Julia Duong Nguyen Thi is the new points leader in the women’s 2020/21 Asia Trail Master Championship by winning the very wet Dalat Ultra Trail 100 in June and coming second in Vietnam Jungle Marathon 70 two weeks ago. It marks the first time a Vietnamese runner tops our championship sheet. Certainly, it is the year of corona with all its restrictions for many people, but achievements like these do not just fall out of the sky neither. ‘Little Sugar’ - as Julia is often nicknamed - grabbed the opportunity with determination, proper preparation and, of course, some pretty strong trail running on both race days themselves. Time to learn a bit more about Julia Duong Nguyen Thi and her inspiring journey to the top of the Asia Trail Master Championship ranking.

Q&A by Kris Van de Velde

Could you explain a little on your background. Where are you from in Vietnam and what made you become a trail runner?

I am from the countryside of Ha Noi. I am from Co Loa – Dong Anh- Ha Noi. Since I was young , I was always smallest in the class (when I was 15, I weighed only 30 kg.) I not only failed at sports, but I hated them. That why my name “ Tiểu Đường, or “Little Sugar”.
My family is very poor. When I was in high school, my sports teacher helped and encouraged me to take my exams for university. To show my gratitude to him, I volunteered for a 400m race. That was the first time I ever enjoyed anything sport related.

In Ha Noi Industrial University, I was also part of the running team for 5 years. We only practiced one month out of the year, and only ran 1.5 km for fun.

Afterwards, when I started going to work, I stopped running. In February 2016, I heard about the LDR long-distance runners team. When I heard that they ran a 15 km lap around West Lake, I thought they must be crazy! But one day when I attended, I found that I could run 15 km myself. I was surprised and wanted to challenge myself more, so I gradually started running more. I discovered that I love the running community. The people are so positive and social. 

When j Ioined in LoopUltraTrail 2016, Ms. Nha from Salomon gifted me with a pair of shoes. She said to me: “do your best, run VMM, and bring the prize back to Vietnam. We’ve never had a Vietnamese runner stand on the podium for this race, in our own home country! So I tried very hard to bring the prize to Vietnamese women. I was then of course very proud that I was a Vietnamese woman who could stand on the podium of the 100km race in 2017 to receive the award. My love for my country is what empowered me to achieve that honor.

So sports is actually a relatively new thing for you.

Yes, my 1st long run was that 15 km lap in February of 2016. I’ve only recently overcome my limitations and fallen in love with the sport.

Do you have a trail running coach or are you just going by yourself?

I m used to make my training plan myself, but with some advice from experienced runners. 

When I lived in Ha Noi, daily I run alone between 20h-22h00 * 2-3 Sunday/ months: I go to Ha Noi center 20km from home, running with team LDR long distance, DAR Dong Anh , LB Long Bien, Eco park ….Or go trail running, at Soc Soc province, 30km from home. After I moved to Ho Chi Minh City in August 2019, I often run alone. On Sundays I join long runs with the VNG team, UPFIT team, RFF team, ARteam … Now the nearest trail is 80 km away, so I only can trail run 1 times/ months.


For sure trail is still just a hobby? What do you do for a living?

That’s right. I found that I fell in love with running, but especially running on the trail. I learned studied chemical engineering at university. I had a high salary working for a Japanese company. Then In August 2019, I quit my job. I wanted to do something in the fitness world because it is my passion. I moved to Ho Chi Minh City. I got an interview with Mr. Al Morgan, who is one of the people who brought the gym industry to Vietnam over a decade ago. He started a new company called Upfit which specializes in fitness coaching and corporate fitness, and is passionate about bringing up the quality of training in Viet Nam. He said that I have a lot of energy and passion, so I can help many people. So I learned and changed my field. Now I am a coach for Upfit, and I am very happy and proud to say that I help people change their lives and become better versions of themselves.

You were the only official female finisher in the gruelling Dalat Ultra Trail 100 last June. How bad were the conditions for you that day?

2 weeks before DLUT, I had an accident. I sprained my ankle badly. It was very difficult for me to run, as I was supposed to ensure my ankle always keeps stable by landing flat. The heavy rain during the race… I am sad. Suddenly there was the accident with one participant, and the organization did try its best to handle the situation. If it takes place again next year, I will join again.

