The covid 19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc around the world and sports and other events are now also facing setbacks in Vietnam even. Until recently, a country where life more or less went on as usual, including sports events such as Dalat Ultra Trail in June. A number of covid infections in Danang have put everyone at high alert now, however, and even the Northwest of the country does not escape that. Race Director David Lloyd has had no choice but to postpone the classic Vietnam Mountain Marathon at the Topas Lodge in Sapa for two months. The new date covers the weekend of 21-22 November 2020.

The official announcement reads as follows:

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: VMM POSTPONED | THÔNG BÁO QUAN TRỌNG: HOÃN SỰ KIỆN VMM2020 (Tiếng Việt ở dưới) We have been in consultation with Lao Cai and Sapa authorities and this week it has been decided that VMM is postponed to 20,21,22 November 2020. We know that many of you, like us here at Topas, have spent the last months hoping that VMM would happen on its usual September weekend. We are sorry to make this announcement, but we support the local authorities and believe it is in the best interests of the community. The whole team here at Topas shares your disappointment, but we will remain optimistic and continue to plan for a great next Vietnam Mountain Marathon... perhaps an even harder VMM than ever in the month of November! All those signed up for VMM 2020 have already been sent an email with full details - please check your inbox (including promotions/spam) for this information.

The same team also organises the Vietnam Jungle Marathon at the end of October. The postponement of VMM means Korea 50K is now (again) the first points race on the ATM calendar on the last weekend of September.

Episode 6 of our video talk show The Tale of the Trail aired on Friday, 14 August and was labeled “Summer Blues”. This time the show featured ATM Champion Veronika Vadovicova and Karen Geh talking about ATG Vertical - Race For Elevation, Amit Mehta from the Unived nutrition brand, Jeremy Ritcey and Valerie Lagarde from Lantau 70 in Hong Kong, Thimo Kilbert on his ‘9 Marathons For Bali’ and last but not least UTKC winner Fredelyn Alberto and Amy Khor.

Rewatch the entire episode 6 via our YouTube Channel (link below) or on our Facebook page.

The next episode 7 is scheduled for the first week of September and will a.o. feature David Lloyd from the upcoming Vietnam Mountain Marathon classic.

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

9 Marathons for Bali: Germany's Thimo Kilberth, a well-known and strong trail runner based on the Island of the Gods, today has started his ambition to run across all 9 districts of Bali in 9 days. This translates into a full marathon a day.

His goal is to support 9 local charity organisations that have been hit hard by the economic collapse on the Indonesian island due to the covid 19 crisis. Charities that provide important humanitarian aid through their projects and that typically rely on donations and funding from the tourism industry as well. A tourism industry that has seen basically aii its activities stopped since March - soon half a year ago. Bali derives more than 80% of its income via tourism….

You can support Thimo in raising funds for the charities while he runs. All details can be found on the website 9 Marathons For Bali, and we will keep you updated on Thimo's achievements in the next days.

https://www.9marathonsforbali.org

After the inaugural ATM 500 Virtual Run in June, which did not focus on any elevation gain to be done, mountain lovers can now look ahead to a serious virtual mountain run challenge. ‘Champion the Mountain’ will take place between 15 and 24 August in teams of four runners and it’s all about accumulating elevation gain!

Set up by Asia Trail Girls, the recently launched initiative by our 2019 ATM Champion Veronika Vadovicova, and Sportlicious Malaysia, the virtual event requires the teams to gain as many vertical metres as possible. Despite what some people may have thought, this is not a female-only event. The challenge is open to both genders evenly, meaning in each team of four should be at least two women.

Run at home up your stairs, run up a car park, run outdoors on an uphill road, run in the trails, up the mountain, run on a treadmill or at any place convenient to you. Each member of the team should achieve 2500 hm or metres of elevation gain within the event timeframe of ten days. The top 3 after ten days will be awarded by Sportlicious Malaysia and score prizes.

Visit the Asia Trail Girls official website for more details on race procedures, the terms and registration that will begin this Saturday on 1 August : https://www.asiatrailgirls.com/challenge .

Introducing the new HOKA Clifton 7. Building on the Clifton’s best-loved qualities, the “7” continues to deliver the perfect combination of soft and light. Crafted with the same midsole and ride characteristics, the Clifton 7 features a streamlined silhouette and updated upper made from engineered mesh. Outfitted with a plush collar that eases Achilles pressure, this daily runner is equipped with an intuitive pull tab at the heel for easy on-and-off.

The Clifton 7 is now available to purchase at your local retailer.

#Timetofly

It’s only been a good three months since the praised release of Uglow’s 2020 Capsule One collection, and here’s Capsule Two already! Building further on the core 2020 colours and designs, C-2 is especially made for hot summer weather, with its tank tops and an “open back” for female runners.

As the Uglow press release reads:

“THE C-2 COLLECTION IS A REPRESENTATION OF OUR BEST SELLERS AND BEST PERFORMERS IN WARMER CLIMATES. ROMAIN JEAN DE DIEU (CEO AND FOUNDER) COLLABORATED WITH HIS TALENTED SISTER, ELSA JEAN DE DIEU, TO DESIGN THE COLLECTION. THE PLACEMENT OF THE INK DRIP PATTERN VISIBLE ON THE SPEED FREE AERO 5 SHORTS IS COMPLETELY UNIQUE. NO TWO PAIRS OF SHORTS WILL BE THE SAME. THE RESULT IS UNIQUE IN DESIGN AND PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES OF PERFORMANCE. LIGHTWEIGHT, BREATHABLE, FUNCTIONAL AND 100% STITCH-FREE.”

