:36.56, and Darren Rovell, sports business reporter for The Action Network, closed out the race with a time of 11:37.44.

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As we say good-bye to 2022 and the amazing year of running highlights, it鈥檚 time to start thinking about all of the possibilities for 2023 and beyond. Here are a few things, in no particular order, we can look forward to on the track, trails and roads in the year ahead.

1. An Epic Boston Marathon

Let me be clear, the Boston Marathon is always an epic event, no matter if you鈥檙e running it or merely spectating. The , will be big for numerous reasons, not the least of which is because it鈥檚 the 10-year anniversary of the horrific terrorist bombings that resulted in four deaths and hundreds of injuries. But it will likely be bigger than ever because Eliud Kipchoge, the G.O.A.T. of the marathon, has announced that he鈥檒l be running it for the first time 鈥� and, of course, that means he鈥檒l be running to win. The 38-year-old Kenyan has won 15 of the 17 marathons he鈥檚 run (including the past two Olympic marathons) and hopes to win all six Marathon Majors before he retires, so there鈥檚 a compelling reason to think he鈥檒l be running the New York City Marathon next fall, too. But winning Boston won鈥檛 be easy. The men鈥檚 field is stacked, with 2022 world champion Gotytom Gebreslase, defending Boston Marathon champion Evans Chebet plus five additional Boston winners in the field. The women鈥檚 field will also be loaded with talent, including returning champions Desi Linden of the U.S. (2018), Edna Kiplagat of Kenya (2017) and Atsede Baysa of Ethiopia (2016). Linden will be running her 10th Boston and trying to add to her total of five top-5 finishes. See you in Beantown for Red Sox, lobstah rolls and running!

2. XC Marks the Spot

XC is the acronym for cross country running, which will make a big splash early 2023. Cross country is not only the purest form of running, but it鈥檚 arguably the most competitive discipline of the sport because it brings together elite-level middle-distance and long-distance runners from the track and some of the world鈥檚 best marathoners to compete on the level playing field of a grassy, often hilly and sometimes muddy course. The World Cross Country Championships return for the first time since 2019 (thanks a lot, COVID-19), which means a few hundred of the world鈥檚 top runners will descend on for the men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 10km races, the under-20 men鈥檚 (8km) and women鈥檚 (6km) races and an open 8km race. As a precursor to the world championships, the top American runners will battle it out in the , for a chance to run in Australia. Cross country is equal parts aerobic conditioning and blood-and-guts tenacity, so it鈥檚 fun to watch but even more fun to run!

3. Reading about Running

As proof there are great reads outside of your social feed, there are a lot of great running books coming out in 2023. Among the ones on my list so far are the from 2018 Boston Marathon winner Desi Linden; by two-time U.S. Olympian Kara Goucher, who was a professional runner for that Nike team; from adventure athlete and trail runner Travis Macy; from Doug Mayer, a journalist and trail runner who has lived and operated a tour business in Chamonix, France, for several years; by journalist Christine; and by Tina Muir and Zo毛 Rom, editor-in-chief of Trail Runner. Whether you read via Kindle, listen via Audible or turn the pages of actual books, make room on your nightstand or digital device for these gems.

4. 2023鈥檚 Crop of New Shoes Are Crazy Cushy

Based on the sneak peeks I鈥檝e seen, next year鈥檚 road running shoes will be cushier and more energetic than ever. While there will be another great crop of new racing shoes 鈥攊ncluding Nike鈥檚 Vaporfly Next% 3 ($250) and Mizuno鈥檚 Wave Rebellion Pro ($250)鈥攖he best models coming out in 2023 will be cushy, energetic training shoes. Take for example Saucony鈥檚 new Kinvara Pro ($180), a super-stacked dual-density midsole sandwiched around a curvy tear-drop carbon-fiber plate. It has an 8mm heel-toe offset with a massive stack height (42mm in the heel, 34 mm in the forefoot), but it weighs only 9 oz. (for a men鈥檚 size 9.) Another key model is Skechers Speed Beast, a high-off-the-ground racer/trainer (40mm heel, 36mm forefoot) that incorporates the brand鈥檚 new, softer, lighter and more responsive Hyper Burst Pro foam. Same goes for the most anticipated trail running shoe, Speedland鈥檚 forthcoming GS:TAM ($275), a maximally cushioned model with a unique dual-density Pebax midsole layered around a fork-pronged removable Carbitex carbon-fiber plate and secured by a pair of two-way BOA performance fit dials.