Two years ago you won VJM 70 in a time of 13:16:51. This year you finish second in 10:16:24, behind new name Dung Nguyen Thuy. You improved by 3 hours and you did not win. Has the Vietnamese trail running level improved that much in two years?

Ms. Dung surprised me and amazed me. She has gotten so much stronger. I am really happy that Vietnamese runners are getting stronger. It’s really great for our running community.
This year in VJM, I got really unlucky as the race fell on my “woman’s time”, and I had to push through a great deal of discomfort. But I tried my best and I’m very satisfied. And I feel that I improved a lot after starting a cross training program with Upfit in our home office of VNG Gym. I’m really thankful to Upfit and VNG for that. When I lived in Ha Noi, I only ran, and didn’t know anything about cross training.

You have already done quite a few races on the ATM tour, including in Malaysia (Penang Eco). Did it feel different to be running in a different country than Vietnam?

Being able to speak English makes it a lot easier to bond with runners outside of Vietnam. I love running races outside of Viet Nam for the opportunity to see the beauty of other countries and experience their cultures. I ran in China 42km , Thailand 100km, Malaysia 100km. It was really wonderful. However, it’s a little expensive, so I only race overseas about once per year.

Will you run VMM next month? If yes, which distance?

I’m already registered for the VMM 100 km, but I am still considering whether or not to join. Because between VJM and VMM, only one race of the two will be retained for my ranking for ATM in 2021. 
Also I’m registered for the VNExpress 42 km in my hometown for my birthday on November 28.

You are the new women’s leader in the ATM Championship with 950 points in 2 races. If you win VMM 100, you could still improve slightly and finish the year with 1000 points. Does it make you proud to be the first Vietnamese runner to top the ranking?

Regarding the position at the top of the ATM board, I am quite surprised, happy and humbled to have the honor of representing Vietnam

I really hope that I can achieve 5 more strong results in 2021. But as of right now, I haven’t decided which races to run.

I hope to have the opportunity to cooperate with sponsors in order to have the opportunity to participate in more foreign events, to add ATM points and mark Vietnamese women at prestigious international running competitions. I hope that Asia Trail Master can continue to develop and encourage more runners in Asia, so that we can join more famous races around the region and the world.

Thank you for this great Q&A, Julia, and best of luck in the months to come!

‘Little Sugar’ on her way to winning VJM in 2018, her first race victory on the ATM tour

Two weeks ago, Julia settled for second place at VJM, but it was enough to claim the points lead (photo credit: VJM)

Last week’s Vietnam Jungle Marathon in Pu Luong gave us two new points leaders in the merged 2020/21 Asia Trail Master Championship. While domestic star Julia Duong Nguyen Thi already had a pedigree in our series, the name of Frenchman Gaetan Morizur raised many eyebrows among followers of our championship. He had been around for about two years, too, but never came close to an ATM race podium until Dalat Ultra Trail last June, when he scored third place. Proving that was no fluke, he upped the ante even more and competed for the win last week against former cyclist Romain Berion and Quang Duc Nguyen. Ultimately he came second, but Gaetan Morizur has certainly made a name for himself at the higher levels of our competitive Championship series. High time to get to know the man a bit better.

Could you explain a little on your background. Where are you from in France and what made you come to Asia?

I’m from the north west of France, the region known as Bretagne or Brittany. I moved to Vietnam in 2009 initially for a 6 months internship. I fell in love with Asia region and Vietnam so I extended my stay. I moved to Cambodia for work during 5 years and I’m back to Vietnam since 1 year. I feel very fortunate to live here in such a dynamic environment.

Have you always been a runner or is this a relatively new hobby?

It is a relatively new hobby. In France I was in found of bodyboarding and surfing and spent most of my free time in the sea. When I moved to Vietnam I totally stopped sport for a few years. At some point I started to join some friends who were running occasionally. Then we started to register for longer races and participating to some ultras. I have been running for few years but at a very modest level and got more into it recently.

How do you compare Cambodia with Vietnam? How do you compare the running scene in both countries?

Running Scene in Vietnam really boomed in recent years and there is now a huge running community. It’s quite impressive, now each race has a few thousand participants… In Cambodia the running community is way smaller but also very bond together which makes it also very nice to belong to. For trail running there is more hilly terrain in Vietnam and also much more events so it is more motivating to train.

