The last points race event of 2024 is upon us this weekend. Starting on Friday morning already, Prenn Trail Summit in Vietnam’s meanwhile famous Dalat offers 182km and 55km race categories for ATM Championship points, while Grandmaster Quest runners can also go for the 100km category. Prenn is a new event on our main calendar, following a successful Candidate Race review last year. It takes place in a different area than the currently still better known Dalat events. Organiser James Nguyen, who has been running in ATM promoted events himself, and Unique Events are ambitious and keen to provide stellar experiences for their participants. Prenn is a tea resort, acting as the base for the event.

Despite being a very much end-of-year event, Prenn Trail Summit has attracted quite an international field of runners, and even including our reigning ATM Champion Jeff Campbell. The Hong Kong Canadian will be making his first appearance as champion on the 55km , a distance he has always loved to attack on. It’s been three months since he narrowly outgunned Hisashi Kitamura in a brave race at Borneo TMBT Ultra, but recent performances within Hong Kong suggest he is still very much “on call”. He should be in any case, because also Chris Timms will be running the 55km in Dalat this Saturday. Timms is in the best shape of his life, which he illustrated at the same ATM Final race, coming in in fifth place, and a month later at Ultimate Trails of Penang, winning the 60km race - his first ever victory in our series. Timms will find the Dalat trails also very much to his liking. Campbell has Vietnamese trail experience and certainly starts as the favourite, but Timms will make sure he stays focused. Another ATM regular who can contest the podium is Japan’s Tomohiro Mizukoshi. As with Timms, Dalat should suit him. No longer the youngest of the competitive bunch, but a podium is definitely a possibility. Besides, Mizukoshi is just 1 point away from becoming a 4-star Grandmaster. It won’t happen this weekend of course - 55km is not the minimum required distance of 70km - but it illustrates how much experience Tomohiro has gathered running mainly outside of Tokyo.

Vietnamese ‘elites’ are primarily going for the longest race distances, in this case the massive 182km. Last year’s Prenn winner Nguyen Van Chung will be there, as well as Hoàng Hữu Thăng and Trần Minh Tuyê. However, it’s Loi Luong who captures the attention on the female start list. The best-placed Vietnamese runner in the 2024 ATM Championship - finishing 4th in Borneo TMBT - is aiming for her first ‘Miler’ and it’s even a ‘Miler+’. She will have a good guide in Le Thi Hang, the leading lady in Vietnam of the long ultras. There’s more strong women, though. Risa Kamiya from Japan and Yvette Chong Mi Chin from Sarawak in Malaysia both can aim for a podium finish. In recent months, Yvette’s running pace has clearly increased and if she can manage her energy tank over the full 180km she should not be underestimated. The same applies for Philippines’ Shekinah Velasquez. Her first long ultra of this kind , but she comes in with proven credentials obtained in races where the going gets tough.

ATM will be broadcasting and updating live from Prenn Trail Summit in Dalat starting on Friday morning at 8:30am local time. Stay tuned on our facebook , youtube and instagram pages.

Jeff Campbell, reigning ATM Champion

Chris Timms, fifth in the 2024 Asia Trail Master Championship

Loi Luong , 4th in the 2024 Asia Trail Master Championship

Tomohiro Mizukoshi could be aiming for another ATM podium this weekend on the 55km

We are happy to announce that Prenn Trail Challenge, taking place to the south of Dalat in Vietnam, has joined the ATM Championship and Grandmaster Quest calendar for Season 10. A successful Candidate Race last year, Prenn Trail Challenge is catering for all types of trail runners with a wide range of distance categories available on the long weekend of 20-22 December 2024.

Organised by UEM and managed by James Nguyen, Prenn Trail Challenge gets its event name from the Prenn tea resort, which will be the event venue host. The Dalat area is not only known for coffee, but also has several major tea plantations. From the tea resort, participants can embark on trail runs from 3 to a massive 182 kilometres. The race categories for the ATM Championship will be the 182 km long ultra and the 55 km medium distance. Runners just aiming for the Grandmaster Quest can choose between 182 km and 100 km. Expect lots of pine hills and old forests. Elevation gain for the 182 km is estimated at 8500hm, with 2300hm for the 55km. The start location for the two longest ultras will be at the Kala Lake and Samten Hill, respectively. The organisation will provide shuttle busses from Dalat City to bring everyone there.

If you want to try the 182 km, you must show proof of having already finished at least one race of 70km or longer. Obviously, also do not forget to check the mandatory gear list.

The Prenn Tea Resort is not so far from Dalat City , but it is nevertheless recommended to base yourself in the resort, as it is the event centre. You can find more details on the official event website. Registration is already open and accessible via the same website.

Dalat in the Central Highlands of southwestern Vietnam is quickly becoming the epicentre of trail running in the country. Prenn Trail Challenge is the latest event born in the outdoor tourism and culinary hotspot and promises to be very distinct from the already established Dalat Ultra Trail and Lam Dong Trail. Not only will Prenn Trail Challenge take place on 31 December - Yes, New Year’s Eve - the event venue and race courses are also different. The event is managed by Unique Events & Media and hosted by the Tea Resort Prenn at Prenn Pass Foot, Da Lat City. It has received the ATM Candidate Race label.

The event features four race categories, of which 80km is the longest and 15km the shortest. Elevation gain for the long distance is moderate at 2600 hm, and remember Dalat is on high plateau of about 1500m above sea level, which leads to cool temperatures for running on most parts of the day. Runners will go through pine forests, tea and coffee plantations that are typical for the Dalat plateau. Highlight will be the Prenn Pass, leading to Pinhatt Peak - the highest point of the course offering a wonderful panorama over the region and the Tuyen Lam Lake. Cut-off time is 20,5 hours for the 80km, which means the big majority of participants should be able to finish and celebrate New Year’s at the event venue.

Runners can reach Dalat via air or land. There’s a domestic airport in Dalat, but you can also take a bus or hired car from Ho Chi Minh City (estimate 5-6 hours drive to Dalat). Accommodation is plenty and can be found easily online.

Registration is open for this one-of-a-kind trail into 2024!

Please check all event details via the official website and facebook page.