RELATED: The Running Shoes We鈥檙e Most Excited to See in 2023

5. Trail Running is Blowing Up

, and after the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown, race participation and trail running shoe sales are booming as more women and more BIPOC individuals have joined the fun. Furthermore, big races and champion athletes 鈥� Jim Walmsley, Courtney Dauwalter, Adam Peterman, Allie McLaughlin, and, of course, Kilian Jornet 鈥斅燼re getting a lot more notoriety in the mainstream. While it鈥檚 harder than ever to get into some of the country鈥檚 most storied races 鈥斅燭he Dipsea, Chuckanut 50K, Western States 100 and the Hardrock 100 鈥� there are hundreds of other big and small events where you can test your off-road running skills as well as your physical, mental and emotional tenacity. The is a festival of races and trail running community that鈥檚 part of the . Even though it鈥檚 difficult to qualify to race in Chamonix, the offers 34 compelling trail races around the world immersed in cultural experiences, including four U.S. events. But the beauty of trail running is that you can enjoy the vibe of the sport鈥檚 dastardly challenges and supportive culture at an event in your own backyard. My all-time favorite trail race? The in my backyard in Colorado.

6. The Queens of the Track Will be Back

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Athing Mu have been two of the world鈥檚 most exciting track stars for several years. They鈥檙e already the best in the world in their primary events 鈥� the 400m hurdles for the 23-year-old McLaughlin and the 800m run for the 20-year-old Mu 鈥� and should remain the queens of those events for years to come. But in 2023 they鈥檒l be training together under coach Bob Kersee and so there is at least an outside chance that they could meet on the track at some point in 2023 in an open 400m race for the ages, and if they do, there鈥檚 no doubt they could threaten ichard-Ross鈥檚 2006 American record of 48.70. While McLaughlin will continue running the 400-meter hurdles as her primary event and likely remain unbeatable, there’s reason to believe Mu might run more 400s in 2023. What an amazing World Athletics Championships final it would be to see Mu racing aser (Brunei), aulino (Dominican Republic), and boma (Namibia) down the homestretch in Budapest. Marita Koch鈥檚 falsely propped up (aka, doped-up) world record of 47.60 from 1985 might finally be demoted in the record books.

7. America鈥檚 Next-Gen Men Are Rising

Although he has yet to win any international medals, Grant Fisher has put together two of the best running seasons of any American distance runner in history and he鈥檚 only 25. He leads the next generation of American men鈥檚 distance-running aces, along with Cole Hocker, Cooper Teare and Joe Klecker. After placing 5th in the 10,000m and 9th in the 5,000m at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, Fisher improved to 4th in the 10,000m and 6th in the 5,000m at last summer鈥檚 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon. He also won a fast U.S. championships 5,000m race and set a new indoor American record in the 5,000m (12:53.73) and a new outdoor American record in the 10,000m (26:33.84), the later of which ranked No. 1 in the world in 2022 and is No. 7 on the all-time world list. Greedy American fans will be eager to see him earn a medal as soon as this summer鈥檚 world championships in Budapest or the 2024 Paris Olympics, but the more intriguing long-term story might be if and when he decides to train for a marathon.

8. Runners Chasing Their Dreams

With the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon a little more than a year away (February 4, 2024 in Orlando, Florida), there will be a lot of excitement around American runners trying to reach the qualifying standards 鈥斅�2:18:00 for men and 2:37:00 for women 鈥� in 2023. But for most of those qualifying runners, many of whom work full-time jobs, finishing among the top three and making the Olympic team isn鈥檛 remotely possible. It鈥檚 all about reaching those qualifying times and then seeing where they stack up against the country鈥檚 best marathoners in a race that only happens every four years. Although the Houston Marathon (January 15), Grandma鈥檚 Marathon (June 17), Twin Cities Marathon (October 1) and the California International Marathon (December 3) will be the most likely places for those sub-elite (or emerging elite) runners to qualify, the thrill-of-the-chase satisfaction will be just the same no matter where it happens.