Rumours have it that your recent surge in performance form is due to your move to Vietnam. Have you joined any running team in Ho Chi Minh City, or do you have a trail running mentor there?

I prefer trails very much but living in Ho Chi Minh city I spend most of my time training on roads. I can enjoy trails during the weekend going to Dinh Mountain or during Holidays. My girlfriend is also a runner so we can enjoy running trips together. My recent improvement is due to the fact I started to train more seriously since the beginning of 2020. Romain Berion (who won VJM) gave me some useful training advice. I also read several books to understand proper methods. By doing more volume and adding progressively some variation (intensity and elevation) I was able to progress well.

For sure trail is still just a hobby? Are you surprised you made podium in both Dalat and Pu Luong?

Yes it is a hobby and will remain so for sure. In fact it was a big surprise for me to do a Podium in Dalat. After Dalat I had the motivation to train more seriously for the upcoming VMM.

In Pu Long I was feeling more confident and had good sensations so I tried to push a bit the pace to enjoy the race and see how it would go.

Where did Romain Berion make the difference to win ahead of you by a few minutes only?

For the first part of the race we were running at 3 very close together with Romain and Quang until CP 4. I also a bit of time in the check points where I really lacked of efficiency. Romain passed me at CP 4 while I was refilling. He then created a gap in the steep concrete uphill just after which he mostly ran - he is a very strong uphill runner. I had a low time after CP5 so I Think the gap reached several minutes there. After that I gave it my best but I couldn’t catch him up. He deserved to win.

What did you learn in those two big races this year?

I learned to trust my training and to focus on listening my own body feelings. Another good lesson is the critical importance of fueling well during the race and preparing well your nutrition plan.

Will you run VMM next month? If yes, which distance?

Yes, I will run the VMM 100 km. I hope authorities will allow the race to happen. It will be a very exciting event as it seems that all the best Vietnamese runners are joining: Quang Tran, Hung Hai, Quang Nguyen… and many more including Romain as well. I would like to thank the organizers the Topas team who make a lot of efforts to make those events happen which is not easy in the current context.

Your story sounds similar to the story of ATM protagonist and previous Championship leader Hisashi Kitamura, who also started modestly in trail to develop into an international trail race winner in little over a year’s time. How do you see yourself improving further as a competitive runner? Should the Kitamuras, the John Ellisses, Milton Amats and Kristian Joergensens become afraid of Gaetan Morizur in the 2021 ATM season?

Those runners are inspiring examples but I’m still far from their level and from their experience. I’m doing my best to train well and progress one step at a time to push my limits further and become a stronger runner. For now, my focus to prepare well to be hopefully in good form for VMM.

For 2021 I will start with Vietnamese events VTM (an ATM Candidate, kvdv) and Dalat Ultra Trail if it is confirmed. Then from there, we will see how the year goes and also if the borders re-open.

Q&A conducted by Kris Van de Velde

2020/21 ATM Championship Top 5 (31 October 2020)

1. Gaetan Morizur (FRA/VIE) 875 pts

2. Hisashi Kitamura (JPN/MAS) 850 pts

3. Lanh Le (VIE) 825 pts

4. Quang Duc Nguyen (VIE) 720 pts

5. Watchrin Luarlon (THA) 700 pts

3 more points races to go in 2020:

• Monkeys Trail 100km , Koh Samui, Thailand, 14/15 November

• Vietnam Mountain Marathon 100km/70km, Sapa, 21/22 November

• Izu Trail Journey, Izu peninsula, Japan, 13 December

  Note: Runners in Vietnam and Thailand who also competed in VJM and UTCR will only carry over to 2021 their best points result of the two races

MEDIA RELEASE / 12 August 2020 - After days of critical reflection and discussions with stakeholders, it has been formally decided that the 2020 Asia Trail Master Championship will be merged with next year’s 2021 Championship series. As country border closures and general travel restrictions are expected to be retained by most Asian governments in the foreseeable future, it has become virtually impossible to have a meaningful international running competition still this year. However, by merging and not cancelling, all runners who already scored ATM Championship and Grandmaster Quest points in the early months of 2020 will keep those points going into 2021. In addition, runners will score points as usual in the races that take place in the months yet to come - beginning with Vietnam Mountain Marathon and Korea 50K at the end of September. Important note: given all remaining races on the 2020 ATM calendar are expected to be limited to domestic or even just local residents, runners in Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and potentially Japan, who can all still join more than one race, will only carry their best result over to 2021.

