The photo, taken by Alexis Berg, showed Power taking a break during the 100 plus mile UTMB run (171 kilometres) to breastfeed her three month old baby, Cormac. “We applaud you,” Strava captioned it. “We applaud your endurance, your courage and your defiance of those who told you you couldn’t. You’re a true inspiration.”
A frequent runner, Power is also CEO and co-founder of the Denmark-based Airlabs, which uses atmospheric chemistry and airflow engineering to come up with solutions to improve air quality in cities across the world.
Power later told PEOPLE she was in agony during the 16 hours it took to get to her son, given he usually feeds every three hours. She said she was hand expressing everywhere she could en route and “was so relieved he was hungry” when she finally met him.
She got through the rest of the race using a breast pump at each aid station where her husband John could meet her.
I love how my #ultramarathon has sparked a global debate about #motherhood. Thank you to @VictoriaLIVE and @BBCNews for hosting Cormac and I this morning! https://t.co/Dos5Js2Ygo
— Sophie Power (@ultra_sophie) September 18, 2018
And she said she enjoyed the UTMB more than she’d done in the past, as she focused on moving slower than usual, ensuring she raced correctly through the down hills to protect her pelvis. She also had to focus on eating enough food that she could keep down “for me and for Cormac”.
Power completed the race in 43 hours and 33 minutes. She said she had maintained her fitness during pregnancy, believing staying “fit, healthy and strong” is the best way to prepare for motherhood.
Power has also appeared on the BBC, writing on Instagram that “life continues to be strange”. She also thanked UN Women and UNICEF for sharing the message.
“I thought I would give a couple of interviews and then go back to my normal role as a co-founder of a tech company fighting air pollution (also bad for our babies). But every day I receive more and more messages from women who feel more empowered and confident on their motherhood journey. So I am not going to stop,” she wrote.
Sophie Power also shared on Instagram her disappointment at Runner’s World putting a “quick poll” on its website asking readers what they think of runners breastfeeding or pumping midrun, with the first option being “Gross, a little selfish”, and the second being, “It’s her business”.
Runner’s World has been widely criticised for running the poll, while Power continues to receive messages from supporters on how she’s inspired them.
It’s a remarkable feat. And a reminder that babies are hungry, and a breastfeeding mother’s body needs the release, no matter what you’ve got on, or wherever you are. Power’s not the first multi-tasking mother to become a global story over the past year through powerful images that picture her breastfeeding, with Larissa Waters recently capturing international headlines for nursing her daughter while delivering a speech in Parliament.