9. The World Returns to Oregon

聽A year after the best track and field athletes on the planet descended on Eugene, Oregon, for the 2022 World Athletics Championships, many of them will return to Track Town USA to flex their running, jumping and throwing prowess as the annual doubles as the Diamond League Finals on September 16-17 at Hayward Field. Because it will come at the end of a long season, it won鈥檛 have quite the star power as the world championships. But we鈥檙e at one of the greatest eras in the history of track and field and it will be a great chance to see some of the sport鈥檚 top stars 鈥� possibly Fred Kerley, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Jakob Ingebrigtsen, Athing Mu, Joshua Cheptegei, Faith Kipyegon and Armand Duplantis鈥攚ho will go for the gold in the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

10. Running Fast and Chugging Beer in Chicago

In 2023, Melanie Pozdol will get to run fast while chugging a lot of beers in her hometown of Chicago as she defends her beer mile world championship. The 34-year-old data analyst for Northwestern University won the 2022 women鈥檚 world title in Belgium, by running a 6:41 mile with four intermittent breaks to pound 12-ounce beers. The will be held July 1 on a state-of-the-art Mondo track at Hope Academy on the west side of Chicago.聽 With Pozdol, Elizabeth Laseter and three-time champion Alli Grace, the American women will definitely be the squad to beat. On the men鈥檚 side, Canadian Corey Bellemore is the Michael Jordan of the beer mile, but the race for team title is wide open. In addition to bringing some of the world鈥檚 best beer-chugging runners to the Windy City, there will also be community beer mile heats and a national club beer mile championship. If you鈥檝e never run a beer mile, this is a prime opportunity for your debut. Chicago is my kinda town and, given the propensity for runners puking up beers mid-run, this event will be a mix between, fast-paced running and a 鈥淒a Bears!鈥� skit on Saturday Night Live.

RELATED: The Most Inspiring Moments in Running & Multisport in 2022

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American Elizabeth Laseter and Canadian Corey Bellemore put on quite a show at the Beer Mile World Classic on Saturday afternoon in Leuven, Belgium.

When it comes to chugging suds and running fast 400-meter laps around a track, they were the best-in-show among the 65 runners from 13 countries participating in .

Running a beer mile is simple: a runner chugs a 12-ounce (or 355ml) beer, runs one lap around a track and repeats that three more times, a beer for each lap, as fast as possible 鈥� all without having it come back up, what is politely referred to as a 鈥渞eversal of fortune.鈥� The clock stops for each runner after the fourth lap is completed, unless they spew, when an additional fifth 400-meter penalty lap is required.

There are only a few basic rules to keep these speedy time trials in Belgium from looking like raucous beer-guzzling scenes choreographed to polka music at Oktoberfest in Munich. One rule is to make sure the beer in each can is fully finished. A second rule is that each beer is completed within the 9-meter 鈥渃hug zone,鈥� between the waterfall starting line and the finish line of each lap.

Laseter is a competitive runner鈥攕he ran for Johns Hopkins University in college and runs for the Bat City Track Club running club in Austin, Texas. But the 33-year-old food writer and photographer is also an exceptional beer chugger, a critical skill when it comes to running a beer mile for the podium.

Unfortunately, Laseter鈥攁s well as several other top runners in the women鈥檚 race鈥攚as flagged for appearing to step outside of the 鈥渃hug zone鈥� before she had finished drinking a beer at the start of her fourth lap, thus negating what would have been a world-record 6:15 mile and a 25-second victory.

Aside from that small hiccup, those who 鈥�yes, the beer mile world championships was broadcast via livefeed鈥�had to admire her high-performance execution. (Her effort broke down to roughly 25-30 seconds of chugging while running a 5:45-5:50 mile.)

Not only was Laseter given an 鈥渦nofficial鈥� finish, but so too was runner-up Laura Riches of the United Kingdom, who originally finished second in 6:30. That left American runner Melanie Pozdol, the third runner to cross the line in 6:41, as the one . (Her pace was fast, too, roughly the equivalent of a 6-minute mile with 40 seconds of chugging beers.)