“By merging 2020 with 2021 we especially wanted to show respect for the runners who made significant efforts to travel to the early season races: Tahura Trail in Indonesia, EcoTrail Al Ula in Saudi Arabia and UT Koh Chang in Thailand,” says ATM founder and general manager Kris Van de Velde. “Going to UTKC in mid-February, for example, was already quite complicated as covid 19 had begun to spread around the region. At the same time, we feel we do not hamper the integrity of next year’s ATM Championship by allowing runners to carry over one or maybe two points results obtained this year. After all, elites need to deliver no fewer than five strong results if they want a realistic shot at the 2021 championship title. The current sole points leader in the 2020 men’s category, Hisashi Kitamura, was consulted and gave the idea the thumbs up. We are grateful for his sportsmanship.”

As nobody will be crowned at the end of 2020, John Ellis and Veronika Vadovicova will logically remain the reigning ATM Champions for another year.

For Grandmaster aspirants, the Grandmaster Quest’s 2-year-time requirement has been ‘frozen’ since March and will remain frozen until at least the end of 2020 and possibly until 1 March 2021. The latter, obviously, depends on the development of the covid 19 crisis. As for the elites, all runners on the GM Quest will not lose any obtained points as long as the clock is not ticking.

The ATM Final, Borneo TMBT Ultra in Sabah, East Malaysia, is still on schedule for the weekend of 19/20 December. No Championship-decider anymore, but a new coveted prize will be introduced. More on this coming soon, as everyone in Malaysia is currently awaiting formal decisions by the government on event-related matters. In total, 12 events are still regarded as ‘active’ for 2020, although it is highly uncertain all 12 will effectively take place.

Appendix:

2020 Race Results carried over to 2021:

• Tahura Trail (INA)

• EcoTrail Al Ula (KSA)

• UT Koh Chang (THA)

• Dalat Ultra Trail (VIE)

Note: all runners who scored championship points in the abovementioned races keep all these points for the 2021 season

Upcoming 2020 ATM Championship events (status 11 August)

• Vietnam Mountain Marathon (VIE)

• Korea 50K (KOR)

• Ultimate Trails of Penang (MAS)

• Hakuba Trails (JPN) - unconfirmed

• Ultra Trail Chiang Rai (THA)

• Vietnam Jungle Marathon (VIE)

• Ultimate Tsaigu (CHN)

• Lantau 70 (HKG)

• Monkeys Trail (THA)

• The Punisher (PHI)

• Izu Trail Journey (JPN)

• Borneo TMBT Ultra (MAS)

Note: runners can score ATM Championship points in each, but only one result - the best - will be carried over to 2021. Check the event’s details on our site to find out which race distance matters for the ATM Championship (i.e. it is not necessarily the longest race distance category)

John Ellis remains the reigning men’s ATM Champion a while longer

Veronika Vadovicova: reigning women’s ATM champion till at least end of 2021

In follow-up to our earlier announcement on 16 March, the Asia Trail Master team has now decided to update and amend the regulations for both the 2020 Asia Trail Master Championship and the Grandmaster Quest. Even though Dalat Ultra Trail in Vietnam is giving us a glimmer of hope for a return to some kind of normalcy, the fact is that in most Asian countries the corona pandemic is still ongoing with country borders closed and mass sports and entertainment events prohibited. With the exception of Ijen Trail in East Java, Indonesia, which will announce its decision mid-June, all events scheduled for June, July and August have either been cancelled or postponed to later in the year. After Dalat Ultra Trail, which will be held on 20 June exclusively with runners based in Vietnam, we are again looking at an event hiatus of at least three months until the Vietnam Mountain Marathon on 19 September.

