The 2023 edition of Ultra Trail Chiang Rai in Thailand turned into a complicated one due to heavy rainfall on Friday and Saturday morning, affecting the three longest race categories of which the 250km and 115km offered ATM Championship points. In particular, swollen rivers and flash floods forced a number of runners to stop for a whlle and there was also a minor last-minute re-route. As a result, only twelve runners were marked as official finishers within the 71h cut-off time of the Ultimate 250km race. This cut-off time had been extended mid-race by one hour due to the conditions. Meepoom Mongkolsuksri took the victory in nearly 63 hours, three hours ahead of Chanil Thainguan and Surayos Chuepanich. One female runner made it to the finish at the Sandu School, Patchara Buagun in 70h41 - meaning only 19 minutes within the time limit. Ann Jilian Pulanco looked like she was going to finish as well, but the very tough last 25km proved too big an ask - with the cut-off in mind. A very costly DNF for her, by the way, as she could have assured herself of a spot in Team Pilipinas for the ATM Final.

While the 100 miles category was impressively won by Filipino Rexell Aguirre, runners on the 115km had a good battle for the race win and the ATM championship points. In the rain, Malaysians Amir Zaki and Jeffery Budin built up a nice gap by km 33 and the fourth checkpoint. But the slippery conditions made it tougher than anticipated, and young Thai talent Thosaeng Kunno worked his way back to the front in the second part of the race, hereby also overtaking Filipino Ivan Macosa. Later than expected, Kunno reached the finish after midnight in 19h31, ten minutes ahead of Jeffery Budin and twenty ahead of Amir Zaki. This was a solid victory for Kunno, who burst onto the ATM scene just four months ago in Chiang Mai, winning the Trail of Man 55k race and backing that up with second behind John Ray Onifa in Akha Trail. Kunno looks like the leader for Team Thailand in the upcoming ATM Final, and one of too few Thailanders keen on proper competition. Budin and Zaki did a great job for their chances of qualification for Team Malaysia. The 77km race of Siksorogo Lawu Ultra is also a course that will suit both runners very well. In fourth and fifth in Chiang Rai we had the Italian Giacomo Giovannini, who made a wonderful remark five hours into the race, saying it’s “trail surfing” and not “trail running” when asked about the condition of the trails in the very wet weather at that point. Giovannini held of the Thailand-based Filipino Ivan Macaso, who did a great run in one of his first 100k+ races. For quite a while the duo was joined by the first female competitor in the race: Tara Savage. Living in Thailand already for a long time, the American started her race very fast and quickly put the other women on the backfoot. Singapore’s Vincere Zeng - known as a high mountain specialist - was the closest challenger for Savage but never really saw her during the race. Vincere nevertheless scored a solid second place in this race and is looking forward to the ATM Final, Gunung Lawu being a mountain she has climbed before. Third place in the women’s race looked like it was going to be assumed by Indonesia’s Qheiza Wiranda Edelwise. Born in Sumatra, living in Singapore, Edelwise has put together a nice string of race results this ATM season and will be part of her country’s team in Siksorogo Lawu. A third place in Chiang Rai would have been the cherry on the pie for her season in ATM, but it got denied by what appears to have been a confused race marshal who sent her on the wrong course (the 100 miles course). Eventually, Edelwise - understandably frustrated - threw in the towel, which gave the third spot on the podium to a surprised Malaysia’s Rija Anak Gunes, herself just ten minutes ahead of Pey Luan Ng. Race marshals are often well-meaning volunteers, and ultra trail races are very long with sleepless nights included, yet these kind of situations happen too often in trail events the world over.

Thosaeng Kunno arrives at CP 4 in the 115km race, half an hour down on then-leader Amir Zaki

Jeffery Budin used his ultra experience to grab a very good second place

Early race leader Amir Zaki eventually had to settle for third place, also due to some miscommunications

The Ultimate 250 was tougher than ever before. Meepoom Mongkolsuksri was clearly the strongest

The only female finisher on the Ultimate 250: Patchara Buagun

Ultra Trail Chiang Rai in the north of Thailand again features on the ATM Championship calendar for the first time since the magical edition of 2019, when a.o. John Ellis and Hisashi Kitamura went head-to-head for dozens of kilometres in what turned out to be that year’s championship-deciding race. This time, UTCR is the last points race of the season and so the last chance for Thai runners to collect ATM points within their own country in an attempt to qualify for their national country team at the ATM Final in Indonesia on 2 December.