Meanwhile, Bellemore, a 27-year-old professional runner from Tecumseh in Ontario, Canada, won the men鈥檚 race for the fourth time by a huge margin, even though his time of 4:50 was well off the overall beer mile world record of 4:28.1 that he set last year. This year鈥檚 edition of the Beer Mile World Classic stipulated that runners must swig 5 percent ABV beers from cans, which most competitors find to be slightly slower than racing with beer in bottles. And no,聽 鈥渟hotgunning鈥� the beer in the cans is not a legal tactic.

All runners were listed as drinking Juliper beer, a pale Belgian lager with 5.2 percent ABV, the country鈥檚 best-selling beer.

Despite being the third-fastest woman on the day, Pozdol was thrilled with her new personal best time for a beer mile with cans, after racing against 20 other women from seven countries. A former professional oboist who took up running for fitness in college, she was fifth in the back in August, with a 6:37 personal best.

鈥淚 was happy with how it went,鈥� said Pozdol, 34, who lives in Chicago and works as a data analyst for Northwestern University. 鈥淐ans are different than bottles, for sure, but I practiced with La Croix, which is more difficult to chug than beer. Too much carbonation!鈥�

In the women鈥檚 race, Belgium鈥檚 Lana Ryckaert took an early lead after drinking the first beer, but it was Laseter, Pozdol, and fellow American Kassandra Marin who were the first to complete the first lap and start pounding the second beer. Laseter was the first to start the second lap, and by the time she looped the oval to start drinking her third beer, she had built a 25-meter lead on both Marin and Pozdol.

Although Riches came on strong as Pozdol and Marin were slightly slower on their beer-chugging, it looked as if Laseter would run away with the title. But after finishing her fourth beer, she was walking out of the 鈥渃hug zone鈥� and put her can back to her lips, to make sure the can was empty, and was flagged by an official. She ran a fast final lap and crossed the finish line with a massive lead over Riches, but both were later DQ鈥檈d.

Marin was the fourth-fastest runner, just four seconds behind Pozdol in 6:45 (her beer-mile PB for slurping out of cans), but after the DQs she was moved up to second.聽聽was the fifth-fastest runner in the women鈥檚 race with a 6:49, but she was DQ’ed for leaving too much beer in her cans. Germany鈥檚 Katja Tegler (7:07) was third, while Sweden鈥檚 Ella Sj枚berg (7:24) was fourth.

The U.S. women won the team title as Pozdol and Marin finished 1-2, while the British beer swiggers took the men鈥檚 team championship based on the finishes of Joe Gebbie (4th, 5:17), Ritchie Gardiner (5th, 5:22) and Brogan McCawley (10th, 5:26).

鈥淯nfortunately, it was not a good one for me,鈥� said Morgan, who holds the and won the in August. 鈥淭hey required cans and I have never chugged cans and couldn鈥檛 quite get it right. I still finished as well as I could. It鈥檚 one of those challenging races that can go so many ways. I was out of my comfort zone from the start and behind significantly due to chugging poorly.鈥�

Bellemore, meanwhile, was never been challenged in the men鈥檚 race. As a runner who has made a living at running fast open miles and beer miles鈥攍iterally, given that he鈥檚 sponsored by Adidas鈥攈e lived up to his billing as the men鈥檚 favorite. (For reference, Bellemore owns a 3:57.42 PB in an open mile.) He didn鈥檛 disappoint this year, but instead put on a clinic and , 15 seconds ahead of Sweden鈥檚 Emil Granqvist (5:10).

Dutch runner Thijmen van der Loop was third (5:17), then British runners Gebbie (5:17) and Gardiner (5;22), who were fourth and fifth, respectively. The highest-placing U.S. runners in the men鈥檚 race were Will Rial (17^th, 5:38) and Zach Teed (18^th, 5:39).

鈥淭he race was an absolute blast!鈥� said Pozdol, who runs for the Chicago Fleet Feet Racing Team. 鈥淭he entire experience of coming to Belgium was honestly amazing. I feel so grateful to have been a part of Team USA and to help rep women’s beer miling!鈥�

The 2023 World Beer Mile Classic will be held July 1 in Chicago, Illinois, and runners will be allowed to use bottles. Better start training.

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