It was a busy weekend with two ATM Championship points races in South Korea and Vietnam, plus an ATM Candidate in Sabah, Malaysia. The most striking performance was signed by Jeff Campbell at the Vietnam Jungle Marathon in Pu Luong. The Hong Kong-based Canadian went out of his comfort zone by tackling the 70k long race, but it hardly showed as he beat two-time race winner this year Gaetan Morizur and 2019 VJM winner Hisashi KItamura in a hard-fought battle. The lead trio were in a league of their own with Campbell finishing in a time of 7h03 (for 70k and 3000 hm) , half an hour ahead of Frenchman-in-Vietnam Morizur, who himself managed to pass Kitamura in the dying moments of the race for second place. All three class acts deserve applause for their spirited performances on Saturday. Far behind them, Ivan Grigorev took a solid fourth place, ahead of Vietnam’s Hoang Huu Thang, who has been very busy this season - last week he still completed the gruelling UTOP 105km in Malaysia. He will be rewarded with a quasi guaranteed qualification for Team Vietnam in the ATM Championship. Most of the big names in Vietnam were absent from the race last Saturday.

Not absent, and placing herself nicely between the top 3 and Grigorev was Vanja Cnops. The Belgian had no competition in the women’s race and as such could set her own pace throughout. Her winning time was 9h08. Vietnam’s Vu Thi Lan Huong was a good second, boosting her ATM points total into a safe zone for ATM Championship qualfication. Hoàng Xuân Vân Anh completed the podium in third place.

The trails around Pu Luong were quite dry and more runable than ever, which partially explains the very fast times. Kitamura was 50 minutes faster than his winning race in 2019. Vanja was more than 1h30’ faster than three years ago.

Over in Seoul, global trail star Gediminas Grinius delivered a fine performance by winning the 100k race in 12h53, almost 45 minutes ahead of Korean ace Kim Jisu. In third place we had Sim Jae Duk in 14h04. Among the ATM Championship protagonists we noted a nice 7th place for UTCM winner Yuta Matsuyama. Tomohiro Mizukoshi was a DNS after suffering from a bad cold late last week. The women’s 100k race saw a Korean success with Jung Soon Park having the better of Japanese duo Tomomi Bitoh and Kanna Suzuki.

The 50k was dominated as expected by the fastest Korean trail star since years, Kim Jisub. He finished the race 1h13’ faster (!!!) than second-placed Heeseong Noh. Seung Jae Min and Sangmin Chung were together in third and fourth. Japan’s Moeko Yasugahira won the women’s 50k, ahead of Boyoung and Yunmin Lee.

There’s been quite a few new events in Sabah this year, and Kokol Ultra is the latest one keen on getting a place on the ATM Championship calendar in the near future. The new 50k race could count on nearly all the big names in Sabah and they did not disappoint. Milton Amat was a clear winner once again, cementing his position as one of ATM’s best performers this season. Imagine he had been at VJM this weekend…. Barely a week after his 126km slog in Penang, WIlsen Singgin toed a starting line again and managed to get second place ahead of a surprisingly strong Jude Maikol in third.

In the women’s Kokol 50 race, we saw a nice resurgence of Jassica Lintanga as a competitive racer. “Jess” recent training efforts are paying off as she had the better of her younger sister Adelinah Lintanga and Aslin Sarawi.

Vanja Cnops: fourth overall and another easy win in the women’s 70k race

Moeko Yasugahira, 7th overall and women’s winner of the 50K in Seoul

Yuta Matsuyama (7th) and Kanna Suzuki (3rd) had solid runs in Seoul

Men’s podium at Kokol; 50: Milton Amat wins, Wilsen Singgin 2nd and Jude Maikol 3rd

Jess Lintanga was a bit faster than her sister Adelinah in the women’s 50k, Aslin Sarawi takes third

This weekend’s doubleheader also features Seoul 100K in South Korea, an already established event but a new entry on our ATM Championship calendar. Two points races are included, a 100k and a 50k, providing the local runners with a choice to collect ATM points with a view to potential qualification for the Finals in December. In two weeks, there’s another mountainous event taking place in Korea, Ulju Nine & Four Peaks, and so Korean runners can meet the minimum requirement of two ATM race finishes. Unfortunately, it has until today not been easy to travel abroad for Korean people as covid testing requirements and the related uncertainties remain in place.

It is perhaps no surprise that quite a few Japanese runners will also take part in Seoul this weekend, along with all kinds of nationalities. The event does take place in and around the Korean capital, which makes it very convenient. Being around the city does not mean it is a flat race, however. The 100k has over 4600 hm and also the 50k has 2600 hm.

The Korean Alpine Federation, event organiser, has invited a global trail star in the name of Lithuanian Gediminias Grinius. He is signed up even for the full 100k race. Obviously, he is the top favourite and a runner who has been competing in Asia a few times before with success, and with lots of respect for local Asian organisers. Tsuyoshi Kaburaki is one the Japanese trail names on the start list, and Kazuyuki Takahashi can also be ranked among the podium contenders. Better known for ATM followers is Yuta Matsuyama, recently winner of Ultra Trail Chiang Mai in Thailand, and someone capable of producing the upset. Matsuyama is also ranked in the ATM Japan Top 5 at the moment, which qualifies him for the ATM Championship Final in December. Another Japanese runner on the start list we all know very well is Tomohiro Mizukoshi, but he has reported to be not starting this weekend as he fell ill with a bad cold. Especially on the 100k race, we are likely to get to know a lot of new Korean names, as it has indeed been four years since the last ATM points race in the country.

The 50K could see a great battle between the best known Korean runner Kim Jisub and Singapore-based Frenchman Vincent Casanova. Jisub is a 50k trail specialist with wins in, for example, Borneo TMBT 50 on his record, and Casanova is a 2:35 marathon runner, his PB actually dating from earlier this year! The tall Frenchman from Corsica may be more of a roadie than a trail runner, but if the weather is dry on Saturday he could give Kim Jisub a genuine challenge.

Kim Jisub winning TMBT 50k in 2019

Vincent Casanova during the virtual ATM 500 in his resident country Singapore

Yuta Matsuyama getting ready for his 3rd ATM race of the season in Seoul

It is a pleasure to announce a second South Korean event for the 2022 Asia Trail Master Championship calendar. Already an established event, Seoul 100K around the country’s capital city joins on the weekend of 15/16 October with a 100k and a 50k race on the programme that are both valid for ATM Championship ranking points. Organised by the Korea Alpine Federation, the races will be directed by JSceno, the company that does Ulju Trail 9 Peaks near Busan two weeks afterwards at the end of October. Korean trail runners will therefore have a great chance to feature in the ATM Championship again, as they can complete the mandatory two ATM race finishes inside their home country, too.

The races will start at Seoul Plaza at 5 am and have a fixed participation limit of 200 for the 100k and 300 for the 50k. The cut-off time for the 100k has been set at 27 hours,. Registrants should be aware of the mandatory gear items, and if you run the longest distance, please bring a doctor’s certificate stating you are fit for the task. A sample certificate can be downloaded from the event website (link below).

Logistics are obviously quite simple for this event. Seoul is one of Asia’s biggest capital cities, well-connected by air, and you could stay anywhere and even bring the family along for a shopping or tourism weekend.

Registration is going quicky so it is strongly advised to decide soon on your trip to Korea. Any questions can be directed to KAF (fluent English spoken) or to info@asiatrailmaster.com