With a course profile that looks like a shark’s dental record and with 10-peaks to ascend and descend over a 55km course, the Migu Run Skyrunner World Series went EXTREME For the first time in 2017! 4287m of vertical gain awaited the runners in the stunning location of Ceresole Reale, Italy, a stunning mountain location towered over by the stunning 4000m peak of Gran Paradiso.
Starting at 0630, a stunning day of blue skies welcomed the runners, the early morning chill soon swept away with the arrival of the sun.
Andre Jonsson who last weekend placed 4th at High Trail Vanoise was showing incredible powers of recovery leading Zaid Ait Malek, Pere Aurell, Bhim Gurung, Benat Marmisolle, The five ran together over the first high-peak in the National Park and the second peak coming at around 12km with 2-hours 15-minutes elapsed on the clock. They were separated by seconds matching each other’s moves.
By contrast, Zegama-Aizkorri and Livigno SkyMararhon champion Maite Maiora, was showing all the ladies a clean pair of heals. She took a grasp of the race very early on and despite being chased by Katie Schide, Ekaterina Mityaev and Natalia Tomasiak amongst other.
With 4-hours elapsed, the summit of Colle della Porta at 3002m saw a surge from Pere Aurell as he ran fast through the snow fields that followed the tough climb to the summit – Andre Jonsson, Bhim Gurung and Beat Marmisolle all followed with less than a minute separating them. Following and hoping to bridge the gap was Dimitry Mityaev, Zaid Ait Malek and Hector Haines.
Maite Maiora arrived in the same location, her lead was now extended beyond 30-minutes to Katie Schide and Ekaterina Mityaev following over 10-minutes back.
The race was now on in the men’s race, the quartet watching each other and at times changing lead like in a cycling peloton however Andre Jonsson was still pushing but the elastic wouldn’t snap. Passing Colle del Nivole they had a short decent and then climbed to Colle Della Rocca Bianche at 2670m. Again, less than a couple of minutes separated the four front runners but the long descent took its toll and with the final climb to Colle del Nel at 2551m to come, the pressure was on.
Andre Jonsson and Bhim Gurung took the lead but Jonsson started to feel the pressure and although Gurung complained of feeling tired, he unleashed his incredible descending ability on the final 1000m to drop to the line to open a huge gap and take victory just like he did earlier in the year in China at Yading Skyrace. Jonsson earned an incredible 2nd place 10-minutes back, 6:51:37 to Gurung’s 6:41:24. Pere Aurell fought cramps to finish 3rd and Benat Marmisolle held off a charging Cristofer Clemente to finish 4th.
Maite Maiora crossed the line in 8:05:28 having dominated the ladies’ race. It was a stunning victory and confirms her as one of the best female Skyrunners in the world. Katie Schide finished 2nd and Ekaterina Mityaev finished 3rd, 8:37:02 and 8:48:23 respectively.
The 55km course wound through the Gran Paradiso National Park in the royal hunting grounds, hence the ‘Royal’ title, runners will compete with ibex and chamois. Starting at a lake at an altitude of 2000m, participants traversed five passes – the magnificent Gran Paradiso mountain provided a stunning backdrop towering over the race at 4061m. Moraines, rocks, streams and snowfields provide an ultimate extreme challenge.
Next race in the Migu Run Skyrunner World Series is the Dolomites SkyRace that will celebrate its 20th edition – a pure Sky Classic!
Ferran Teixido (Andorra) and Ekaterina Mityaeva (Russia) took top honours at the Santana Vertical Kilometer® on the island of Madeira. The VK is part of the new 2017 Vertical Kilometer® World Circuit – an off-spin from the Skyrunner World Series.
Starting the Vale da Lapa at an altitude of 780m, in the heart of the Laurissilva forest, the 4.8km course goes all the way up, 1003m to be exact through the impressive Madeira Natural Park.
Departing at 1-minute intervals on the stroke of 0900, the runners pushed their legs and lungs to the max as they took on this impressive race – a first for the island of Madeira.