UTCR has a new venue this year: the Bandu School grounds, closer to the city of Chiang Rai itself. The Ultimate 250 is still the longest points race in our series, and the 115km remains the second choice for points seekers. There’s also a 100 miles category, but that one only matters for the Grandmaster Quest.

On the start list of the 115km we have a lot of Thai runners whom we have not yet seen on the ATM circuit, so we might see a few surprises from a competitive point of view. From Malaysia, however, we have a serious candidate for the race win: Amir Zaki. Already a winner in Thailand a year ago at Doi Nhok Trail, Zaki is in full preparation mode for the last big races of the season, normally speaking for him culminating in the ATM Championship Final on 2 December. While previously a short to medium distance specialist, Zaki has proven this season he should no longer be afraid of the long ultras. In June, he won the inaugural Borneo Miler in a solid fashion and time. His teammate at Sportlicious Malaysia, Jeffery Budin, will also be running the 115 and is himself certainly a podium candidate. Thailand’s upcoming youngster Thosaeng Kunno will be cementing his ATM ranking and could be the biggest challenger for the Malaysians. Kunno was second behind John Ray Onifa in Akha Trail and won Trail of Man in Chiang Mai in June. Japan’s Seiji Morofuji might also find himself close to the podium this weekend.

The women’s 115km sees well-known ATM protagonists such as Singapore’s Vincere Zeng and Indonesia’s Qheiza Edelwise, with Grandmaster-seeker Rija Anak Gubes and also Thailand-based Tara Savage as a potential race winner.

The Ultimate 250km is a challenge not made for everyone, but some runners have made these extreme distances a bit of their specialty. Philippines’ Ann Jilian Pulanco, for example, could be grabbing her second ATM victory of this season after Sierra Madre 75, which could put her in a strong position to qualify for her country team in the ATM Championship Final. Thailand’s Patchara Buagun will be challenger. Malaysia-based Thai Siriporn Leumathong, Malaysia’s Yvette Chong and Manila’s Rhea Batac also can eye a potential podium. In the men’s Adrian Lee, Kittisak Pakton and Chanil Thainguan may be contesting the victory.

ATM will be reporting live from UTCR as of Saturday morning 4am local time, start of the 115km race.

Sanya Khanchai is one of the so-called big-three of Thailand’s first modern generation of elite trail runners and when he announced he would try and tackle the course record of UTCR’s Ultimate 230k race category set by Jag Lanante two years ago in 37:05:35, you could bet he was going to put up another show of his. Khanchai won the Classic 125k race of this great event in the north of Thailand two years ago and celebrated that with a handstand and salto at the finish line in Singha Park. Khanchai is no longer one of the youngest in the start lists of races, but his dedication to running and fitness continue to put him on top op podiums - at least in his own country.

At Ultra Trail Chiang Rai 2020, the Thailand SuperTrail with a field of domestic runners-only due to covid 19, Khanchai started out quickest, but made it a habit to wait for the next participant at each of the first couple of aid stations. Saving his energy for the last 100 miles or 160k - because that’s a distance he knows to manage well from past experiences. In any case it was clear nobody would even threaten to beat him in the race last weekend. Sanya Khanchai started chasing his personal goal and passed the km 200 mark one could foresee him reaching it: do the Ultimate 230 in less than 37 hours. He arrived in 36 hours and 20 minutes 4 seconds to take the victory - and importantly - 600 points for the 2020/21 Asia Trail Master Championship. Khanchai has never done enough races to really feature in the Championship shoot-out at the end of the year, but perhaps this win with the maximum points available for any race could be a stimulant for 2021. In any case, it was his 3rd ATM race win after UT Koh Chang 100 and UT Chiang Rai 125 in 2018.

Equally impressive was the first runner-rup: Robert Butcher. The 61-year-old (!) Bangkok-based Britain has had very difficult months behind him fighting with cancer and chemotherapy to complete the 230k in a remarkable time of 45:25:33, which is only four-and-a-half hours away from his time set last year in this race. The terrain in Chiang Rai must suit Butcher as he was already once on the podium before here: third on the 125k in 2017. Last weekend, the final step on the podium went to Sittisak Suwannee in 49:26:16.

The women’s Ultimate 230 was a closer battle between five women, of whom Kanlaya Thongfachalai got the upper hand at the end. She finished in a time of 56:02:37. It’s her first ATM race victory and it is not a complete surprise as Kanlaya has been improving her competitive game in the last couple of years. Second and third place went to Benjamas Chotemateepirom and Thanawal Nawachartkhosit.