It is not all gloom and doom, though. Counting the events on the calendar starting with VMM, we are still looking at 15/16 points races - depending on what happens with Ijen Trail. Of course, there is no guarantee all those events will take place, but now we are talking four months out. Looking back four months, Wuhan had only just gone into lockdown. Since then, the corona curve reached its global peak and also already started its decline in most countries - most importantly for us including in Asia. Let’s hope that in four months from today, the pandemic is over, the infection rate is under control to the extent borders can re-open and sports events can again take place. Under which conditions events will take place is another matter that may vary from country to country, but of the essence is first that they can take place again.

In the current circumstances it is no longer opportune, however, to demand from elite runners that they perform at their best in minimum five races and the ATM Final in order to have a chance to become Asia Trail Master champion. While a few contenders - with hindsight - have been wise to run one or two of the three points races that took place before the lockdowns, others simply didn’t have the chance to fulfil their ambitions as major early season events such as The 9 Dragons, Cordillera Mountain Ultra and (at first) Dalat Ultra Trail very quickly ran into trouble or got cancelled.

As such, the following decisions have been made for the continuation of the 2020 ATM Championship:

• Five-best-count system becomes a three-best-count system, plus one (3+1)

• The ‘one’ in ‘3+1’ stands for the ATM Final: Borneo TMBT Ultra 100 on 19 December 2020. While TMBT can be a runner’s third race, it will be important to run it for anyone who wants to become 2020 Champion because…

• … In order to boost mainstream media and sponsor appeal, ATM Championship contenders are expected to turn up for the final direct shoot-out of the season in and around Kota Kinabalu - Borneo TMBT Ultra 100 - or face a points penalty of 300 points.

  • E.g. if runner A completes three or more races but doesn’t attend the ATM Final race, his total points tally will be reduced by 300 points. if runner B does two races and goes to the ATM Final, he scores points as usual as TMBT is his 3rd race and it’s the Final

• In order to score more championship points in the ATM Final, you must have completed at least two prior ATM points races during the season (same rule as in 2019, to avoid tactical manoeuvring between contenders, e.g. by bringing to the race international stars such as Pau Capell or Killian Jornet to take points away from a championship rival)

• The “one-must-be-SuperTrail rule” is waived for 2020 —> no penalty points if you do not run a SuperTrail race this year

• The 50-bonus points rule for a 100 miles+ finish, SuperTrail race finish and Abroad Bonus is kept as always

Regarding the Grandmaster Quest, we are extending the ‘time freeze’ by four months until September as well. That means every runner who has already started his personal Grandmaster challenge now has six months more time to achieve the first star ( = 2,5 years since the first completed race).

As we wait for some proper trail running action in Dalat next month, we continue to support initiatives such as the ATM 500 - Run Asia Virtual Race by Sportlicious Malaysia, which will begin on 8 June. You can register as teams of four and stay motivated to keep the training up.

Please also remember you can subscribe to our website news articles easily (see ‘subscribe via email’ below) and stay tuned to our ‘Tale of the Trail’ video talk shows every two weeks.

Episode 3 of our bimonthly video talk show The Tale of the Trail will be broadcast tonight, Friday, 29 May, at 19:00 Hong Kong time (20:00 Korea; 18:00 Thailand). The episode is titled “Ending the Waiting Game’, referring to the long-awaited amendments to the regulations for the 2020 Asia Trail Master Championship and the Grandmaster Quest. Our reigning champions John Ellis and Veronika Vadovicova will be on the show, as well as Jey Jang from South Korea to give us an update on Korea 50K. We will find out what is going on in Thailand during these difficult months and Amy Khor will be interviewing Alex Ang. In cooperation with Mark TWT there will be a feature on Sabah’s trail queen Jassica Lintanga, aka Jess Boubie, and finally there will be a chat with out Mystery Guest of this episode Job Tanapong.

The Tale of the Trail will be shown on the Asia Trail Master pages of both facebook and YouTube as well as here on the website.

The 2020 season took off with a considerable bang on the third weekend of January with the Tahura Trail in Bandung, Indonesia, but then the corona virus situation took over the headlines. The 9 Dragons Ultra - the Hong Kong SuperTrail - got cancelled and plenty of other events, such as the Cordillera Mountain Ultra and the Dalat Ultra Trail have been postponed to June. EcoTrail Al Ula in Saudi Arabia and Ultra Trail Koh Chang in Thailand took place as scheduled, as well as the Vietnamese Candidate Race Cau Dat Farm Ultra. But now, governments in many countries have imposed a stop to most events.

