The first SuperTrail of the 2020 Asia Trail Master Championship series will again be the infamous 9 Dragons Ultra in Hong Kong’s New Territories. An event that has grown in reputation and popularity ever since it began and one that brings international and regional talent together over one full weekend of racing. The 9 Dragons’s flagship race is indeed still the 50/50 stage race: 50 miles on Saturday and 50k on Sunday. A race that caters for tough endurance specialists, as the last few years have shown. New - in the context of ATM - is that the 50k and not the 50miles single race will be the second SuperTrail race category for our championship. A measure we took following popular demand by runners to have more first-rate medium distance races in our championship to counter the perceived emphasis on ultra distances. The 9 Dragons Ultra event will therefore offer ATM championship points for both types of trail runners on 1/2 February 2020.

The event takes place in the New Territories of Hong Kong and is known for its vibrant atmosphere and excellent technical organisation.

To register for the 9 Dragons and read up on all details, visit the event website.

The two dominators in 2019: Kazufume Ose and Julien Chorier

Love em or hate em: the Hong Kong steps!

2018 ATM Champion Ruth Theresia had a tough time on the steps of HK, but has pledged to return in 2020!

It is of course already known for months, but also in 2020 the Asia Trail Master season will commence in Indonesia, and more precisely with the 8th edition of Tahura Trail in Bandung, West Java on 18 January. We cannot think of a better event to start a championship and are indeed delighted to have extended the agreement with Mr Agung Adijani, the driving force behind Tahura Trail. The event features a wide range of race distance categories, but it is of course the 42 km long trail marathon that matters for the ATM Championship, which in 2020 enters its sixth edition.

The race calendar for 2020 is beginning to shape up and features a number of meanwhile classic Asian trail races and a few exciting newcomers. To begin with the EcoTrail Al Ula in Saudi Arabia: a 80km awesome run in a new destination that has everything to become a tourism hotspot in future. The race course is our own design, in fact. Saudi Arabia is one of the new countries in the 2020 ATM season. The other big one is (most likely) India! On our website and our facebook page you can already see the list of 2020 races for the first four months. This list won’t change. In May we may very soon announce a second event to precede Vietnam Jungle Marathon, and also in June there will be changes to what we had in 2019. Stay tuned for updates. Malaysian runners should be aware that the SuperTrail this year will be Borneo TMBT Ultra, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2020.. The 100km is the key points race, but we are trying to elevate the 50k to the same status as well - given it is so competitive as well every year. Speaking of which, the 9 Dragons Ultra in Hong Kong now focuses on the 50/50 stage race and the 50k single race, too, so no longer the 50 miles. Throughout 2019 we have picked up vibes from elite and regular trail runners that there’s too much emphasis on ultra long distances. Hence, we will try to bring long and medium distance more in balance to the extent possible. Stay tuned via our usual channels.

Meanwhile, sign up for Tahura Trail and spend another fantastic weekend in the beautiful Bandung area, which also has an airport if you wish to avoid the car/bus journey from Jakarta.

Tahura Trail website and registration

2019 Video Recap: Mohamed Affindi scores a big win!

2019 Video recap: Asuka Nakajima takes inaugural win in women’s 42k!

At the start line, the men’s podium looked like it was written in the stars

Tahura Trail organiser Agung Adijani will once again open the Asia Trail Master Championship in 2020

Tahura Trail is truly the best season opener imaginable!

The TNF Malaysia Mountain Trail Festival in Taiping in Malaysia’s State of Perak is this year’s Asia Trail Master Championship Final on 14 December and the excitement is rising as the last weeks of running of 2019 approach. We are very happy to know already that almost every runner currently ranked in the top 10 of the men’s and women’s championship standings will be present in Taiping. MMTF has also pledged free entry and hotel for those top-ranked athletes. Anyone who still want to get inside the top 10 and enjoy the privilege should run The Punisher near Davao on 30 November. That’s the cut-off for MMTF privileges.

Below you can now see the final race course plan of the 85 km - the main race of the event. Last year the event was - unfortunately for some, fortunately for others - soaked in rain to the extent it can hardly rain more this time around. We expected a dryer race, but the biggest difference compared to 2018 will be that it will almost be a complete daytime race - at least for the protagonists. Start time is 6:00 am.