In total, 36 runners completed the Ultimate 230 within the time limit of 60 hours.

A rather surprising winner emerged on the Classic distance of 125km yesterday: Somkiat Roddeeying. The Thai athlete had a two-hour gap on second place Amorn Kimnguan and five-and-a half on Graeme Fancett. What is stunning is that Somkiat’s winning time of 21:14:21 is almost exactly ten hours (!) faster than his own time in this same race three years ago! Talking about improvement! A year ago he completed the Ultimate 230 in 53:35, which was good for 16th place overall. In ATM races, he had never come close to even a podium but last weekend he took advantage of the situation and grabbed his maiden win in a time that would have given him a Top 10 ranking in last year’s elite-filled race.

In the women’s 125k race, the victory went to Patcharee Chuaythaisong in a time of 25:54:04. It was her second ATM race victory after taking UTKC 70k category in 2018. Issaree Kengnok and Natha Raveephusita were second and third in 29:20:54 and 32:48:32 respectively.

With special thanks to Running Insider and Teelakow for image material

Ultimate 230 winners in 2020: Kanlaya Thongfachalai and Sanya Khanchai

Final metres for Kanlaya in the SIngha Park

Impressive first ATM race win for Somkiat Roddeeying on the Classic 125k

John Ellis defeated Hisashi Kitamura in a straight battle that went on for 60 km to the finish line. Milton Amat and Sukrit Kaewyoun had been distanced, and the two trail stars went head-to-head for the Asia Trail Master Championship lead and the prestiguous race win in Chiang Rai. The battle goes into the history books of ATM and Asian trail running in general, as Ellis regains the Championship lead with a 75-point gap over Kitamura going into the last six weeks. Milton Amat was third in Chiang Rai, but the Sabahan did well and is anything but count out yet for this year’s championship campaign.

Christine Loh from Malaysia scored her second ATM race victory of the season and is now a serious challenger for the ATM title. One of her rivals for the title, Fredelyn Alberto, had to be content with second place.

Wilsen Singgin won the Ultimate 230K race ahead of female champion Xie Wenfei.

The Classic 125K of Ultra Trail Chiang Rai, the Thailand SuperTrail event in this season’s Asia Trail Master Championship series, promises to be an all-out battle between the current top 3 in the points ranking and the number 6, who’s in better shape than ever. Hisashi Kitamura, John Ellis , Milton Amat and Sukrit Kaewyoun are set to treat all trail running fans across Asia and beyond to a fast & furious, but undoubtedly fair competition like we do no see enough in this sport. Kitamura is the Championship leader with 50 points advantage over Ellis, but the Hong Kong-based Australian has better improvement margins than his Japanese contender from Team Uglow Malaysia. T8-runner Ellis can boost his total points tally by no fewer than 125 points in Chiang Rai this weekend if he wins the battle. That would put him on top and the others on the backfoot. (note: as per ATM rules, only a runner’s best five results are taken into account for the total ranking. Ellis’ current 5th best is ‘only’ 425 points for 5th in CMU and 3rd in SMFT. A win in Chiang Rai earns a runner 550 points. By comparison, Kitamura’s 5th best is already a 500-pointer, so he can earn a maximum of 50 points only). Hisashi KItamura may be in the lead, but his foe - whom he considers also his ‘big example’ - John Ellis holds the key to the next chapter of the 2019 Asia Trail Master Championship. If Kitamura wins and Ellis finishes second, the points gap between then will still be reduced to just 25 with all still left to play for in the final couple of races of the season. If Kitamura does NOT win, and Ellis arrives back in Singha Park in the top 3 of the race he will always be the new points leader unless Kitamura comes in ahead of him in second place. Meanwhile, the hungry dog waiting patiently in the shadow to run away with the highest prize bone could indeed very well be Milton Amat.

The Sabahan grabbed his most prestigious and by all means best victory of his trail career in his home race Borneo TMBT 100 five weeks ago. Already for months, Amat is displaying incredible maturity, speed and resilience on the trails of the ATM circuit. In the Championship, he chases the two others by 125 and 75 points respectively, and even though in no scenario can he claim the points lead, just like John Ellis Amat has margins for improvement that Kitamura just does not have. MIlton Amat therefore looks like a Kingmaker who could still be crowned King himself at the end of the final running battle in Taiping, Malaysia, on 14 December. For the latter to happen, though, for sure he better beats his title opponents in Chiang Rai to avoid seeing the points gap open too widely.

