Would Sherpas Be good Marathoners?

you'd think, but they are hikers who go up with impossibly large loads relative to their size, maybe 150 lbs. I saw regular porters bringing stuff around the Annapurna circuit. They'd walk faster than most of the unencumbered tourists from near sea level up to 12-14000 ft no problem all day. But that's not running.

If you went to Nepal, you'd understand. Nobody runs.

Also, there has been some research done on, not just Sherpas, but also natives of the Incas. Above a certain altitude, there are adaptions that occur that are not conducive to running fast. And when Marius Bakken tried training in Peru, he didn't do well either.

short legged stocky people don't make great distance runners

B!tch i might be

Gurkhas from Nepal when they were still in Hong Kong, always used to win the MacLehose 100km run by several hours. Nepal is 6-8k ft, which would seem to be good enough.

Some of the best ultra trail runners are in fact Sherpa and Rai (Kiranti) people from Nepal. Their bodies are specifically built for going long distances over mountains.

Nepalese talent is hugely untapped, but there are programs like the Mira Rai Initiative (https://miraraiinitiative.org/) that are seeking to change this situation.

Look up Mira Rai. With no formal training at all, she popped into a race and won it.

trailrunningnepal.org

Mira Rai

thehalfhog

Link:trailrunningnepal.org/nepali-runners/m...

Dachhiri Sherpa is another legend. He used to be the record holder for the Mont Blanc Trail Ultramarathon (UTMB).