The second edition of the V Trail in Vang Vien, Laos, saw the sudden appearance of three main protagonists in the Asia Trail Master Championship. Both Milton Amat and Koi Grey in the men’s, and Montha Suntornwit in the women’s, saw a great opportunity to boost their championship ambitions and took part in this very technical 85 km long race. Sabah’s Uglow Running Project runner Milton Amat and Thailand’s Siangpure runner Montha Suntornwit maximised on it by winning, while Filipino Koi Grey suffered an unfortunate DNF after km 60 due to serious digestive issues. In terms of the ATM Championship, it means Milton scores an extra 50 points and keeps his title-winning chances open. Montha moves up to fifth place in the women’s with this win - her fifth result of the 2019 season. Koi Grey stays fifth and will be competing in Taiping on 14 December to keep that Top 5 spot.

Second place in the men’s race went to Thailand’s Teerawat Kanjanasuttiyakorn, who last month became 10th in the Ultimate 230 in Chiang Rai and earlier in the year scored 4th in Ultra Trail Luang Prabang. Local Lao runner Duangpeng completed the podium. In the women’s Rhea Batac from Philippines took second.

Koi Grey was running in second place when he had to retire with serious digestion problems

All smiles: Montha Suntornwit from Thailand scores a solid race victory in Laos

The 2nd edition of V Trail in Vang Vien, southern Laos, promises to be a hotly contested race for some of the final Asia Trail Master Championship points on offer this season. Top contenders Milton Amat from Sabah and Koi Grey from Philippines will be attempting to boost their total points tally even a bit more before the final day in Taiping, Malaysia on 14 December.

Milton Amat is currently third in the Championship ranking with quite some margin still to improve on points. The Malaysian starts as the favourite in V Trail, given his credentials in the most technical of trail races in South-East Asia. The 85 km should suit him as much as Koi Grey, another technical runner who this year has shown great consistency in his running. Grey is 5th in the Championship ranking and could leapfrog Tomohiro Mizukoshi once again as the gap is only 26 points. Amat and Grey will get competition from Michael McLean - never to be underestimated - and a list of Thai and local runners.

Connectivity-permitting, we will be updating regularly about the action in Laos on Saturday.

Milton Amat is the dangerman in the ATM Championship for Ellis and Kitamura

Koi Grey is a solid fifth in the ATM Championship and keen on doing even better than that

Home runner and 2017 Asia Trail Master Champion Steven Ong has comfortably won the inaugural edition of EcoTrail Putrajaya in Malaysia da solo. The event is a 2020 Asia Trail Master Candidate Race. Steven Ong took control after roughly 25 km and never looked back. Indonesia’s Hendra Siswanto was a challenger initially but took some wrong turns and lost a lot of time, eventually putting him out of the race. Nepalese runner Kajiman Rai was next, but he too missed a marking towards the end during a downpour of rain. Jeffery Budin (MAS) and Yim Heng Fatt benefited and scored second and third on the podium. Rai still made it in fourth, Jacques Pasquier (SUI), who has done every single EcoTrail in the world, was fifth.

Syariffah Syazrah won the women’s 80km, her debut on that race distance. Running consistently and smart, she stayed out of trouble. An impressive ultra debut for the young Malaysian. Experienced runners Faherina Mohd Esa and Tan Hongping came in jointly as second and third as the sky had opened the gates again.

50km: Singapore-based Spaniard Pablo Diago Gonzales won it in 5h43’26”. Early leader Liau Chin Lee was second and Saiful Iswadi came third. Siti Khadijah was number one in the women’s race after playing yo-yo with Indonesia’s Ina Budiyarni, who then got lost and had to settle for third. Goh Joo Sing was second.

EcoTrail is a brand concept event hailing from France focusing on eco-sustainability and raising environmental awareness. The event in Putrajaya was the first EcoTrail in Asia and set to return on 17 October 2020.

Syariffah Syazrah was a great winner in the female race over 80 km

Steven Ong on the way to victory in EcoTrail Putrajaya / Photo credit: Fadil Othman

Grandmaster Ina Budiyarni looked like the fastest, but missed a marking and lost time.