The final part of the route consisted of a technical and demanding climb that culminated with a short section of via ferratta before reaching the emblematic point Encumeada Alta at an altitude of 1785m. From the summit, incredible views all over the island are possible.
VK specialist Ferran Teixido was one of the last competitors to start and he completed the course first in 41:48 gaining valuable points for the Vertical Kilometer® World Circuit. Vitor Jesus and Romeu Gouveia placed 2nd and 3rd.
Regular Skyrunning competitor Ekaterina Mityaeva showed great form and strength winning the ladies race in 51:37 and Salomon International athlete Anna Frost was a surprise last minute entrant – she placed 3rd.
Episode 121 – On this weeks show we speak with ELS2900 race director, Matt Lefort, about his super tough Andorran race. Niandi brings us a selection of audio, recorded in the Simpson Desrert, as Australia’s 2016 Big Red Run took place. Ian is interviewed by a Portuguese magazine and Speedgoat is back co-hosting!
RUNNING BEYOND BOOK is now available in Germany, Spain, Italy and the English language versions will be posted out on November 3rd. News in that the book will now also be translated to Swedish – HERE
00:09:12 Interview with Ian by Rute Barbedo from a Portuguese magazine also listen to Ian’s 1-hour interview byTom Williams for Marathon Talk HERE
00:31:34 NEWS
LIMONE VK
Philip Goetsch – SWS champ 2016
Stian Angermund
Patrick Facchini
Christel Dewalle – SWS champ 2016
Valentina Bellot
Hilde Alders
LIMONE SKY
Alexis Sevennec 2:46
Hector Haines
Kiril Nikolov
Tadei Pivk SWS 2016 champ
Megan Kimmel 3:17 and CR and SWS 2016 champ
Laura Orgue
Celine Lafaye
THE OTTER
Marc Lauenstein defended his Otter African Trail Run title in South Africa, and set a new course record in 3:54. Robyn Owen and Stevie Kremerplaced 1 + 2 with Owen winning in 4:49 to Kremer’s 4:52. Full results.
BIG DOG BACKYARD ULTRA
A 4.16-mile loop of trail every hour. Those that finish the loop in an hour move on to the next loop and this continues until the last runner standing!Babak Rastgoufard won in 28:48 and gets a place in the Barkley Marathons.
OCR
Jon Albon becomes OCR world champion again
AUTUMN 100
Centurion Running’s Autumn 100 had 2 course records from Mark Denby 14:07:39 and Susie Chesher 15:22 – Suzie was so quick she finished 2nd overall results here
ELS2900
6,700 meters of elevation gain over just 70k (44 miles). Thirty-nine competitors started the race, and 24 managed the improbable finish. Xavier Teixido, finished in front at 13:49. Vivien ReynaudandÒscar Perez were second and third in 15:18 and 15:38.
Sonia Regueiro became a two-time finisher and winner, this time 18:59, three hours faster than her finish last year, and Cati Lladó was second in 21:26.
00:54:56 INTERVIEW with ELS2900 RD – Matt Lefort
Pete Kostelnick if you don’t know already is aiming to break the trans-US running record, which stands at 46 days, 8 hours. Pete will likely finish in around 41 or 42 days early next week, which is utterly insane when you think about the fact that he could shave nearly five days off this record. He’s averaging 71 miles a day for the last 36 days, or in Aussie speak, that’s 114kms a day. Bowsers.Read HERE
SkyRace® Comapedrosa – Skyrunner® World Series 2016
The SkyRace® Comapedrosa really did personify everything that a Skyrunning race should be today as the Skyrunner® World Series 2016 moved at a fast pace. The race route was tough, technical, had loads of climbing and plenty of time up in the sky at altitude. In many respects, it’s a course of two halves – the early stages weave up steep forest paths and then in the latter half, after summiting the highest point of the course, the iconic peak of Comapedrosa, the terrain becomes almost permanently rocky and technical.
Laura Orgue and Tom Owens were champions of the day and with two new course records! What makes the result of the dynamic duo more impressive is that they both achieved ‘silver,’ just last weekend at the Skyrunning World Championships organized by the ISF.