As such, the next ATM points race will only take place at the end of April, more than two months from now. That will be a weekend featuring both Korea 50K for the fast runners and Mt Apo Sky Race 100 in the southern Philippines for the ultra mountain runners. In between we will have two more Filipino 2021 ATM Candidate Races with the Mt Kalatungan Trail Ultra on MIndanao and the Alicia Ultra on Bohol island.

The situation has left many people scratching their heads. All those meticulously planned programmes have gone up in smoke. But, it is what it is. Q1 has thus already concluded and after three points races in the 2020 season, basically only Hisashi Kitamura has already managed to run and finish two races. He scored third in both Tahura Trail and UTKC, good enough for 850 points and the lead in the ATM Championship ranking. In the women’s, the points lead is shared between the three race winners so far: Charlotte Taquet (Tahura Trail), Amy Sproston (EcoTrail Al Ula) and Fredelyn Alberto (UT Koh Chang).

Alessandro Sherpa won the Cau Dat Farm Ultra, the Candidate Race near Dalat in Vietnam, and looked every bit as quick and strong in beating Nhon Trong as in Tahura Trail, where he beat Kitamura and only had to tolerate 50K King Jeff Campbell ahead of him. As Campbell may have obligations outside of ATM as well, Sherpa looks like the moral winner of Q1 in terms of the Championship contenders. Regarding the women’s Championship contenders, Charlotte Taquet was unbothered, really, in her run to victory in the Indonesian season opener. Ruth Theresia looked fast and solid in Al Ula finishing second behind seasoned international Amy Sproston. Her best performance since becoming ATM champion in 2018. But Hong Kong based Filipino Fredelyn Alberto was quite an impressive winner in Thailand. Finishing fifth overall, right behind the fourth male, Alberto showed significant progress compared to the end of last season. Alberto was less than one hour behind of Hisashi Kitamura over 100 km of UTKC! Admittedly, Karate Kit did not have his best day but she also finished more than 3 hours ahead of local star Montha Suntornwit. And she complained of a sore ankle after a dodgy step only a mere 7 km into the race. Certainly, Fredelyn Alberto sent a message to all female ATM Championship contenders.

In conclusion, Q1 was (too) short, but it did reveal a few hints of what may be to come in the remainder of the 2020 ATM Championship season.

Alessandro Sherpa looks as crisp as ever in the early weeks of 2020

Fredelyn Alberto has clearly made progress while training in the off-season

As every year, we take a moment to highlight the National & Regional ATM Champions in some of the key countries in which points races take place. The Asian runners who scored most points in the 2019 ATM Championship compared to their own compatriots. Some names are a given due their protagonist status in the overall ATM Championship, but other names are lesser known and also deserve a little credit! Here’s the list and a big congratulations to them!

John Ellis and Asuka Nakajima enter the final fortnight of the 2019 Asia Trail Master Championship as points leaders and therefore the runners to beat. On Saturday The Punisher 80k race In the Philippines marks the start of the ultimate points rush that culminates in the TNF Malaysia Mountain Trail Festival in Taiping, Perak, on 14 December. It is wonderfully exciting that both the men’s and women’s championship have not yet been decided until now. Nothing and nobody is certain yet. More, the women’s title campaign is bound to continue all the way to the last race in Taiping with no fewer than five amazing contenders for the throne. The men’s campaign, however, could conclude prematurely as Hong Kong-based Australian John Ellis has decided to take the bull by the horns and punish his rivals at … The Punisher!

So what are the potential scenarios to unfold in the next two weeks? Here’s the lowdown on the 2019 ATM Championship:

The Men: John Ellis can wrap it up this weekend thanks to SuperTrail wins

Today’s ranking:

1. John Ellis (AUS/HKG) - 2650 points (5+ races)

2. Hisashi Kitamura (JPN/MAS) - 2575 points (5+ races)

3. Milton Amat (MAS) - 2525 points (5+ races)

4. Tomohiro Mizukoshi (JPN) - 2290 points (5+ races)

5. Koi Grey (PHI) - 2264 points (5 races)

6. Sukrit Kaewyoun (THA) - 2200 points (5+ races)

Every single contender has reached the plateau of 5 races, so according to the rules of the ATM Championship - the Five Best Count system - it is or has been all about eliminating a runner’s ‘worst’ points performance during the season in order to still add more to his total points tally. (All six runners meet the other key conditions: at least one race abroad, and at least one SuperTrail). It is therefore significant now to look at each runner’s remaining ‘improvement potential’ in the four remaining races on the ATM calendar. As a reminder, the top 3 in the last races get:

• The Punisher: 500 points - 450 - 425.