Home favourite Sukrit Kaewyoun did not have the pace in the early season to compete for the race victories, but has made a step forward in the last two months that was proven with his podium result in UT Chiang Mai ahead of e.g. Job Tanapong. It will be interesting to see what the strategy of Sukrit will be in his attempt to get on the podium of his country’s SuperTrail and get back in the top 5 of the Championship ranking, a spot he lost two weeks ago when Koi Grey scored third place on Mt Talinis in Philippines.

In the women’s 125K Classic race in Chiang Rai, Fredelyn Alberto, Christine Loh and Ces Wael will contest the victory and take as many points as possible in the absence of Championship leader Asuka Nakajima. The latter may have a more comfortable position than her male counterpart and compatriot, but not making the journey to Thailand could turn out to be a miscalculation later on. Nakajima can never lose her points lead this weekend as her 136-points advantage is too large for Alberto to beat, but the Filipino can bring it all down to a mere 13 points with a race win and then she would still have good improvement margins in the same manner as described above for Ellis and Amat. Turn it around and if Nakajima were here and win UTCR 125, it could have been ‘books closed’ for many female contenders except the inevitable Veronika Vadovicova, who is waiting in the trenches for Izu Trail Journey and TNF MMTF Malaysia. Alas, the Championship competition for women remains exciting as well. Christine Loh can even join that debate in full if she scores a second race victory after taking UT Chiang Mai end of August. The same goes for another Filipino up-and-comer, Ces Wael, who only a fortnight ago took her maiden win at the Mt Talinis Mountain Ultra. Ever improving, we are excited to find out what Wael can do on the ultra distance of 125k in a country not hers and a trail that is generally runable. Not in contention for the title, but always a podium candidate if she doesn’t run passed herself is Jess Lintanga. For the home crowd in Thailand, hopes for the podium are being put on Natthanan Matthanang and Kanlaya Srinantawong.

A win or Milton would be desirable: he needs the points more than Kitamura and Ellis at this moment

Fredelyn Alberto is looking to bridge the gap to Championship leader Nakajima to just 13 points

Jess Lintanga will aim to go once more out of her own comfort zone on the 125K race distance

The 3rd edition of Ultra Trail Chiang Rai in the north of Thailand brings together a lot of trail talent from across the continent including most of this year’s Asia Trail Master Championship protagonists. It is not for nothing the Thailand SuperTrail. On the programme are two A-races, the Ultimate 230km - the longest points race in the Championship - and the Classic 124 km (race preview tomorrow). Contenders-in-need of extra bonus points - the 100 miles+ bonus - are gambling to tackle that mega distance in 60 hours. Among them ATM Champion Alessandro Sherpa, homeboy Job Tanapong and Tomohiro Mizukoshi. They are joined by other top runners such as Noy Gentoleo, Wilsen Singgin, Abimanyu Shunmugan, Yotchai Chaipromma and Robert Butcher, who knows the terrain in Chiang Rai very well and was on the podium of the 122K race here two years ago.

Sherpa is not convinced he is making the right choice because he would be a top candidate to win the 124K race. It is certainly brave that he wants to give the 230K - a distance even he has never done before - a try. If he were to manage to win it this weekend, it would be close to a miraculous comeback within a time span of just a few weeks. Many had already written the Italian off for this ATM season, after two consecutive DNFs in Mantra Summits and Magnificent Merapoh Trail, but a second place on Mt Talinis gave him the mental boost he probably needed a bit. A win in the Ultimate 230K is worth 600 ATM Championship points bringing his total to 2075. That’s a standard race win away from equalling Hisashi KItamura’s current points lead…

Thailand’s Job Tanapong is in a similar situation after a somewhat disappointing UT Chiang Mai result - fourth. The NKOTB scored 1450 points so far in three races, 25 less than Sherpa. Tanapong also still has UT Panoramic on his programme before the final in TNF MMTF in Malaysia on 14 December. But at the race briefing this afternoon, Tanapong claimed he is opting for the “slow-pace” 230K instead of the “fast-pace” 124K as he is carrying a hamstring injury. If he fails to finish this weekend, it will be all or nothing for him in the aforementioned last two ATM Championship races of the season - just like Veronika Vadovicova in the women’s.

Tomohiro Mizukoshi was a great third in last year’s championship and currently ranks fifth after what has been a tough season for the Tokyo runner - also plagued by smaller and bigger injuries now and again. Chiang Rai should be a course that suits him, though, and the distance should also not deter him - see his Penang Eco 100 miles last June - second and his best race result of 2019.