Despite the cancellation of most running events in the world since March, the Uglow Team has clearly not been sitting in a corner crying. Capsule 2 radiates optimism and joy. As we read in the lookbook: “This is the time to embrace exploration and take the pressure of performance away. […] A feeling of opportunity.”

The new C-2 collection and its vibrant colours certainly create positive vibes!

We kindly invite all runners to join our new Strava Club, appropriately named ‘Club ATM’. Strava is the world’s most popular sports social media platform on which people can post their workout details and track those of others, mainly using GPS data. Already ten years ago Strava became very popular in cycling communities, but in recent years also runners have embraced the app and website around the globe. In these months of event postponements and cancellations, we thought it a good idea to finally launch our own Club on the network. Strava motivates many people to keep up the training activities by seeing what others are doing on a weekly basis. There’s a lot of features that go into tiny details should you wish so.

In the weeks to come we will be posting a number of exciting things on the Club ATM strava page, so join now not to miss out on anything.

Stay tuned !

Back to School is the title of the next episode of our video talk show Tale of the Trail, which airs tonight in Asia at 19:00 Hong Kong/Singapore time. In this slightly longer edition before the ‘summer break’, we talk about the ill-fated Dalat Ultra Trail with Trung Nguyen and Masafumi Yamamoto, who are both in Vietnam and took part in the event. Furthermore, we highlight Grandmaster Robert Butcher, who reveals the reason for his uncharacteristic DNFs in the races before covid 19 struck, and how ATM 500 and Amy Khor motivated him to put the running shoes back on. Amy also brings on Bernabe Sanchez in the “Singapore Connection” part. Bernabe finished the ATM 500 …. twice … in two different teams. And that is not even all he did in the past two months! Looking ahead event-wise, we talk to Seow Kong Ng following last week’s announcement that Ultimate Trails of Penang - scheduled for 10/11 October - remains on the schedule. Last but not least, we find out how 2018 Asia Trail Master Champion Ruth Theresia is doing in Indonesia, after her nasty fall on training in early May.

The Tale of the Trail will be published as usual on our facebook page, YouTube channel and here on the website, too.

Today we received the official announcement of the cancellation of the 2020 edition of The Great Malaya Trail in Malaysia, scheduled for 26/27 September. The 50K race on the programme of the event was an ATM Championship points race.

Apparently, it is felt by local authorities in Selangor that the event date comes too soon for a safe and secure happening.

The 2021 edition will take place around the same time.

While last week, also TNF 100 Malaysia threw in the towel, two other Malaysian events have announced they are confident on keeping their event on as planned: the Ultimate Trails of Penang on 10/11 October and the Jagoi Heritage Run in Sarawak, Borneo, a week earlier.

Introducing the brand new Clifton Edge from HOKA available now to buy in stores. The Clifton Edge is designed to make you feel like you can run forever. With a combination of responsive cushion and their softest, lightest foam yet, it features a snappy ride and unique heel geometry designed to provide a smooth impact and gliding sensation. Clifton Edge is a culmination of all of HOKA’s innovation to date. Step into the future.

FEATURES

• Embossed TPU yarn delivers a premium finish with targeted support in the forefoot and eyerow

• Padded collar delivers enhanced comfort at the ankle

• New vertical pull tab for easy entry

• Early-stage Meta-Rocker allows for a responsive ride

• New high-resiliency foam offers a lightweight, springy take on signature HOKA cushioning and ride

• Extended heel creates a softer landing and smoother transition from heel to toe

• Rubberized EVA outsole delivers lightweight, wraparound midsole support with a snappy feel

Sudden flash floods following heavy rainfall in Dalat and surrounding forest areas around noon on Saturday forced an immediate stop to all races of the Dalat Ultra Trail event. Runners were evacuated by the organisers and local rescue teams. Tragically, one runner was swept away by the strong mud streams and was found later, drowned. Several other runners also got caught by surprise, but they were all safely evacuated. The experienced team of Vietnam MTB Series, organiser of DLUT, was quick to stop all races as a horrendous rainstorm battered the area. It was therefore especially sad and shocking to hear that one person did not survive the attack of nature.

The dangers of flash floods are once again made obvious. Last year, a similar situation led to the TMMT race in Malaysia being re-routed whilst underway. Although Hisashi Kitamura decided to swim across a river , nobody got hurt that day. 

It was a bad day for ultra running that will serve as a reminder of the inherent but often ignored dangers of our sport. On the same day in Ukraine in Southeastern Europe, a professional female ultra runner, age 33, died of a stroke following overheating and dehydration in a 62K local race held with temperatures of 38 degrees.

Before the race got cancelled in Dalat, a handful of long distance runners had managed to reach the finish line already. Hung Hai led nearly the whole 100K race by himself in wet conditions and won this year’s extreme edition. Another Vietnamese runner, Lanh Le scored a great second place and Frenchman Gaetan Morizur managed to just outrun Valentin Orange for the third spot on the podium. Pre-race favourite Nhon Trong decided to stop at CP 5 with fever in the early morning. First woman in the race before the stop was Julia Nguyen Thi Duong. She reached CP7 safely. 

70KM B-Race: Tan Hy crossed the finish line momentarily after Hung Hai as winner of the 70K. He preceeded Si Hieu Nguyen by half an hour and Quang Duc Nguyen by 55 minutes. Strong performance by Tan Hy. Bowdery Grant took 4th and Vu Tran fifth.

All celebrations were obviously cancelled.

Brief race summary 100K/70K before the cancellation