• Ultra Trail Panoramic 100 miles: 550 points - 500 - 475

• Izu Trail Journey: 550 points - 500 - 475

• TNF MMTF: 550 points - 500 - 475

And so we arrive at the following:

Only John Ellis, Hisashi Kitamura and Milton Amat remain in the game. Tomohiro Mizukoshi is too far behind on points already to still surpass Ellis’ current total of 2650. Mizukoshi, who will run Izu Trail and MMTF, has an improvement potential of +300 in those two races, which puts him at 2590 - theoretically enough to finish second in this year’s Championship. Last year Tomohiro ended the season in third place. Koi Grey only has MMTF on the agenda, in which he can up his total to 2400 max (+136). For the colourful Flipino, it will be key to stay ahead of Sukrit Kaewyoun at MMTF, as the Thailander - who also runs UT Panoramic - still has an improvement potential of +250 to put him in the best case at a total 2450. So what about the Big Three:

• John Ellis: will run Punisher and MMTF for sure, and leaves UT Panoramic optional. If he runs all, his improvement potential amazingly still is +150 as he can still eliminate his 3rd place in Sungai Menyala Forest Trail (425 points) and 3rd in the 9 Dragons (475 points). Maximum Total: 2800 points.

• Hisashi Kitamura: will run Punisher, Izu Trail Journey and MMTF. His improvement potential in those three races is ‘only’ +100, putting him on a max total of 2675 points. Clearly, for Kitamura it is key that Ellis does not score any more points, which is why the spectacular Uglow runner has decided to skip his planned Osaka Marathon and fly to Davao instead to go head-to-head with John Ellis once more to prevent his idol from scoring a decisive victory…

• Milton Amat: will run UT Panoramic and MMTF. Has the biggest improvement potential of the Three with +175, and that puts him at a theoretical maximum total tally of 2700 points.

Conclusion: if John Ellis collects the 500 for winning Saturday’s The Punisher and eliminates his 425 points from Sungai Menyala, he climbs +75 from 2650 to… 2725 total points, which is out of reach for both Amat and Kitamura.

Ellis had a brilliant game plan before the start of the year with a clear focus on performing in the SuperTrails and collecting all the bonus points along the way - even doing the 100 miles at Penang Eco. This is now proving to be Kitamura’s achilles heel, as he scored fewer points than Ellis in those particular top races. As for Milton Amat, we mentioned it in our race report of The Moon 100 back in June: his laudable fair-play gesture to help and assist his collapsed friend Wilsen Singgin and giving away a certain race victory while doing so is now costing him. The difference between winning and second place is 50 points, and had he scored the win in Moon 100, there would be no way for Ellis to become ATM champion already this weekend. Cruel, but alas. Nobody can blame Milton for what he chose to do: he most certainly deserves the “Fair Play Prize” of the season!

And yet, it is not over until it is over. To finish first, Ellis first needs to finish :-).

Below is our lowdown on the women’s ATM Championship conclusion.

The Women: Wide open battle with Nakajima setting the benchmark

Today’s ranking:

1. Asuka Nakajima (JPN/INA) - 2475 points (5 races)

2. Fredelyn Alberto (PHI/HKG) - 2414 points (5+ races)

3. Siokhar Lim (MAS) - 2400 points (5+ races)

4. Cecile Wael (PHI) - 2240 points (5+ races)

5. Montha Sunthornwit (THA) - 2205 points (5 races)

6. Carrie-Jane Stander (CAN/CHN) - 2069 points (5+ races)

7. Christine Loh (MAS/SIN) - 2050 points (4 races)

8. Veronika Vadovicova (SVK) - 1980 points (4 races)

We highlight the top 8 because the two runners in 7th and 8th respectively are among the Female Five to watch out for especially in the context of the Asia Trail Master title battle. Ces Wael, Montha Suntornwit and Carrie Jane Stander may all still compete in the next two weeks, but they can no longer match the current benchmark of 2475 points set by Asuka Nakajima.

