Lofty Goals for New World Trail Run Series

Published by ESPN on September 5, 2013

With the establishment of the Ultra-Trail World Tour, leaders around the rapidly-growing sport of ultra-marathon trail running are making efforts towards advancing the legitimacy and accessibility of the sport around the world. 

The announcement of the new series was made Sept. 1 by organizers of some of the world’s most renowned trail-running events, in partnership with the International Trail Running Association during post-race festivities following The North Face Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc in Chamonix, France. 

The series of long-distance trail races will employ a points-based ranking system similar to that used cycling, tennis and skiing to crown annual male and female champions, and will be open to anyone who wants to participate. 

Set to launch in 2014, the UTWT will consist of eight to 10 races, spread across the world, with five or six being designated as “majors”. 

Each race on the circuit will be 100 kilometers or longer, and will be worth a certain number of points based on size and race designation. Each finisher will be awarded points at the completion of a race, and world rankings will be updated after each race.