Izu Trail Journey: Csillag to follow in footsteps of Vadovicova?

For the first time this Sunday, Izu Trail Journey in Japan will not mark the end of our trail season, but the beginning of the next. Due to the previously announced calendar shift, with the ATM Championship Final projected to take place mid-September 2024, Season IX launches this weekend already with Mt Apo, and Izu. Traditionally one of the highest-stacked races in Japan, Izu is also celebrating its 10th anniversary and will do so on the fantastic 70km pilgrimage route across the peninsula south of Tokyo.

It is always the weekend when we all realise that nowhere else in Asia the general competitive level is so high. A top 10 result in Izu often seems like a victory already. That is also what Hisashi Kitamura will attempt again, after achieving it in 2019. Last year, coming back from a bad covid infection, Kitamura was already satisfied with a rank just inside the top 20. That is also the usual goal for Yuta Matsuyama, another Izu regular who we often see elsewhere in Asia on the ATM circuit. Just a week ago, both of course featured still in our Final in Indonesia. Kitamura took fifth place, Matsuyama was ninth. Let’s see how they fare against other Japanese elites on Sunday, especially those active at the global competition level.

Someone who has been very successful in the most prestigious of global races over the past two years, and whom we know well in Asia, is Esztser Csillag. The Hong Kong based Hungarian will be running Izu for the first time and try to achieve what Veronika Vadovicova did four years ago: winning Izu as a non-Japanese athlete (see video below). Last year’s Izu race winner Honoka Akiyama is reportedly also running so we may get a nice dual in the women’s race.

Izu Trail is basically divided into two sections, of which the first one is very runable for about 30km. Afterwards, the terrain gets more technical and hilly with the famous Nishina Pass - providing exquisite views on Mount Fuji and the Bay - as highlight. The trails follows the rocky coastline for a while, and with some bad luck it can be quite windy and cold there. However, it seems the weather this year is more pleasant. For sure runners should not expect any snow this time around.

The top 25 of the male and female races score points for the 2024 ATM Championship.

In 2018, Alessandro Sherpa won the Asia Trail Master Championship at the event, beating Salva Rambla for the title.

Esztser Csillag will be up against some top Japanese women. Can she do what Veronika Vadovicova did in 2019 ?

Back to Apo: experience vs fresh blood

A year ago the Mount Apo Sky Race was the ATM Championship decider seeing Vietnamese sensation Hau Ha and Davao local Arnie Macaneras winning the titles in the female and male categories respectively. This weekend the event and its 100km race is one of two season openers for Season IX of our series. The other one is Izu Trail Journey in Japan on Sunday.

Mount Apo and its boulderface remain a popular challenge for plenty a trail runner. It’s the highest mountain of the Philippines, after all, and the race goes from the beach in Santa Cruz to the peak and back. On the start list we find last year’s 100k winner Yoyong Sacayle, who just a week ago ran arguably the best competitive race of his running journey at Siksorogo Lawu Ultra. As part of the winning Team Pilipinas, Sacayle kept up with none other than Hisashi Kitamura for the big majority of the race. Only a small dip towards the end still saw Wilsen Singgin overtake him, but his seventh place and the manner it came about was a positive surprise for all observers. Has Sacayle recovered enough this week to take a repeat victory on Apo this weekend? His main competitors are likely to be another former Apo winner - Ronnie Torlao - and Rexell Aguirre, who was outstanding in the 100 miles race at UT Chiang Rai in October. What can Sean Aying do? Part of Team Pilipinas alongside Sacayle last week, Aying did not have the best of race days in Indonesia and contented himself with ‘just’ finishing. His racing season has been very long and his greatest form that saw him, a.o. score third place in Mantra 116 in July, may be over by now. Or can he find a final burst of energy on Apo to challenge for the win? Let’s also keep an eye on Bernie Bauyot and Jomarc Ferrer.

