At the top, there was the Penyagolosa Trails event in Spain, the year’s first Mountain Running World Cup race, and Ashley Paulson set another world record. It was a relatively quiet weekend of racing, though.
Penyagolosa Trails – Castellón, Spain
CSP
The long course race went for 106 kilometers (66 miles) with 5,600 meters (18,372 feet) of climbing. Race winners earned 3,000 Euro.
The men ran it close. Raul Butaci (Romania) scored a 42-second win over Julen Calvó (Spain). Both finished in 10:41. The pair were just back of Ben Dhiman’s 10:35 course record from 2023. Third-place Joaquin Lopez (Ecuador) followed in 10:46.
Raul Butaci, the 2026 Penyagolosa Trails CSP men’s winner. Photo: Jose Miguel Munoze
Gemma Arenas (Spain) ran away with the women’s crown in 13:43. Emily Dixon (U.K.) and Yasmina Castro Chacón (Spain) were next in 14:07 and 14:39.
Gemma Arenas, the 2026 Penyagolosa Trails CSP women’s winner. Photo: Jose Miguel Munoze
MiM
The 60k (37 miles) race had the same 3,000 Euro first-place prize with money going three deep, and the front two men dueled here, too. José Fernández (Spain) was just over two minutes better than Dakota Jones (U.S.) for the win. The two leaders finished in 5:15 and 5:17, and Mario Olmedo (Spain) was third in 5:23.
José Fernández, the 2026 Penyagolosa Trails MiM men’s winner. Photo: Jose Miguel Munoze
Women’s breakaway winner Sara-Rebekka Færø Linde (Norway) came through in 6:23, and Inés Astrain (Spain) and Anna Comet (Spain) were 10 seconds apart in second and third at 6:36.
Sara-Rebekka Færø Linde, the 2026 Penyagolosa Trails MiM women’s winner. Photo: Jose Miguel Munoze
São Brás Cross – São Brás, Portugal
The Classic Up and Down race was the year’s first Mountain Running World Cup contest. It went 10.9 kilometers (6.8 miles) with 628 meters (2,060 feet) in central Portugal.
Men
A big men’s group stuck together on the opening downhill, but when the climbing started, Michael Selelo Saoli (Kenya) struck first. He opened a lead that he’d hold to the finish. Saoili won in 42:22. Andrew Douglas (U.K.) clung to Saoli going up, but was dropped going down. Douglas did hold onto second in 43:37. Third-place Oscar Subuh-Symons (U.K.) finished in 44:07.
The men’s top five was:
- Michael Selelo Saoli (Kenya) – 42:22
- Andrew Douglas (U.K.) – 43:37
- Oscar Subuh-Symons (U.K.) – 44:07
- Théodore Klein (France) – 44:39
- Matthew Knowles (U.K.) – 45:37
The 2026 São Brás Cross men podium (left to right): 2. Andrew Douglas, 1. Michael Selelo Saoli, 3. Oscar Subuh-Symons. Photo: WMRA/Marco Gulberti
Women
Defending World Cup champion Scout Adkin (U.K.) led to the top of the climb, but Ruth Gitonga (Kenya) blasted the second half downhill to win the women’s race 49:12. Adkin was second in 50:13, and 2025 breakout star Nélie Clément (France) was third in 51:20.
The women’s top five was:
- Ruth Gitonga (Kenya) – 49:12
- Scout Adkin (U.K.) – 50:13
- Nélie Clément (France) – 51:20
- Elle Twentyman (U.K.) – 53:07
- Marie Nivet (France) – 53:20
The 2026 São Brás Cross women podium (left to right): 2. Scout Adkin, 1. Ruth Gitonga, 3. Nélie Clément. Photo: WMRA/Marco Gulberti
Puerto Vallarta Mexico by UTMB – Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
The race names were words from the indigenous language. Hikuri means Peyote, Nakawé translates as Mother water, and Haramara means Ocean Goddess. The host country won nearly all of the races.
The Hikuri 81k (50 miles) long course had Juan Belman Ortiz (Mexico) go 8:45, and Mandie Currie (Canada) win for the women in 12:01.
Miguel Pérez (Mexico) and Josefina Perez (Mexico) won the Nakawé 53k (33 miles) in 5:21 and 6:35.
The Haramara 37k (23 miles) had Abraham Hernández (Mexico) and Nayeli De La Torre (Mexico) finish on top in 3:18 and 4:36.
Additional Races and Runs
Les Courses du Mont-Terrible – Fontenais, Switzerland
Swiss runners Fabrice Fauser and Denise Zimmerman won the event’s long course 106k (66 miles) in 10:03 and 12:42. Full results.
Storm the Park 50k – Altura, Minnesota
At Whitewater State Park, Michael Borst and Andrea Louwagie led the 50k field in 5:05 and 6:05. Full results.
Michael Borst, the 2026 Storm the Park 50k men’s winner. Photo courtesy of the race.
Andrea Louwagie, the 2026 Storm the Park 50k women’s winner. Photo courtesy of the race.
Outlands – Pilot Hill, California
The second-year event had Tyler Andree and Elise Gregoire win the 50 miler in 7:20 and 10:01, and Adam Kimble and Beverley Anderson-Abbs were first in the 50k in 3:56 and 5:08. Full results.