Asuka Nakajima, Fredelyn Alberto, Siokhar Lim, Christine Loh and Veronika Vadovicova are the five contenders for the 2019 ATM title.

Let’s take a closer look at those five runners’ improvement potential in the remaining four races of the season. In fact, we have more flexible scenarios than in the men’s and for sure it will remain an open battle until the final 85 km race in Malaysia on 14 December. Asuka Nakajima leads with 2475. Her 5th and ‘worst’ result is 425 points (also for 3rd place in Sungai Menyala - like John Ells), so in MMTF she can improve still by +125 to 2600 total points. Mind you, that is if she wins MMTF. Nakajima is recovering from injury sustained at Borneo TMBT and is hoping to be fully fit for MMTF as it will indeed be a hit-or-miss for the always smiling Japanese runner, who switched from road to trail and emerged on the scene back in January by winning Tahura Trail in Indonesia, the ATM season opener. In any case, it is unlikely Nakajima will go into MMTF as the Championship points leader…

Hong Kong-based Filipino Fredelyn Alberto is second in the current ranking with 2414 points. She will run UT Panoramic first and could already hop ahead of Nakajima right there in northern Thailand next week. Alberto’s 5th result ‘to eliminate’ is also 425. Winning the 100 miles would mean +125 and that would put her on 2529 before MMTF. If she finishes 2nd in Panoramic, she ends up with 2489 points, still more than Nakajima today. Scoring the race victory in MMTF would deliver another+100 to Alberto so she as maximum total potential of 2629 points.

Veronika Vadovicova is for many the top favourite, despite she ‘only’ has four results so far and her fourth was a B-race (Tsaigu 80). The Slovakian said goodbye to Shanghai in July and went back to live in her home country, but she is back to complete her ATM campaign with Izu Trail Journey and MMTF. She does need those 6 results, because the 380 for winning Tsaigu 80 won’t be sufficient. If Veronika were to win Izu Trail Journey she would collect 550 and enter the Championship Final with 2530 points in the bag. On a side note, that means if Veronika wins Izu and Fredelyn wins UTP 100 miles, the difference between them is 1 single point in favour of the European… If Vadovicova then proceeds by claiming the race win in Malaysia, she obviously earns the ATM title as well with a total of 2700 points. To remember here is therefore that winning only Izu Trail Journey won’t be sufficient.

Now about the two Malaysian matadors among the Five: for many it might be surprising that Siokhar Lim is a genuine candidate for the ATM title, but if you look at her track record of the 2019 season it should tell you enough. Not for nothing did she earn herself the nickname “Steel” when she finished and battled for the podium in both the gruelling Moon 100 and Penang Eco 100 miles within six days. For Siokhar Lim, it cannot be long and tough enough: her ‘worst’ performance was 7th in the 70km long Vietnam Jungle Marathon - by far the shortest race she competed in. Collecting bonus points in several races, Siokhar Lim has scored 2400 points so far and lies third in the current ranking. She is set to run both Panoramic 100 miles and MMTF, with a total improvement potential of +300 to finish with a maximum total of 2700 - same as Vadovicova. In all fairness, winning any one race will be a hard ask for Siokhar but if the others fail to deliver for whatever reason the Malaysian Grandmaster can certainly pick up the spoils. The women’s dark horse is known!

Finally and perhaps most importantly comes Christine Loh. The “Pocket Rocket” has had an amazing season illustrated by clever race planning and two great victories in Chiang Mai and in Chiang Rai. With only four results in the bag, she can still collect a full whack in UT Panoramic next week. That could boost her total from 2050 now to 2600 if she wins it. Even if she finishes the 100 miles race behind Alberto, she would still take the points lead with 2550! Christine Loh could then still boost it to 2725 if she grabs the win in MMTF.

In conclusion, the women’s championship is anything but decided and it may very well be Malaysian “Pocket Rocket” Christine Loh sitting in the hot seat as we reach the big final 85km race in her home country, TNF Malaysia Mountain Trail Festival in Taiping, Perak, on 14 December!

The Full ATM Championship Ranking can be consulted on the site of our partner Race Timing Solutions.