The tiny ski-resort of Arinsal in Andorra hosted 370 runners as they toed the line to cover the 21.2km course with a vertical ascent of over 2,000m+. Much of the pre-race talk had been about ‘the wall,’ a technical 1000-metre vertical climb over the short distance of just 2km to the summit of the Comapedrosa at 2,942m, the highest peak in the principality of Andorra.
Aritz Egea lead the race on the climbs and reached the summit of Comapedrosa with Tom Owens, Oscar Casal Mir and trailing Alexis Sevennec. Egea who has not been inform of late struggled to keep the second place after Owens passed him on the last long technical descent but the revelation came from Hassan Ait Chaou who closed from outside the top-5 to take 2nd on the podium.
Egea held on for 3rd and post-race said, “I’m very happy with third. This year has been a little complicated for me, I’ve not been very motivated, so this a good surprise. The course is really, really tough but I love this kind of race, especially the steep climbs.”
Tom Owens had contemplated not racing but sometimes last minute decisions work, “I was un-decided if I should run?” said Owens. “Today I felt great, sometimes it’s nice to race with no expectation. I was 6th or 7th on the first climb but running on those ridges was just brilliant. The descents were great for me…and move quite quickly and pull back places.”
Pull back places Owens did and on that final descent he gave it everything and moved up from the 3rd to take victory in a new CR, knocking 6-minutes of the old record of 2:46:42.
Owens continued, “My weakness is on the steep climbs. The other guys would just pull away… then I eased back on the second climb. We all pretty much reached the summit of the second climb at the same time and from there I knew I had to concentrate.”
Surprisingly, the top three in the male podium all crossed the finish line today under the previous CR, a true sign of a fast, furious and highly competitive race.
Laura Orgue ran an impressive time of 3:12:27 in the ladies’ race beating the previous CR of 3:21:15 held by Oihana Kortazar who would place 2nd. Like Owens, Orgue had achieved a silver medal just last weekend in the Skyrunning World Championships and although victory and CR were hers, she complained of not being her normal self. A VK specialist, Orgue loves to climb but today it was the worst part of her race… the other female runners must be terrified if she has a good day!
Oihana Kortazar, placed 2nd and was also very happy to beat her own course record, no doubt due to the blistering pace of Orgue, “In this race I prefer the ascents to the descents, which are very, very technical. Andorra has some really tough terrain and I welcome the challenge. My next race is Matterhorn Ultraks in Zermatt.”
Third was Àngela Castelló in 3:20:13. As with the male podium, the top three in the female podium all came in under the previous CR.
Attention now turns to next weekend and the first race in the EXTREME series, the Tromso SkyRace.
Provisional Race Results
Male:
1.Tom Owens 2:40
Hassan Ait Chaou 2:41
Aritz Egea 2:44
Female:
Laura Orgué 3h14′
Oihana Kortazar 3h17′
Angela Castello 3h20′
Thanks to the support of our Partner Migu Xempower, Sponsor Alpina Watches and Official Pool Suppliers, Scott Running, Compressport and Salomon.
About Skyrunner® World Series
Skyrunning was founded in 1992 by Italian Marino Giacometti, President of the International Skyrunning Federation which sanctions the discipline worldwide and sports the tagline: Less cloud. More sky.
The Skyrunner® World Series was launched in 2004 and has grown to represent the peak of outdoor running defined by altitude and technicality. In 2016, the Series, composed of four disciplines, features 23 races in 15 venues on three continents.
iancorless.com is the official photographer and media partner for the Skyrunner® World Series Follow on:
Andorra will host the fifth stage of the Skyrunner® World Series with the SkyRace® Comapedrosa coming just one week after the Skyrunning World Championships that took place in Spain.
Arinsal, a small ski resort within Andorra will have 370 runnerstoe the line to take on the challenge of the 21 km course. The ascent involves a brutal 1,000 metre-high vertical wall over just 2 km which will test the best to the summit of the Comapedrosa at 2,942m the highest point in Andorra.