In the women’s race, we are looking forward to what can be a close competition between Julie Ann Morales, Manilyn Mamugay and relative newcomer Shally Yuson. Only a few weeks ago, Yuson outpaced Mamugay in the Santa Cruz 70 Candidate Race and Matanao in October, but now we are going up Apo. Mamugay has won this race already. Yuson also finished ahead of Morales in Matanao 70 last October. But Morales was the best Filipino female in the ATM Final last year with a great fifth place.

Just a week after showing how much competitive improvement he made in a year: Yoyong Sacayle is going for the double on the Mt Apo 100

Shally Yuson is one of Mindanao’s new faces this year, very much like Mary Joy Sumanda.

Julie Ann Morales was best Filipino on Mt Apo last year

Full of experience and a former winner on Mt Apo: Ronnie Torlao. Can he challenge a potentially tired Sacayle this Saturday?

Also a former winner and always a contender: Manilyn Mamugay

Shift focus to Season IX: calendar updates

The 2023 ATM Championship has only just reached its conclusion and now we are already looking at the start of the next one. As the 2024 ATM Final is projected to take place in mid-September, Season IX kicks off this weekend already with a doubleheader featuring two very well-known events: Izu Trail Journey in Japan and the Mount Apo Sky Race in Philippines. Points will be scored on the 70km (Izu) and 100km (Apo) that are valid for the 2024 ATM Championship and Grandmaster Quest. The basic regulations for the championship remain the same, i.e. the top 25 of the men’s and women’s races score points. Race previews of both events will be published tomorrow.

Popular demand has encouraged us to move the championship final more forward on the calendar and in any case away from the very busy mid-November to mid-December timeframe. While this means Season IX wil be shorter, already 20 points race events feature on the current calendar and another five are about to be confirmed within the next month, too. Please stay tuned for updates on our ATM Web and ATM Facebook first and foremost.

2024 Preliminary calendar

** The calendar and website are being updated continuously over the end-of-year period **

ATM Championship Events (points races for the ATM Championship ranking and/or Grandmaster Quest (only 70+km)

  • 9/10 Dec 2023 - Philippines - Mindanao - Mount Apo Sky Race: 100 km

  • 9/10 Dec 2023 - Japan - Izu Pensinsula - Izu Trail Journey: 70 km

  • 20/21 Jan 2024 - Vietnam - Moc Chau - Vietnam Trail Marathon: 70km

  • 3/4 Feb 2024 - Laos - Vang Vieng - V Trail: 85km & 50km

  • 10/11 Feb 2024 - Philippines - Luzon - Bagtit Ultra: 100 km & 50 km

  • 16/17 Feb 2024 - Hong Kong - New Territories - The 9 Dragons Ultra: 50/50 & 50km

  • 2/3 Mar 2024 - Malaysia - Sabah - BUTM: 100km & 50km

  • 16/17 Mar 2024 - Philippines - Luzon - Sierra Madre Trail Ultra: 75km

  • 16/17 Mar 2024 - Hong Kong - Lantau - Lantau 70: 70km

  • 06/07 Apr 2024 - Vietnam - Ninh Binh - Cuc Phuong Jungle Paths: 100km & 45km

  • 04/05 May 2024 - Malaysia - Sarawak - Silabur Cave Trail: 100km & 50km

  • 11/12 May 2024 - Indonesia - North Sumatra - Bukit Lawang Orang Utan Trail: 50km

  • 1/2 Jun 2024 - Malaysia - Tioman 50: 50 km

  • 8/9 Jun 2024 - Brunei - Simpur Ultra: 50km

  • 20 Jun 2024 - Japan - Niigata - Deep Japan Ultra (100 miles & 80km)

  • 6 Jul 2024 - Indonesia - Malang - Mantra 116 (116km & 65km)