Jag Lanante, the fantastic Filipino based in Thailand who won the 230 last year in just over 37 hours is unfortunately not starting the race tomorrow. due to injury.

The women’s Ultimate 230K also has an impressive list of starters and podium contenders. China’s Xie Wenfei is tipped by many as the biggest favourite for the victory, but the colourful runner from Guangdong has also never been close to that distance. This year, she was 3rd in Ultimate Tsaigu last April - the Chinese partner race of UTCR. Thailand’s Montha Suntornwit won the race a year ago and is certainly a candidate to repeat that feat. Habiba Benahmed is not afraid of ultra long distances and usually keeps a solid pace throughout, just like Malaysia’s Siokhar Lim - one of this season’s new ATM Grandmasters and even #4 in the Championship ranking. Been Lee from Korea is not to underestimated neither.

We will be reporting live from the Ultimate 230 in Chiang Rai as of the start at 5 am on Friday morning. There is also a live tracking of elites via GPS provided by Dot Track Asia.

Job Tanapong

Montha Suntornwit

Xie Wenfei

Wilsen Singgin

Habiba Benahmed

Siokhar ‘Steel’ Lim

Two amazing events on the same weekend is always a tough choice for runners and event contributors, but in Thailand it is a particularly hard nut to crack. Both Singha Ultra Trail Chiang Rai and Compressport Ultra Train Nan rank among the very best events in the Asia Trail Master Championship and together bring more than 3000 runners to the trails of northern Thailand. A sign of the great possibilities for the development of the trail scene in the country. All the known Thai protagonists took part in one of the two events. Sanya Khancai won the 122km race in Chiang Rai, Pharait Varesin was unchallenged in winning the 109 km in Nan and Jay Jantaraboon opted for a solid 38k training run in Chiang Rai as preparation for a main goal of his coming next month.

In Nan, a lot of attention went to the ladies’ race featuring Ruth Theresia from Indonesia, who could beat the all-time ATM victories record set by Tahira Najmunisaa. But Theresia will need to wait a bit longer for her 11th race win. As it happens, Ruth is a woman and Nan’s race day was on that one day a month. The Bandung Explorer runner who is about to be crowned ATM champion when it is a mathematical certainty end of November, still tried to compete with Thailand’s emerging Waroonluk Chuenjit at first. As she struggled with pains more and more, she let go and just focused on finishing the 109k distance - another Grandmaster point for her. And guess what: it’s her 15th Grandmaster point - more than anyone else in the ATM circuit - and that’s another level completed. Ruth Theresia is any case the first three-star Asia Trail Grandmaster!

One of Ruth’s contenders for the ATM Championship, Carole Fuchs, virtually admitted it will be very hard to still catch her on points this season. Fuchs has recently moved to Tokyo, which has had a serious impact on her training and as such she opted for the 50k in Nan. She won comfortably, but the 50k offers no championship points.

The men’s race in Nan was won by Pharait Varesin, after his DNF last year when Sanya Khancai proved to be a little too fast. As the latter ran Chiang Rai this season, Varesin had no match on the tough 109k race. It was his first ever ATM race win as a matter of fact. His winning time was:13:48:56. The podium was competed by his Thai compatriots Perawat Silapaariya and Karan Popaichayon. After Theresia let go, Thailand’s Waroonluk Chuenjit stormed to a by all means impressive victory in the women’s in 19:46:16. That was two hours faster than Duangruethai Pakdeevanissukho in second and Sukanya Tongma.

Over in Chiang Rai, Sanya Khancai actually returned to the ATM scene after a long period of forced inactivity due to managerial issues. However, he certainly had not lost his speed in the process as he put the hammer down from the flag-off. Spain’s Salva Rambla, coming off three podium finishes including a race win at Ijen 70k, was immediately put on the back foot in a race that suits his characteristics. The pace was fast initially and no fewer than 9 runners were staying close to each other for about 30 to 40k until gaps began to widen. Khancai wasn’t waiting for anyone and Rambla began to suffer from the heat on what was indeed turning out to be a smoking hot day in Chiang Rai’s huge nature park. Meanwhile, Singapore-based Britain Gordon Parkinson was keeping a consistent pace and gradually moved up the leaderboard as others, such as South Korea’s Sungsik Joh, were fading away. Also the 100k winner at Ijen last month struggled with the extreme temperatures. Late in the afternoon, Salva Rambla even decided to retire. He had just been passed by Parkinson and suffering not only from heat but also from a nasty blister. With Rambla out, Khancai had an hour advantage over Parkinson with 27k to go to the finish. The British runner, in his second Asian outing, did remarkably well to maintain more or less the same pace as the Thai leader. But coming closer seemed impossible. Khancai grabbed his third career ATM victory ahead of Parkinson and the Thai duo of Narin Kongsiri and Thongcai Wonsgaard. The women’s 122k race was won by Hong Kong’s Cheng Yinkwan, ahead of Singapore’s Janelle Seet and Thailand’s Pakanee Burutphakdee. The DNF rate on the 122km was very high with just 17 official finishers out of 110 starters. It is testimony to the underestimated nature of the course, which has 5500m of elevation gain. Not nothing, but not out-of-the-ordinary for Asian standards neither.