Siawhua Lim came in fourth on her traditional slipper shoes

Faherina Mohd Esa and Renee Tan enjoyed their joint-run in the pouring rain at the end

We are pleased to welcome another new Candidate Race - for the 2021 Championship series - in Vietnam, currently the country where trail running is booming the most. The Cau Dat Farm Ultra is organised by the crew that brought you Tam Dao in 2017 and is taking place near Dalat in the Southwest of Vietnam. The Cau Dat Farm Ultra will be held on 2 February 2020.

Taking place around the oldest tea farm in Vietnam, established and developed for nearly 100 years, Cau Dat Farm Ultra Trail (CDFUT) invites runners to enjoy the cool Spring weather in green tea hills and immense flower fields. There is a choice of distance between 5km, 15km, 35km or 55km featuring gently sloping paths, and running along the unbroken forests that adorn this plateau. 

In addition, February is the cherry blossom season, blooming on both sides of the road, sometimes intermingling with a few white flower clusters... The event thus offers a breathtaking trail route near Da Lat and on Lunar New Year's Day!

Check the event website and go to the race registration page

After Solang Sky Ultra in the north of the huge country, the 2nd edition of the SRT Ultra in India’s southwest on 8 December is now a 2020 Asia Trail Master Candidate Race. The application underlines the growing enthusiasm for international trail running in India and we are looking forward to having our first ATM Championship points race in the country soon.

One of our frequent contributors at ATM actually took part in the inaugural edition of SRT Ultra last year and returned home with satisfaction. The SRT stands for Sinhagad, Rajgad and Torna: three historic forts on an ancient route that are protected monuments of the Maharashtra State Archeology Department. The event takes place in Western Ghats, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is famous for the Maratha empire of the 17th century India. The ultra marathon takes place in the south-west of the town of Pune which is known as the Sahyadri mountain range. The longest distance category will be 53 km with 2320 elevation gain. The beauty of the SRT Ultra Marathon course is that it is a point-to-point route, without any loops. So every moment will be a new experience in the heart of the Sahyadri mountains. Runners will pass through evergreen mountains, dense forests with abundance of flora and fauna.

SRT Ultra is highly challenging in the sense that almost 70% of the marathon route comprises of technical trails, rocks, mud, scree, grass & roots, at an average altitude of 1000 metres. The SRT Ultra not just involves mountain running, but also considerable amount of climbing, which is encountered while ascending as well as descending one of the most pristine locations in Pune.

3 RUNNING CATEGORIES:

• Sinhagad Half Vertical Kilometre: 11km with elevation gain of 700 meters ASL. (Distance & previous route subject to change)

• Sinhagad to Rajgad (S2R): 25km with elevation gain of around 1000+ meters ASL. (Distance & previous route subject to change)

• Sinhagad Rajgad Torna (SRT): 53km with elevation gain of 2320+ meters ASL. (Distance & previous route subject to change)

Check out the event website and the SRT Ultra Facebook Page .

Registration is available on 2 websites:

1. India Running (individual) https://events.indiarunning.com/Event/Details/SRTULTRAMARATHON/3142

2. Townscript (group discount of 10% on a group of 3 or more runners) https://www.townscript.com/e/srt-ultra-marathon-331030

Video trailers and presentations can be seen below:

While all the Championship and Grandmaster Quest runners were focused on Ultra Trail Chiang Rai in Thailand last weekend, a 2020 Asia Trail Master Candidate Race unfolded in Malaysia at the same time. The Great Malaya Trail lived up on its pre-race promise of being ‘probably the toughest’ ultra in the country, and the very wet weather early on was not even needed for that. The 100 km had 6600m of elevation gain and went through three states: Selangor - Pahang - Negeri Sembilan. The eventual race winner - former Asia Trail Master Champion Arief Wismoyono from Bandung, Indonesia - needed 22 hours and 20 minutes to complete the course. As Arief said himself afterwards, ‘harder than anything he has done before in Malaysia’ , and he even compares it with some of the renowned extreme trail running events in his own country. Fandhi Achmad, also a known mountaineer and technical trail runner from Indonesia, came in second twenty minutes later.

It is clear that the Great Malaya Trail appeals to the hardcore trail runner. Only 19 finishers on the 100 km of roughly 100 starters, and only two women. However, the finishing rate on the 50 km was much higher at even 80%. The extra bits on the double distance therefore clearly seem to make the difference. Participants were also happy with the event organisation and services. The experienced event organisers from Team Pacat did have a hard time as well as heavy rainfall forced them to cancel the short distance categories of 30 km and 16 km - usually the categories with most paying registrants. It is very brave of a trail organiser to make that decision and Team Pacat deserves a lot of credit for that.

