Austria, Alberta, and Aspen are among the hotspots in this week’s rundown.
Catch up on another week of weather problems, course records, and prize money below.
Pitz Alpine Glacier Trail – Mandarfen, Austria
Weather shortened the Golden Trail World Series event. What was meant to be a 23.5-kilometer course with 1,700 meters had its high point cut off and was instead limited to 20k and 1,000 meters of up. That’s just over 12 miles, and all of it was muddy.
With next week’s Sierre-Zinal race a more competitive event, all of the series frontrunners were absent from this one. For the women, none of Mădălina Florea (Romania), Joyce Njeru (Kenya), Sara Alonso (Spain) were on the start line, and men’s leaders Elhousine Elazzaoui (Morocco), Patrick Kipngeno (Kenya), and Philemon Kiriago (Kenya) were all absent too
A scene from along the 2025 Pitz Alpine Glacier course. Photo: Golden Trail World Series / Rising Story / Mathis Decroux
Women
Kenya’s Caroline Kimutai, Philaries Kisang, and Faith Kiplagat ran to the early lead, but by the time they’d done the course’s only climb and ran downhill, Naomi Lang (U.K.) had opened a big gap.
Lang stayed in front of the race’s third and final loop and only Malen Osa (Spain) was close. Lang won in 1:49:51 and Osa was almost thirty seconds back in second at 1:50:20.
All of the Kenyans fell outside the top three and Andrine Benjaminsen (Norway) got onto the podium third in 1:52:28.
Naomi Lang winning the 2025 Pitz Alpine Glacier. Photo: Golden Trail World Series / Rising Story / Justin Galantd
The top 10 women were:
- Naomi Lang (U.K.) – 1:49:51
- Malen Osa (Spain) – 1:50:20
- Andrine Benjamin (Norway) – 1:52:28
- Maria Fuentes (Spain) – 1:53:30
- Faith Kiplagat (Kenya) – 1:53:49
- Philaries Kisang (Kenya) – 1:56:28
- Caroline Kimutai (Kenya) – 1:56:56
- Weronika Matuszczak (Poland) – 1:58:03
- Sara Willhoit (U.K.) – 1:58:15
- Sarah Carter (U.S.) – 1:58:15
Men
As with the women’s race, the downhill proved critical for the men too. Timothy Kibett (Kenya) escaped the chase group here and stayed in front the rest of the way for a 1:32:43 first-place finish.
Samwel Kiprotich (Kenya) closed well late for a second-place 1:32:47 run, and Taylor Stack (U.S.) scored the highest GTWS finish by a U.S. man this year. Stack was third in 1:33:40.
Kenyan runners took four of the first five finish spots.
The men;’s top five at the 2025 Pitz Alpine Glacier with winner Timothy Kibett in the center. Photo: Golden Trail World Series / Rising Story / Justin Galant
The top 10 men were:
- Timothy Kibett (Kenya) – 1:32:43
- Samwel Kiprotich (Kenya) – 1:32:47
- Taylor Stack (U.S.) – 1:33:40
- Michael Selelo Saoli (Kenya) – 1:33:42
- Nashon Kiplimo (Kenya) – 1:34:56
- Pierre Galbourdin (France) – 1:35:12
- Dominik Rolli (Switzerland) – 1:35:27
- Thomas Roach (U.K.) – 1:36:04
- Ephantus Mwangi Njeri (Kenya) – 1:36:14
- Jonas Soldini (Switzerland) – 1:37:05
Christian Allen (U.S.) was back in 15th at 1:39:05 and pointed to a travel injury on social media.
[Thomas Roach served a three-month World Athletics doping ban from October 2021 to January 2022 after testing positive for Carboxy-THC at the 2021 World Masters Mountain Running Championships in Stubai, Austria.]
FlettaTrail Malonno – Malonno, Italy
The event has some 62 years of history and had uphill and up-and-down races on back-to-back days.
PizTriVertical
Weather impacted this one too. The course stuck, but the schedule was moved up and the race started earlier to avoid inclement weather. The uphill race climbed 1,000 meters over 3.4 kilometers in distance.
Eight times a winner, Andrea Mayr (Austria) got to the top first and it was her eighth win at this race. Mayr ran 39:25. That’s a step up from last week’s fourth-place finish at the Giir di Mont uphill, but the time’s almost a minute slower than her 2024 winning time and almost two minutes back of her course record from 2023.
Benedetta Broggi (Italy) and Gloria Chebet (Kenya) were second and third in 41:36 and 41:59.
Italian climbers took the first five men’s spots. Andrea Rostan beat Andrea Elia and Michael Galassi to the high point. Rostan ran 33:36 to Elia and Galassi’s 34:08 and 34:26.
FlettaTrail
A day later, the up-and-down race went 21k with 1,100 meters of elevation gain. Third in the uphill race, Gloria Chebet ran down longtime leader Tereza Hrochova (Czech Republic) on the downhill. Chebet won in 1:40:35 and Hrochova chased to second in 1:41:32. Andrea Mayr doubled back to take third in 1:44:06.
2023 Mountain Running Up and Down world champion Leonard Chemutai (Uganda) won the men’s race in 1:27:07. Elija Kamau Kariuki (Kenya) was second in 1:27:45 and Martin Nilsson (Sweden) was third on the podium in 1:28:11.