Starting with a paved road up to the Coll de les Cases (1958M), a very straight road through a wooded area follows and from this point the runners will encounter a stretch of ridge with much height and little vegetation. Climbing up to the Pic de les Fonts at 2748m the Pla de l’Estany follows.
Now the beautiful and challenging climb begins, a true vertical wall of more than 1000m of positive difference in about 2km. A VK within a race! Without a marked path, the runners follow markers to the summit of Comapedrosa at2.942m.
The descent is by the traditional route through the Estany Negre and Comapedrosa refuge, until reaching Arinsal where the race started.
Azara Garcia and Manuel Merillas are hot favourites after both gaining top 5 results at last weekends Skyrunning World Championships. However, Laura Orgue will race and arguably will be fresher after racing just the VK at the world championships. Oihana Kortazar will also be a podium contender with a strong battle coming from a quality line-up of top female Skyrunner’s that includes:
Yngvild Kaspersen, Marta Molist, Ragna Debats, Aitziber Ibarbia, Sheila Aviles, Laura Sola de Miguel, Nuria Dominguez and Ekaterina Mityaeva.
In the men’s field, Manuel Merillas 4th in the recent World Championships and 2nd in the 2015 Sky rankings may well have a battle on his hands with Rémi Bonnet if the young Swiss is back on form? Pere Aurell, 2015 race winner, will also defend his title.
As in the ladies race, the men’s race has great depth:
Marc Casal Mir, Pablo Villa Gonzales, Oscar Casal Mir, Stian OvergaardHassan Ait Chaouand Alexis Sevennec head up the competition with a strong presence coming fromand Andrej Fejfar, Pere Aurell (2015 race winner), Aritz Egea, Pere Rullan, Alfredo Gil Garcia, Sintu Vives, Jessed Hernandez.
Course records are 2:46:42 by Pere Aurell and 3:21:15 by Oihana Kortazar.
Thanks to the support of our Partner Migu Xempower, Sponsor Alpina Watches and Official Pool Suppliers, Scott Running, Compressport and Salomon.
About Skyrunner® World Series
Skyrunning was founded in 1992 by Italian Marino Giacometti, President of the International Skyrunning Federation which sanctions the discipline worldwide and sports the tagline: Less cloud. More sky.
The Skyrunner® World Series was launched in 2004 and has grown to represent the peak of outdoor running defined by altitude and technicality. In 2016, the Series, composed of four disciplines, features 23 races in 15 venues on three continents.
iancorless.com is the official photographer and media partner for the Skyrunner® World Series Follow on:
The International Skyrunning Federation (ISF) is pleased to announce the
2016 SKYRUNNER® WORLD SERIES
Taking Skyrunning to the next level with the best races, new events and what’s more, skyrunning is going EXTREME!
In addition to the successful Vertical, Sky and Ultra formats, the ISF is pleased to announce the introduction of the Sky Extreme Series. Three countries, three super-technical races and runners worldwide will have a real opportunity to embrace the skyrunning ethos.
“When I discovered Skyrunning years ago it was the images of small runners traversing huge glaciers, scrambling rock ridges and descending steep snow fields. I’m really happy to see this new Series, with the most technical races – the soul of skyrunning!”– Kilian Jornet
Sky Extreme kicks off on August 7, with the Tromsø SkyRace® in Norway, where Kilian Jornet and Emelie Forsberg launched the first, made-to-measure SkyRace in the Northern territories. The biennial Kima Trophy is back and the 2016 series will conclude with a new entry, the Glencoe Skyline. Set in the Scottish Highlands, it’s probably the toughest skyrunning race to date.
The Sky Series counts extends to 8 races in 6 countries and goes to Mainland China with the Yading Skyrun which opens the season in April. The highest race in the World Series, it reaches a breath-taking 4,700m altitude on the Tibetan Plateau in China’s spectacular Sichuan mountains.
