Martin Liška Interview with David Kellner, winner of the 2023 K6 6 Day Race

I have been involved in bodybuilding since I was 15 with the goal of becoming a professional bodybuilder.  That meant trying to win the domestic title and win the EC and WC among amateurs.  Only then was it possible to get an invitation to a professional competition, the Olympia Champion in the USA and become a professional bodybuilder.  I pursued this goal for five years. When I was preparing for the first competition and saw the reality of the final preparation (dehydration, steroids), I immediately quit.

A young David Kellner

For two years I thought about what to do next, because sport was my life.  Then came the Olympics in Nagano and I was experiencing the success of Katka Neumann and the Czech hockey team very intensely.  After the semi-final with Canada, I thought that if we won the Olympics, I would find a new sport and do everything to be successful in it.  So I began to devote myself to running, because running is part of the training of a professional soldier.

That’s why running was my natural choice and it has been for 25 years since.  In addition to athletics, I’ve done team sports (hockey, football), power endurance pentathlon (Man of Steel), triathlon, dog biathlon, cannicross, shooting, OCR and the Spartan race.
I eventually moved on to ultras, first in OCR and Spartan races for 24 hours.  Then came the race in 2019 in Kladno (MČR for 24 hours).  The race in which I experienced a lot of pain and emotions. I experienced for the first time the atmosphere, the people around ultra and won my first medal in athletics. I said to myself, this is the sport I’ve been looking for all my life.  The bodybuilder became an ultrarunner…

Do these two sports have anything in common?

Bodybuilding and ultra running definitely have a few things in common in my view.  The most important thing is the discipline in eating, because as a bodybuilder I had to eat a lot of healthy, high-quality food.  Now it’s the other way-minimum food.  Genetics and a bodybuilding background means I’m constantly watching myself to maintain a weight that’s comfortable for me to do ultrarunning.  So I am practically 25 years on a diet… Discipline, but it also means a proper lifestyle, sleep, and that’s what I’ve been focusing on for the last two seasons.  However, the most important thing bodybuilding and running have in common is to constantly look for a new way of training, during which my body suffers, it does not have a chance to adapt, and thus my performance increases.  I have one big advantage in this, I can endure a lot of pain for my dream goals.  My coach, who taught me athletics (Vladislav Moravec), recently told me that I am extreme, that one out of tens of thousands of runners endures so much pain in training and that is why I am where I am, following the path of Schaller volume and high intensity.  I believe I am saving my body and preventing injuries and training takes less time.

In 2019, you won the Ultra Spartan Race world title in Australia. Are you still doing the Spartan Race, or are your biggest goals now in ultra races?

First, before I answer this question, I would like to explain my success in the OCR and Spartan race, because it is often associated with me.  OCR and Spartan races are two different organisations and each organises the world championship independently. I participated in the Spartan Ultra 24 Hour World Championship twice. 2018-MS Spartan race for 24 hours Iceland-world vice-champion ( age group 40-49 ), 2019-MS Spartan race for 24 hours Sweden-4th place (age group 40-49).   I once participated in the OCR World Championship in Australia in 2019. That’s where my biggest success came in obstacle Ultra races. I became the world champion not only of my age group, but even of all age groups of the championship (from 18 years to 50+ years). So now to the question, OCR, Spartan races and ultra running…
I have three big goals in ultra running for this season: finish the Spartathlon, try to improve my 24 hour PB and the number one priority is the K6. I consider the race for 6 days as the pinnacle of my career and that’s how I prepare.  Maybe this is my first and at the same time last race for 6 days.  I will try for the best possible result, but of course with great humility and respect.  I have 3 times from MČR silver (2x 24-hour race and 1x stage ultramarathon).  Winning gold would be absolutely fabulous on home soil, on the track I often train on, at home in Pilsen, in a race where I will run with my wife at the same time.  Of course I will have a lot of quality opponents who have my respect and I think it will be a great fight.  But I am determined to do everything to fulfil my biggest dream in athletics and that is a gold medal from the Czech Republic Championship.

This year you are organising the first year of running races in Sušice, could you introduce them?

I decided to organise a race with my team for many reasons but mainly two. I wanted to find a course where ultrarunners would have the opportunity to meet the limits for Spartathlon, World Championships, European Championships and I run personal bests on a fast flat course.  A facility where they will have the absolute service that such performance demands and deserves. In a place where you can cheer, where you can visit the pool, go to a restaurant, find nice accommodation.
The second reason. I deeply respect all runners and have for 25 years heard many times: “You have so many cups at home, I would like at least one…” That’s why I decided to fulfil this wish for everyone who will receive a cup for completing a race on all routes: 10 km, half marathon, marathon, 50 km, 100 miles, 48 ​​hours, and we are preparing a board for them on which with the cup and the time, they will be able to take pictures, so I hope we will fulfil the wishes of many runners. I believe that the greatest experience will be the track, the connection of the tartan track and the cycle path, which copies the Otava River.

Photo 7083: David Kellner and his wife Kateřina

Last year you ran a 24-hour K6 race, this year a 6-day race. What are you most looking forward to?

What I’m most looking forward to at K6 is getting to the start with my wife, who is back to full strength after three years of health struggles.  For a life challenge that has never been here before, a race for 6 days. To you organisers and ultramarathon friends. Mostly for the fight for the title and how many kilometres I am able to run and walk in 6 days.

◊◊◊

Read the K6 Race Report 2023 by Martin Liška