  • 20 Jul 2024 - Japan - Hokkaido - Mt Daisetsu Trail: 60km

  • 27 Jul 2024 - Malaysia - Sabah - Kadamaian Ultra: 110km, 60km

  • 3 Aug 2024 - Indonesia - Kintamani - Bali Ultra: 100km & 50km

  • 10 Aug 2024 - Philippines - Mindanao - The Punisher: 80km

ATM Candidate Races (test races, no points on offer)

  • 30/31 Dec 2023 - Vietnam - Dalat - Prenn Ultra

  • 13/14 Jan 2024 - Philippines - Luzon - Malico Grand Ultra

  • 27/28 Jan 2024 - Philippines - Cebu - Danao City Ultra Trail

  • 16/17 Feb 2024 - Brunei - BDUTM

John Ray Onifa and Rashila Tamang are the new ATM Champions!

[Updated]

After a beautiful race at Siksorogo Lawu Ultra in Tawanmangu, Central Java, Indonesia, Philippines’ John Ray Onifa and Nepal’s Rashila Tamang crowned themselves as the 2023 Asia Trail Master champions. While Onifa dominated the 77km long men’s race from start to finish in one of his most impressive trail displays ever, Tamang battled with Singapore-based Vanja Cnops throughout the race and, eventually, won thanks to her superior descending skills coming down from Mount Lawu (3250m). Team Philippines won the ATM Team Championship.

The qualified ATM finalist runners took off in all-by-all good weather conditions at sunrise in Tawangmangu, near Solo in Central Java, Indonesia. Torrential rainfall in the days leading up to the race had caused some to fear a slow mudfest instead of the relatively runable trail course on paper. Always a fast starter, John Ray Onifa was clearly not intimidated by all the other stars and race favourites. By the second aid station he already had a gap on rising local star Risqi Kurniawan, who had scored 3 ATM race wins within Indonesia but never really competed at this level previously. Kristian Joergensen and Alessandro Sherpa followed a bit further, and then came Jeff Campbell with Hisashi Kitamura, the latter fresh from a 1:12 half marathon in Japan two weeks prior. Fastest woman was Singapore-based Belgian Vanja Cnops, just like a year ago, but Nepal’s Rashila Tamang stayed surprisingly close and immediately showed she was going to be for real. Angelie Cabalo was third, followed by Shindy Patricia - the most experienced female favourite and title candidate after her best ATM campaign ever with three race wins and a second place (Shindy Patricia is the 2023 overall female points leader in our ranking this year).

At the foot of Gunung Lawu, the highlight of the course with a long ascent and descent and its peak at 3250m above sea level, Onifa had already built up a gap of 20 minutes over his first two chasers. Looking powerful and totally lucid, Onifa already then seemed to have wrapped things up - as long as he stayed concentrated. Risqi Kurniawan on the other hand appeared to be struggling. Just before the gate to the mountain climb, he got caught by Sherpa and was even immediately under pressure by the Italian’s pace. Sherpa was having a good day - as always on the days when it really matters. Between AS 2 and AS 3 he even dropped Kristian Joergensen by a few minutes - which later even turned out to be decisive for their dual. Jeff Campbell was a bit in no man’s land by himself in fifth place, not far behind the other chasers but any hopes of still catching Onifa were fading quickly. The same applied for Kitamura, who later admitted that on a high mountain course like Siksorogo Lawu Ultra - fifth was the best result possible. The Karate Kit had to work for that, nevertheless, as Yoyong Sacayle from Philippines stayed within a minute for nearly the whole day. From a competitive viewpoint, Sacayle’s running pace was arguably the surprise of the men’s race. Known as a very skilled technical trail runner, he has found some good speed in his legs now, too, which looks very promising for 2024.

In the women’s race, Vanja only managed to open up a gap of about five minutes to Rashila Tamang as they began the Lawu ascent. Quite a long way behind them, Angelie Cabalo, Shindy Patricia, Rachel Chan and Akane Nemoto were close to each other. Siti Nuraini was further back, but on Lawu used her mountain trail abilities to bridge the gap with the aforementioned.