More new races include the Livigno Outdoor Race Experience and Santa Caterina Vertical Kilometer®in Sondrio, Italy, designed by the magic hand of top skyrunner Marco De Gasperi. Summiting the highest point in the Principality of Andorra, the SkyRace® Comapedrosa represents a true skyrunning challenge, reaching nearly 3,000m elevation. New entry from Portugal, the Ultra SkyMarathon® Madeira will offer a challenging and technical 55k to the island’s highest point.
An end of season prize purse to the value of €36,000 will reward the remarkable efforts of the athletes competing in the 2016 Series and the combined prize purse will be over €135,000.
“We’re glad we can give more back to the athletes. In this sport, the rewards don’t just come from touching the sky, but a tangible compensation for their incredible performance.”
– Marino Gicamoetti (ISF President and founder)
2016 SKYRUNNER® WORLD SERIES
SKY
April 30 Yading Skyrun – 29 km, Sichuan – China
May 22 Maratòn Alpina Zegama-Aizkorri – 42 km, Zegama – Spain
June 26 Livigno Outdoor Race Experience – 30 km, Livigno – Italy
July 17 Dolomites SkyRace® – 22 km, Canazei – Italy
July 31 SkyRace® Comapedrosa, 22 km – Andorra
Aug 20 Matterhorn Ultraks 46K – Zermatt – Switzerland
Sept 4 The Rut 25K – Big Sky, Montana – USA
Oct 22 Limone Extreme SkyRace® – 23 km, Limone Sul Garda – Italy
SKY EXTREME
August 7 Tromsø SkyRace® – 50 km, Tromsø – Norway
August 28 Kima Ultra SkyMarathon® – 50 km. Val Masino – Italy
Episode 99 of Talk Ultra we talk all about ELS2900 with RD Matt Lefort and 3rd place overall, Andy Symonds. Sophie Grant talk Raid de la Reunion and Paul Giblet from the UK wins Javekina Hundred beating Speedgoat! Niandi is here too looking like a Druid.
00:01:30 Show Start
00:07:50 NEWS
Help Nepal – Nepal images ‘FACES of NEPAL’ – order a print and all funds donated to Nepal charities HERE
TRAINING CAMP in Lanzarote with Elisabet Barnes 28th Jan to Feb 4th HERE
Press release from Scott Running re the Scott ELS 2900 Alpine Run
Race directors: Matt Lefort and Carles Rossell
You can listen to two interviews on Episode 99 of Talk Ultra podcast, one with Matt Lefort and the other with 3rd placed runner, Andy Symonds. The show will be released Fri 13th Nov and will be available on this website and on iTunes HERE
At midnight on October 31st, the 37 participants of the inaugural edition of the SCOTT Els2900 Alpine Run started from the Refugi Estanys de la Pera. Their goal, link all 7 peaks over 2900m high in Andorra, in less than 24h.
Unlike other ultra running events, participants were required for sole mandatory equipment a phone, a harness, two 60cm runners and a minimum of two carabiners. The rest was up to the athletes, leaving everyone’s personal experience dictate what to bring to move as fast and light as possible without putting one’s life at risk. So is the true essence of the sport, initiated 25 years ago by a handful of pioneers who did run up and down Mount Blanc and Monte Rosa. Such legends, Pep Ollé and Matteo Pellin, were actually involved into setting up the ropes to secure the Cresta dels Malhiverns section.
Even though the risk factor is never down to zero being out in the mountains, the race organizers lowered it considerably by carefully selecting each participant based on their experience in such terrain. This is how elite athlete were denied entry, while much less popular yet highly skilled mountain people made the cut to create a crowd of humble and like minded peers.
The 70km route took the most direct line between each peaks, amounting a gruelling 6800m of elevation gain, through rocky cols, over exposed ridges, steep couloirs and even a via ferrata section that was performed at night.
At this game, Jokin LIZEAGA (ESP) was the best on the day, taking the win in14h48, followed by Nicolas DARMAILLACQ (FRA) in 15h37 and Andy SYMONDS (UK) in 16h11 wrapping up the mens podium. The woman’s fields made of two at the start line will only see Sonia REGUEIRO RODRIGUEZ (ESP) cross the finish line at the Refugi de Coma Pedrosa in 21h51, crowning her 2015 winner of the SCOTT Els2900 Alpine Run.