Ahmad Aqua Bin Othman completed the men’s podium of the 100k in 24h50. The two women into the finish were Sammy Yiaw in 30h49 and Izzah Hazirah in 33h26.

Despite all the challenges faced by the organisation, the Great Malaya Trail made a solid debut and those who like the rough’n tough will look forward to the next edition, now scheduled for end of September 2020. It is not yet decided whether or not the event becomes a points race in the 2020 Asia Trail Master Championship. All Malaysian slots on our ATM calendar are currently occupied, but one or two are yet to be guaranteed, so stay tuned for news on this one.

2015 ATM Champion Arief Wismoyono is still going strong on the toughest of terrains

We are pleased to announce that EcoTrail Al Ula, the first trail running event in Saudi Arabia, will have a points race in the 2020 Asia Trail Master Championship series. The first edition of EcoTrail Al Ula is set for 8 February 2020 and features the standard race distances of the renowned European EcoTrail brand: 80km, 50km and 10km. The 80 km is the race that matters for the ATM point seekers, be it for the Championship or the Grandmaster Quest. Asia Trail Master’s General Manager Kris is part of the technical organisation of this exciting new event, which has the objective of developing sport and tourism in the beautiful area of AlUla area in the northwest of the country, known for its prehistoric and rich cultural sites.

EcoTrail events offer real eco-responsible nature race courses that are accessible to all types of runners. This implies that the races will indeed be of the speedy kind with technical sections rather limited and mainly occurring on the 80k long distance race.

As the official EcoTrail website explains: ‘The concept of the EcoTrail® was born from the desire to create REAL ECO-RESPONSIBLE NATURE RACE COURSES ACCESSIBLE TO ALL in major emblematic cities and their suburbs. These events aim at highlighting THE NATURAL AND CULTURAL ENVIRONMENT of a region, emphasizing the importance of RESPECTING THE EVIRONMENT as well as PROMOTING TRAIL RUNNING & OUTDOOR SPPORT. With various places already involved, we want to prove that organizing mass events can go hand in hand with ECO-RESPONSIBILITY and CONVIVIALITY, and that a city can also become a place fit for nature race courses. Each destination offers its own trail running events on short and long distances, but also Nordic walking and hiking events. Each event must have a universal dimension and be committed to our cause.’

The first Al Ula sporting event takes place as part of the Winter at Tantora Festival to promote tourism and culture of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. There will therefore be several activities taking place in the time around the running event. For Asia Trail Master, it will be the first time a points race will be held so far west in Asia and on the Arabian peninsula.

Registration for the races is already open via our familiar platform of Race Timing Solutions in Hong Kong. Please also check the recently introduced new visa policies for entering the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Runners will be able to get assistance for their visa requirements should this be needed. To get to Al Ula, you can fly international to Riyadh and connect domestically, or fly to Jeddah and arrange bus or car transport. All these details can already be checked on the official EcoTrai Al Ula website.

Fantastic sunset pictures can be taken at Al Ula

The terrain is much more than “just” desert. This is Elephant Rock, start place of the 50k.

The 80K course will have a few technical sections and more elevation gain as well

John Ellis defeated Hisashi Kitamura in a straight battle that went on for 60 km to the finish line. Milton Amat and Sukrit Kaewyoun had been distanced, and the two trail stars went head-to-head for the Asia Trail Master Championship lead and the prestiguous race win in Chiang Rai. The battle goes into the history books of ATM and Asian trail running in general, as Ellis regains the Championship lead with a 75-point gap over Kitamura going into the last six weeks. Milton Amat was third in Chiang Rai, but the Sabahan did well and is anything but count out yet for this year’s championship campaign.

Christine Loh from Malaysia scored her second ATM race victory of the season and is now a serious challenger for the ATM title. One of her rivals for the title, Fredelyn Alberto, had to be content with second place.

Wilsen Singgin won the Ultimate 230K race ahead of female champion Xie Wenfei.