During the Lawu summit attack, the men’s order remained unchanged. Except that we were suddenly missing Risqi Kurniawan. Later it turned out he had made a U-turn shortly after beginning the main climb. Kudoes to the 26-year-old Indonesian for trying to keep up with Onifa and then Sherpa. It was brave to try, certainly without meaningful international racing experience. Meanwhile on the summit, Onifa had extended his lead even slightly more. Sherpa held onto second place and kept Joergensen in check by a few minutes. Vanja Cnops reached the top as first female, but as soon as they started the descent was caught and passed by Rashila Tamang. The Nepalese runner used all of her mountain trail experience to full effect to descend like a hawk and applied serious pressure on the more prudent Vanja Cnops - who still combines trail racing with road racing all year round. As they reached AS 5 following the Lawu descent, Rashila had built a lead of twelve minutes! The big question then: can Vanja switch her engine back on in the more flattish and runable remaining 25km of the race? Behind the top duo, Shindy Patricia battled her way passed Angelie Cabalo.

In the early afternoon, most participants had to cope with one or two heavy rain showers. The water affected especially those still on the Lawu trail, which became slippery and treacherous in parts. Up front, Onifa just kept powering on and in the end ran to the finish completely unbothered by anyone or anything. His finish time of 9h45 even exceeded his own expectation of 10 hours. For the second consecutive year, the men’s Asia Trail Master Championship title goes to a Filipino runner after Arnie Macaneras last year (Macaneras pulled out of this year's race a week previously citing a lack of training). 32-year-old John Ray Onifa had been dominant in our series since July with six race wins and no losses prior to Siksorogo. He has won the championship shoot-out, but also finishes the 2023 season with first place on the overall ATM points ranking.

Alessandro Sherpa secured second place by keeping a charging Kristian Joergensen behind until the finish. A fine performance by the 2018 ATM Champion, who last year scored third in the Mt Apo Final. With three ATM Championship podiums, Sherpa is the most successful runner in our series ever. Staying ahead of Joergensen and Jeff Campbell - on sheer pace - certainly raised a few eyebrows and further boosts his legacy as a competitive trail runner in Asia - where he is now staying just a few months per year. Kitamura secured his anticipated fifth place, just ahead of Malaysia’s Wilsen Singgin - who once again came to the foreground in the second part of the race. Singgin managed to grab sixth just ahead of Yoyong Sacacle. Another Indonesian, Akhmad Nizar, did well with 8th ahead of Yuta Matsuyama and Alex Tilley, who rounded up the men’s top ten after Malaysia’s Amierul Amin suffered from nasty cramps in the final kilometers.

Vanja Cnops pushed as much as she still could and did come closer, but in the end not close enough. Rashila Tamang is the first Nepalese ATM Champion. A wonderful success and proof of all the good things we had seen and heard of her during the season. While not exactly a newbie with already six years of experience, also for Rashila it has not been easy to get the required travel documents for racing internationally. Her visa for Indonesia only arrived three days before the race and just in time to catch the flight from Kathmandu. Let’s see if her ATM Championship title inspires many more Nepalese runners to raise their game and compete for international podiums against fellow-Asian athletes. In any case, we may have a points race in Nepal next April: the Jumla Rara Ultra was a solid Candidate Race this season…

Always smiling, Vanja Cnops expressed her happiness with second place, one place better than in the Final a year ago. While everyone at the finish line was expecting Shindy Patricia to take third place, it was instead Angelie Cabalo who appeared and crossed the line. The Filipino had shown great mental resilience by chasing and then overtaking Shindy again in the final five kilometres. A few minutes later, the experienced Indonesian admitted that Cabalo just had too much running pace in her still. Fourth place for Shindy, just like last year. ATM points leader 2023 is her price of comfort. Siti Nuraini scored fifth place with a great second half of the race. Akane Nemoto, struggling in the rainy descent, had to settle for sixth in her ATM debut season. Hong Kong’s Rachel Chan, second in MMTF 100 four weeks prior, took seventh place. The top ten was completed by Tamae Harada (fine result!), Yustina Wardhani (third Indonesian in the top ten!) and Mary Joy Sumanda, who stayed ahead of her compatriot Cecille Wael in another unexpected performance boost.