Whiskey Basin Trail Runs – Prescott, Arizona
The races were along the town’s Prescott Circle Trail. Michael Versteeg and Kate Taylor won the 91k (56 miles) race in 8:11 and 10:01, and Scott Traer and Rachel Entrekin were fastest in the 60k (37 miles) in 4:40 and 5:17. Full results.
Cedro Peak 50k – Tijeras, New Mexico
Just east of Albuquerque, Joshua Reddish and Kobe Jane won in 4:13 and 5:50. Reddish has the course record of 3:50 from 2024. Full results.
Rattler Trail Race 50k – Colorado Springs, Colorado
The Mad Moose Event saw Jacob Morales and Samantha Hengehold lead the 50k in 4:27 and 5:00. Full results.
Squak Mountain 50k – Issaquah, Washington
A small 50k field was led by Berrett Bentley and Andrea Lin in 4:20 and 5:08. Full results.
The 2026 Squak Mountain 50k men’s podium (left to right): 3. Elijah Flenner, 1. Berrett Bentley, 2. Jeff Randall. Photo courtesy of the race.
The 2026 Squak Mountain 50k women’s podium (left to right): 3. Devon Bortfeld, 1. Andrea Lin, 2. Carly Silvernale. Photo courtesy of the race.
Go One More – Liberty Hill, Texas
They were still going at press time last week. The backyard-style race finished with Mark Dowdle totaling 73 laps and 306.6 miles in 73 hours. Dowdle won at least two backyard races in 2025, too, and the Arrowhead 135 Mile earlier this year. Full results.
Women’s Treadmill 100-Mile World Record – Boston, Massachusetts
At the Boston Marathon Expo and with a 3:46 a.m. start, Ashley Paulson ran 100 miles in 12:47:10 on a treadmill. That’s 7:40 per mile, and it was a new women’s treadmill world record. In February 2026, Paulson set a new women’s 100-mile world record with a 12:19:34 run at the Jackpot Ultras event in Nevada. Edit Bérces (Hungary) set the old treadmill record in 2004 at 14:15:08. [Ashley Paulson served a six-month doping sanction in 2015 and 2016 due to a doping violation in triathlon for a positive test for ostarine, a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM), from a contaminated supplement.]
Hyner View Trail Challenge – Hyner, Pennsylvania
The popular 50k had 6,500 feet of climbing across five big climbs at Hyner View State Park. Ben Quatromoni and Deanna Doane won in 4:24 and 4:54. Quatromoni won here in 2024, too, and Doane’s time was a new course record. Doane improved on Kassandra Spitler’s 5:09 run from 2024. Andrew Hutchinson and Eileen Maney were best in the 25k in 2:12 and 3:17. Full results.
Traprock 50k – Simsbury, Connecticut
Race champs Matt Pacheco and Kehr Davis took the three-lap event in 4:45 and 5:41. Full results.
The 2026 Traprock 50k men’s podium (left to right): 2. Benjamin Niebla, 1. Matt Pacheo, 3. Brian Rusiecki. Photo courtesy of the race.
2026 Traprock 50k women’s podium (left to right): 2. Maddie Kaplan, 1. Kehr Davis, 3. Grayson Neuman. Photo courtesy of the race.
Next Weekend
Canyons Endurance Runs by UTMB – Auburn, California
All the races — 100-mile, 100k, and 50k — will be competitive, but the 100k stands out as a super Golden Ticket race with three automatic entries to this year’s Western States 100 for the top men and women.
It’s a long list of possible challengers, but at the top there are Hayden Hawks, Cade Michael, Zach Miller, Will Murray, Adam Peterman, and Canyon Woodward for the men.
The men’s leaders in the early going of the 2024 Canyons by UTMB 100k. Photo: UTMB/Howie Stern
For the women, expect frontrunners to include Careth Arnold, Riley Brady, Anne Flower, Ellaney Matarese, Martyna Młynarczyk (Poland), and Claudia Tremps (Spain). (Brady identifies as non-binary and competes in the women’s race.)
The 50k should be fast with men’s entrants Jupiter Carera Casas (Mexico), Matt Daniels, Alex Garcia (Spain), and Eli Hemming. Top women on the start list include Julia Font (Spain), Lauren Gregory, Tabor Hemming, Makena Morley, and Molly Seidel.
Mt. Fuji 100 Mile – Fujiyoshida, Japan
In the 100-mile race, the year’s fourth World Trail Majors race has Chris Myers (U.S.), Guo-Min Deng (China), and Jia-Ju Zhao (China) as potential top contenders, and the women’s elite group includes Alyssa Clark (U.S.), Arika Ito (Japan), and Kaytlyn Gerbin (U.S.). Deng won the event in 2024, and Ito was third at last year’s race.
Guo-Min Deng winning the 2024 Mt Fuji 100 Mile. Photo: Fuji Hakone Izu Trail Support
The Short Series 40k race includes men’s runners Ruy Ueda (Japan), Ru-Qin Wang (China), and John Ray Onifa (Philippines), and women’s runners Takako Takamura (Japan), Marcela Vašínová (Czech Republic), and Brittany Charboneau (U.S.).
Call for Comments
Today is the Boston Marathon. Christian Allen is out with an injury, but 50k world-record holder CJ Albertson will be racing. What other trail- or ultra-adjacent runners will be on the start line?