Canadian Death Race – Grande Cache, Alberta, Canada
It was the event’s 25th running. The 118k race (73 miles) goes over three mountain summits and has a major river crossing on its way to 17,000 feet of wilderness climbing.
Ultra 118k
Kim Cameron repeated as women’s winner in 15:19 and Ethan Peters won for the men in 11:36. Peters took time off Rickey Gates’s 12:15 course record from 2011. Peters won the race in 2022 too.
Ethan Peters (left) and Kim Cameron (right) after their wins at the 2025 Canadian Death Race. Photo courtesy of race.
Near Death Marathon
First across the finish were Stephanie Masur and Brandon Miller in 4:55 and 3:58, respectively. Miller’s time was a new course record.
Additional Races and Runs
La 6000D – Aime, France
It was the race’s 34th year and Kaline Osaki (France) and Sébastien Spehler (France) won the 43-mile distance in 7:49 and 6:10. Full results.
Quito Trail by UTMB – Quito, Ecuador
In the 48-mile race, Rebeca Pusay (Ecuador) and 2024 UTMB third-placer Joaquin Lopez (Ecuador) won in 11:39 and 8:07. Full results.
Fjällmaraton – Ottsjö, Sweden
The Swedish mountain festival takes place over eight days and several top athletes are racing more than once. Anna Jönsson Haag won big in the 100k at 12:42 and 2020 Speedgoat 50k winner Noah Brautigam led the men in 9:38. Barbro Fjällstedt Oljans took the 45k crown in 4:32 alongside men’s winner Oscar Claesson in 3:50. Eef von Dongen won both the 27k and the Vertical K, and Claesson won the men’s 27k ahead of second-place Brautigam. Kilian Jornet won the men’s Vertical K ahead of runner-up Claesson. Full results.
HURL Elkhorn – Helena, Montana
The oldest ultramarathon in Montana hosts a pair of ultra-distances events, which were won by a pair of married couples this year. In the 50 Mile, it was Leanne and Duke Wasteney crossing the line first in 11:04 and 9:29, respectively, while Chandra and Riley McCarthy bested the 50k fields in 6:44 and 5:39. Full results.
Leanne and Duke Wasteney, the winners of the 2025 HURL Elkhorn 50 Mile. Photo courtesy of race.
Volcanic 50k – Cougar, Washington
The race went around Mt. St. Helens. Katherine Boere and Andrew Bumbalough won in 6:23 and 5:28. Full results.
Waldo 100k – Oakridge, Oregon
Missy Lotz won the women’s race in 12:28 and Mario Mendoza squeaked under the 10-hour mark with a 9:59:31 winning time in the men’s race. Full results.
U.S. Track & Field Championships – Eugene, Oregon
On Thursday, July 31, Allie Ostrander ran 9:40 for seventh in her preliminary heat of the 3000-meter steeplechase. That qualified her for the final, but she didn’t start that race on Saturday, August 2. Also on Thursday, July 31 trail newcomer Jeret Gillingham ran 8:47 for 11th in his preliminary heat of the 3000-meter steeplechase. That did not qualify in him for the final. Full results.
[In 2023, Ostrander was suspended for four months after testing positive for canrenone, a metabolite of spironolactone, after it was determined that she mistakenly took the drug without first obtaining a World Anti-Doping Agency Therapeutic Use Exemption.]
Rodeo Valley 50k – Sausalito, California
Teresita Gomez and Jayson Hefner were tops in 4:49 and 4:03. Full results.
Angeles Crest 100 Mile – Wrightwood, California
Jian Springer was first for the women in 27:57 and Max Jolliffe won for the men in 21:23. Full results.
El Vaquero Loco 50k – Afton, Wyoming
The race had almost 9,000 feet of elevation gain. Race winners Amanda Sullivan and Ethan Linck did it in 7:11 and 5:31. Full results.
Rendezvous Mountain Hill Climb – Jackson Hole, Wyoming
The race climbed 4,139 feet over 6.2 miles and paid $1,000 to the winners and a $1,000 course record bonus too. Anna Gibson repeated as women’s winner and broke her own course record with a 1:07:04 summit. Both Joseph Gray and Tyler McCandless went under the old course record too with 59:02 and 59:19 on the clock. Full results.
Aspen Backcountry 50k – Aspen, Colorado
Mary Baughman and Kevin Carson won the first-year 50k in 4:55 and 4:30. In the marathon, Rachel Entrekin doubled back from the High Lonesome 100 only two weeks ago to win 4:12. It was Entrekin’s 18th race win in a row. Joseph Demoor led the men’s marathon in 3:18, and Megan and David Roche were best in the half marathon in 2:22 and 1:54. Full results.
Emerald Mountain Epic – Steamboat Springs, Colorado
The trail marathon had Sarah Pizzo and David Norris as its winners in 4:03 and 3:07. Full results.
Badger Trail Races – Belleville, Wisconsin
The event had four ultra distances. Lindsay Phenix and Martin Erl did the 100 miler the fastest in 17:50 and 14:42. Erl has the race’s course record at 14:05 from 2021. Full results.
Blue Hill Mountain Trail 50k – Blue Hill, Maine
Both Maggie Weber and Isaac Vaccaro set new course records. Weber ran 6:26 and Vaccaro ran 5:08. Vaccaro has won all three editions of the race. Full results.
Call for Comments
What other adventuring did you spot over the weekend?