Team Philippines took over the ATM Team Championship title from Malaysia. While the Indonesian women scored a fantastic team result, two of the men in their team DNFd, which eliminated their chances. Thailand had a decent overall performance but without a stand-out performer in the top ten it was always going to be hard to win the team competition. Defending champions Malaysia knew beforehand it was going to be difficult this year as some of the country’s key runners were missing from the roster for a variety of reasons. On top, Amir Zaki had returned sick from a business trip to Europe and Rejlen James - a serious podium candidate for the women’s race - unfortunately had her day of the month on race day. Team Pilipinas was the favourite, and they delivered in great style with Onifa, of course, but also Cabalo, Sacayle, Versola and Sumanda as ‘over achievers’, compensating somewhat for Sean Aying and Cecille Wael, who both had a tough time on Lawu. Great team work!

ATM Championship SLU 77km - Men:

1. John Ray Onifa (PHI) - New Asia Trail Master Champion

2. Alessandro Sherpa (ITA/Asia Expat)

3. Kristian Joergensen (DEN/Asia Expat)

4. Jeff Campbell (CAN/Hong Kong)

5. Hisashi Kitamura (JPN)

6. Wilsen Singgin (MAS)

7. Yoyong Sacayle (PHI)

8. Akhmad Nizar (INA)

9. Yuta Matsuyama (JPN)

10. Alex Tilley (GBR/Asia Expat)

ATM Championship SLU 77km - Women:

1. Rashila Tamang (NPL)

2. Vanja Cnops (BEL/SIN)

3. Angelie Cabalo (PHI)

4. Shindy Patricia (INA)

5. Siti Nuraini (INA)

6. Akane Nemoto (JPN)

7. Rachel Chan (HKG)

8. Tamae Harada (JPN)

9. Yustina Wardhani (INA)

10. Mary Joy Sumanda (PHI)

ATM TEAM Champions : PHILIPPINES

  • John Ray Onifa

  • Yoyong Sacayle

  • Avelino Versola III

  • Sean Aying

  • Angelie Cabalo

  • Mary Joy Sumanda

  • Cecille Wael

  • Irish Glorioso

  • Roan Biguasen

Repeat win for Shashwat Rao in Malnad 100

At the 7th edition of Malnad Ultra in Karnatika, India, last week, ATM Grandmaster Shashwat Rao repeated his victory from last year. On an amended course with a new start and finish venue, Rao was a class on his own and finished in 12h14’ - more or less the same as twelve months ago. The men’s podium was completed more than two hours later by Nakul Butta and Deepak Rajput. In the women’s 100k, victory went to Soma Datta in 18h12. She was approx 50 minutes faster than Anuradha Bhat and Bindu Juneja.

The 50km was a lot tighter with the first three men finishing within eight minutes and the entire top ten within 32 minutes from the race winner. That winner was Philippe Policisto, who held off Sreejin Thankamani and James Thomas. The women’s 50km saw Trupti Katkar Chavan take top honours, ahead of Singapore’s Anna Tipping and Sandhya K.

Shashwat Rao wins again in the biggest trail event of his home country

ATM Final - Follow the race LIVE on our channels

This Saturday, teams of qualified runners will compete for the 2023 Asia Trail Master Male, Female and Team Championship titles at Siksorogo Lawu Ultra in Karanganyar, Central Java, Indonesia . A 77 km race with over 5000 hm, including the magnificent ascent and descent of Gunung Lawu. The race starts at sunrise 5am local time and by sunset we should know the new Asia Trail Master champions, successors to Arnie Macaneras and Hau Ha. Plenty of candidates for the victory again - the form of the day may also be crucial!