The Classic 125K of Ultra Trail Chiang Rai, the Thailand SuperTrail event in this season’s Asia Trail Master Championship series, promises to be an all-out battle between the current top 3 in the points ranking and the number 6, who’s in better shape than ever. Hisashi Kitamura, John Ellis , Milton Amat and Sukrit Kaewyoun are set to treat all trail running fans across Asia and beyond to a fast & furious, but undoubtedly fair competition like we do no see enough in this sport. Kitamura is the Championship leader with 50 points advantage over Ellis, but the Hong Kong-based Australian has better improvement margins than his Japanese contender from Team Uglow Malaysia. T8-runner Ellis can boost his total points tally by no fewer than 125 points in Chiang Rai this weekend if he wins the battle. That would put him on top and the others on the backfoot. (note: as per ATM rules, only a runner’s best five results are taken into account for the total ranking. Ellis’ current 5th best is ‘only’ 425 points for 5th in CMU and 3rd in SMFT. A win in Chiang Rai earns a runner 550 points. By comparison, Kitamura’s 5th best is already a 500-pointer, so he can earn a maximum of 50 points only). Hisashi KItamura may be in the lead, but his foe - whom he considers also his ‘big example’ - John Ellis holds the key to the next chapter of the 2019 Asia Trail Master Championship. If Kitamura wins and Ellis finishes second, the points gap between then will still be reduced to just 25 with all still left to play for in the final couple of races of the season. If Kitamura does NOT win, and Ellis arrives back in Singha Park in the top 3 of the race he will always be the new points leader unless Kitamura comes in ahead of him in second place. Meanwhile, the hungry dog waiting patiently in the shadow to run away with the highest prize bone could indeed very well be Milton Amat.

The Sabahan grabbed his most prestigious and by all means best victory of his trail career in his home race Borneo TMBT 100 five weeks ago. Already for months, Amat is displaying incredible maturity, speed and resilience on the trails of the ATM circuit. In the Championship, he chases the two others by 125 and 75 points respectively, and even though in no scenario can he claim the points lead, just like John Ellis Amat has margins for improvement that Kitamura just does not have. MIlton Amat therefore looks like a Kingmaker who could still be crowned King himself at the end of the final running battle in Taiping, Malaysia, on 14 December. For the latter to happen, though, for sure he better beats his title opponents in Chiang Rai to avoid seeing the points gap open too widely.

Home favourite Sukrit Kaewyoun did not have the pace in the early season to compete for the race victories, but has made a step forward in the last two months that was proven with his podium result in UT Chiang Mai ahead of e.g. Job Tanapong. It will be interesting to see what the strategy of Sukrit will be in his attempt to get on the podium of his country’s SuperTrail and get back in the top 5 of the Championship ranking, a spot he lost two weeks ago when Koi Grey scored third place on Mt Talinis in Philippines.

In the women’s 125K Classic race in Chiang Rai, Fredelyn Alberto, Christine Loh and Ces Wael will contest the victory and take as many points as possible in the absence of Championship leader Asuka Nakajima. The latter may have a more comfortable position than her male counterpart and compatriot, but not making the journey to Thailand could turn out to be a miscalculation later on. Nakajima can never lose her points lead this weekend as her 136-points advantage is too large for Alberto to beat, but the Filipino can bring it all down to a mere 13 points with a race win and then she would still have good improvement margins in the same manner as described above for Ellis and Amat. Turn it around and if Nakajima were here and win UTCR 125, it could have been ‘books closed’ for many female contenders except the inevitable Veronika Vadovicova, who is waiting in the trenches for Izu Trail Journey and TNF MMTF Malaysia. Alas, the Championship competition for women remains exciting as well. Christine Loh can even join that debate in full if she scores a second race victory after taking UT Chiang Mai end of August. The same goes for another Filipino up-and-comer, Ces Wael, who only a fortnight ago took her maiden win at the Mt Talinis Mountain Ultra. Ever improving, we are excited to find out what Wael can do on the ultra distance of 125k in a country not hers and a trail that is generally runable. Not in contention for the title, but always a podium candidate if she doesn’t run passed herself is Jess Lintanga. For the home crowd in Thailand, hopes for the podium are being put on Natthanan Matthanang and Kanlaya Srinantawong.

A win or Milton would be desirable: he needs the points more than Kitamura and Ellis at this moment

Fredelyn Alberto is looking to bridge the gap to Championship leader Nakajima to just 13 points

Jess Lintanga will aim to go once more out of her own comfort zone on the 125K race distance