True camaraderie was shown until the end where race winner Jokin welcomed the last out of the 22 runners who completed the course (Paul Marie, FRA) and popped a bottle of Cava with the whole crew who had joined to witness the scene.
Inspired by our FKT on Els 2900 route, we customized our track to add more ridge running and off track segments. Be ready to tackle one of the most incredible alpine route ever made for a runner. It’s hard and steep. Think averaging 1,000m of vertical variation every 5K.
Yup, you read it right…
Here are some info about our race…
Name: Els 2900 Alpine Run
What: 70km, 6,700m of vert.
When: October 16-18, 2015
Where: Andorra
Why this is a race like no other:
We tag the 7 highest peaks of Andorra in a row (all above 2,900m of altitude, hence the name ‘Els 2900’ which means ‘The 2,900’ in Catalan);
A 100% alpinrunning course, mixing ridge running, scrambling, off-track segments and even a via ferrata!
For safety reasons, 50 spots only: The race are only looking for highly skilled mountain runners w/ alpine background;
The race is over a day but start and finish lines are from and to mountain huts above 2,300m. So the race will have an approach hike the day before the race and will spend the night at the first hut all together. Same thing after the race, runners will all spend Saturday’s night in a hut before to get down to the valley the next day;
All meals, hosting and supplies are taken care of within the price
Cost – 200EUR for the 3 days
We ran our Edition Zero last October and runners have been amazed to say the least. Some pictures here.
Some useful links:
Pre-registration here (English) or here (Catalan);
Our only aim is to demonstrate that alpinrunning is not ‘a daredevil thing’ or yet another trend, but a real sport that requires strong skills from both mountaineering and running worlds…
After France, USA, South Africa, UK and Italy, Spain and Andorra join forces to present an imposing calendar for the Skyrunner® National Series launched today which count some of the best and most popular races on the international stage. Ultras include the Transvulcania Ultramarathon, the 112 km Mitic in Andorra and the new Ultra Pirineu (formerly Cavalls del Vent). Zegama-Aizkorri in the Sky Series and the Cara Amón VerticalKM feature in an important and exciting fifteen-race calendar.
All the races echo the Skyrunning credo where altitude reigns, the courses are steep and demanding and excitement runs high. The Sky Series takes place entirely in “Mountain Parks” a seal of quality for the protection of the environment.
The races in the Spain & Andorra National Series are:
Vertical:
Cara Amón
Transvulcania Vertical Kilometer
Nit Pirineu
and Sitja del Llop
Sky:
Marató Montserrat
Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon
SkyRace Vallibierna
SkyRace Comapedrosa
Marató Pirineu
and Montseny Marathon; and in the
Ultra:
Transvulcania Ultramarathon
Ultra del Montseny
Ultra Mitic Andorra
and Ultra Pirineu (formerly Cavalls del Vent)
The winners of each National Skyrunner Series in the three disciplines will be awarded travel, free entry and accommodation to the first races on the 2015 Skyrunner® World Series calendar.
The much anticipated Series offers the best of Skyrunning in two countries that have a long tradition of high-profile international races and have provided many of the world’s best athletes and champions:
Kilian Jornet, Luis Alberto Hernando, Tofol Castanyer, Agusti Roc, Miguel Heras, Iker Karrera from Spain, the Texeido and Casal Mir brothers from Andorra and, among the ladies, Nuria Picas, Oihana Kortazar, Nuria Dominguez, Nerea Martinez, Emma Roca, Uzue Fraile, Laura Orgue… to name but a few.
The National Series is managed by Ocisport, long-time partner of the ISF responsible for the 2006 and 2012 SkyGames® in Andorra and central to the foundation of the Skyrunner® World Series in 2003. The Series is supported by FEDME (Spanish Federation for Mountain and Climbing Sports) and FAM (Andorran Mountaineering Federation), ISF Member nations.
IAN CORLESS 