Stay tuned for news, updates and of course the live action on Saturday all day via our usual channels. Livestreams from the runner presentation on Friday afternoon, race start and finish plus intermediate flash updates can be watched via ATM Facebook. ATM YouTube and ATM X channels (previously called twitter). Regular photo updates will go on ATM Instagram and ATM Facebook.

Tale of the Trail : Interview with Hau Ha

Now on ATM YouTube, and ATM facebook, an Interview with the 2022 female Asia Trail Master Champion Hau Ha, conducted in her hometown Sapa in the Northwest of Vietnam, a few weeks after her amazing performance on the global stage in Chamonix. Hau logically won't be defending her ATM title this coming weekend at Siksorogo Lawu Ultra as her focus is now entirely on being competitive in the world's biggest races. Here's a look back on her inspiring running journey, which had its seeds already in childhood, but they only came to fruition in 2020 - just three years ago. She talks about how she started competing, the difficulties that came with it, the challenging race on Mount Apo last season and of course her successful European adventure this summer. Hau Ha, mother of a six-year-old son, also dedicates her running successes to all single mums.

Hau Ha is speaking in her native language Vietnamese, subtitles in English are provided.

Following Ha Hau Runner 's story, we also talked to her mentor and coach Guim Valls, who provides an extra layer of insight, including his interesting views on how to best prepare for competition.

SC 70: Newbies shine in Santa Cruz

The Candidate Race in Santa Cruz, easily enough titled ‘SC 70’ , saw quite a number of new faces from Mindanao’s ever growing trail running community. The 70km main race, which had 4000 metres of elevation, featured several regional peaks but avoided Mount Apo. Youngsters Eldy Bulod and Shally Yuson emerged victorious.

Organised by the experienced Team Jegol Runners, SC 70 flagged off in the afternoon for what then mainly turned into a nighttime race. Eldy Bulod and Isaiah Paraiso set the pace with Anthony Paladin initially as the closest chaser. Bulod and Paraiso stayed together across the hills until the final section, which was 10km flattish back to the race venue. Bulod had the fastest legs and won ahead of Paraiso, who also scored second in Matanao Mountain Marathon last month behind Yoyong Sacayle. Good old Angelito Vertudazo - ATM Finalist last year - eventually claimed the third step on the podium.

Shally Yuson led the women’s race from an early stage, but was pushed forward most of the way by Manilyn Mamugay, who is reaching her best competitive level again after a few years off. Yuson was second in Matanao a month ago behind Cecille Wael. Beberly Lim and Cherry Fuentes were third and fourth.

Malnad Ultra: India's premier trail event keeps growing

For the second year in a row, Malnad Ultra in Karnataka, the State with Bengaluru as capital city, connects the blossoming Indian trail running scene with the Asia Trail Master Championship series as one of the exciting late-season events. Already in its 7th edition, Malnad has again sold out with a thousand runners spread across three race distance categories, of which the 100km and 50km offer ATM points. Trail running in its purest form, in a beautiful remote location, often without even any mobile coverage. The course is laid out in the heartland of Indian coffee at an elevation ranging from 950 to 1050m above sea level, which implies rather cooler temperatures for the participants as well.

The event has changed start and finish venue for this year’s edition to adapt to the growth of the event. This means the race courses have been altered as well, although the characteristics have remained the same. The longest distance has a cut-off time of 21 hours and 3738 hm elevation gain. The 50km is 9,5 hours and 1856 hm gain. The start is in the morning around sunrise.

The 100k was won by ATM Grandmaster Shashwat Rao last year, and he will be back at the starting line this weekend. The 50k last year saw a great run and competition with another well-known Indian runner Sannat Sachdev taking the win. Anuradha Bhat and Lipi Kalita were the winning women a year ago.

The Malnad Ultra is organised by GIREM, short for Global Initiative for Restructuring Environment and Management. It is volunteer-driven and not-for-profit, aiming to bring people to the outdoors and promote the sport of trail running.

Thanks to Trisha Yuen for images of the RPC today

The Malnad course traverses a huge coffee plantation area

Grandmaster Shashwat Rao won the 100km last year

KAR Ultra enters the ATM Championship in July

The island of Borneo is increasingly promoting itself as a trail running centre in South East Asia. Thanks to Mount Kinabalu and the former Climbathlon race, and the still very popular TMBT event, the Malaysian State of Sabah on the northern part of Borneo has been crucial in this development. No surprise that ever more trail events are being organised, and in a fine way, too. We are happy to announce therefore that Kadamaian Ultra, a.k.a. KAR Ultra, will be joining the ATM Championship calendar in 2024. Already a Candidate Race in 2022, the event enters our calendar on the last weekend of July, i.e. 27/28 July, with the 110km and 60km races offering points for the ATM Championship ranking.

KAR Ultra is centered around Kota Belud, roughly an hour north of Kota Kinabalu. It is supported by Kadamaian Tourism with the medium and long-term ambition to make the area the main sports and adventure hub in Sabah. Local communities are engaged in the event as well, and will be supporting all the participants. Cultural and culinary programmes, to taste the local cuisine, are also foreseen. The start venue is Kampung. Tambatuon, which is situated at the foot of Mount Nungkok (also known as Mount Kinabalu's child) and directly leads to the valleys and hills of the Kadamaian area. Participants will see the beautiful scenery along the trail, including hills, clear rivers, rice fields, and even Aki Nabalu. For those who wonder, the race courses are indeed different from TMBT.

Runners can book themselves into a hotel in Kota Kinabalu as well, because a shuttle van can be booked while registering for the races. The vans will depart as scheduled from Likas Square on the north side of KK City. As is custom in Sabah, the 110km and 60km points races will start around sunrise (5:20/5:30 am) - so come prepared if heat is a concern for you.

Registration is open and can be done easily via the usual Checkpointspot platform in Malaysia.

Obviously, Sabah’s #1 trail runner Milton Amat has already added himself to the list of winners at KAR Ultra

Malico Grand Ultra is a new ATM Candidate Race

The first ATM-affiliated event in 2024 is a new Candidate Race in the Philippines: Malico Grand Ultra in Santa Maria West, San Nicolas, Pangasinan on the weekend of 13/14 January. Organised by the Maharlika Trail Series team that also brings you the great new ATM points race Sierra Madre Trail in March. Malico Grand Ultra has more race categories than the aforementioned, but 75km is also its longest distance. Less ambitious runners can aim for 42km, 21km or 10km.

Pangasinan is a coastal province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region of Luzon, and basically south of Baguio on the map. International runners can fly to Manila or also to Clark, if available from your port of origin. The race uses some historical trails of Villa Verde, as you can see in the images below this is a very scenic region. The cut-off time for the 75km is 20 hours, so just like Sierra Madre you better have some preparation in the legs before you take the start.

Registration is open via RaceTecPH , which you can access via the event facebook page and webpage. Please also make sure you fulfill all conditions of entry and have the mandatory gear at your disposal.

Simpur Ultra in Brunei set for 8 June

For the first time since 2018, next year Brunei features again on the ATM Championship calendar with the Simpur Ultra Run on the weekend of 8/9 June. The 54 km long points race was a tough and exciting Candidate Race this season. Start and finish is in the capital city of BSB, Bandar Seri Begawan, which is a great bonus in terms of logistical planning for those planning to attend the event. The exact host venue is Dermaga Diraja.

The cut-off time for the 54k is set at 20 hours and there’s six aid stations and checkpoints planned between start and finish. As can be seen on the course profile below, trail running in Brunei means a lot of steep up & down hills that make it harder than it looks on paper.

Registration is already open and can be accessed via the button link below. Runners with less ambition can also choose for one of the shorter race categories, such as the 30k or the 8k and fun run.