It was in any case interesting given that there was also an extreme trail race on the UTCR programme with a higher finisher rate percentage-wise. The Ultimate 230 km made a huge loop around the Singha Nature Park with a large section along the Myanmar border in the north of it. A unique challenge that was taken up by 40 registered runners, of whom 34 effectively started. It was perhaps no coincidence that two 2-star Grandmasters were among them: Aleksis Capili and Lily Suryani. Capili hadn’t been seen on the ATM tour since last year’s UT Panoramic (which won’t take place in 2018 but returns re-designed in 2019) as the Thailand-based Filipino shifted his focus to better and targeted training rather than more racing. Capili’s race positions have indeed been improving since he adopted this approach, and in Chiang Rai he was taking the bull by the horns in the early part of the double ultra race. Capili was joined at the front by his compatriot Jag Lanante, Brunei-based Canadian Michael McLean and a local black dog, who accompanied the front runners for 86 kilometres! The dog became a star during the event, as the day after he also ran the 38 km race (as Jag Lanante would do as well…).At around km 55, Capili began to feel pain in his knee, and had to slow down the pace. McLean also had his issues. Severe stomach and belly cramps forced him to even retire in the evening of the first day. All that meant Jag Lanante was able to take over and control the race from then on. Also from Philippines originally, Lanante is known as an ultra runner for whom no distance is too long. He actually kept on moving all the way and finished back in Singha Park in just over 37 hours! Capili walked and struggled his way to the finish twelve hours later. In third and fourth were Thailand’s Supeeraphan Sreeduangjan and Korea’s Kwanghoo Lee.

Two fantastic events.

The big question trail runners have: will they again be on the same weekend in 2019?

Jag Lanante measured his effort perfectly. The Ultimate 230K is of course something made for him

2-star Grandmaster Lily Suryani completed the Ultimate 230k, but unfortunately outside the COT.

Ruth Theresia is a woman and UT Nan was on that one day of the month.. Still, she completed the course and became the first 3-star Grandmaster!

New name from Thailand to watch out for: Waroonluk Chuenjit!

Jag Lanante was unstoppable on the 230km and even did the 38K the day after as well

The 2nd edition of Ultra Trail Chiang Rai in Thailand already begins on Friday early morning. Reason is a novelty, and also a one-off, according to race organisers Teelakow. The Ultimate 230 km features a giant loop around the big Singha Nature Reserve in the north of the country. Perhaps surprisingly enough, 40 runners of whom more than 1/3 foreigners feel attracted to this double ultra. Several are well-known in Asia Trail Master circles, such as 2-star Grandmasters Aleksis Capili and Lily Suryani, who both live up to their reputations as being the champions of ultra trail finishes. Both the Filipino and the Indonesian also have a realistic chance to score a podium result in the race. Capili has reduced his racing regime significantly this season, but after his European excursion has prepared himself for this colossal 230 km undertaking in the dry heat of Chiang Rai. Suryani returned from injury over summer to score a third place on the Ijen 100k a month ago.

Aleksis Capili will face another strong Filipino runner, Jag Lanante, who is no stranger to these distances. Among the known other starters we find Canada’s in-form Michael McLean, who scored great results at Borneo TMBT and Bandung Ultra 100 recently, as well as Robert Butcher from Great Britain, who was 2nd on the 122 km race distance of UT Chiang Rai last year. Malaysia’s Lau Say Niong is here, as well as many runners we still need to get to know, among which six Japanese. At present, it is still unclear if ATM Champion Steven Ong will run this weekend or not. He is on the start list, but indicated in Bali two weeks ago it is time for his injuries to heal first. Rumours have it that Steven is nevertheless on his way to Thailand.

As the Ultimate 230 km is of course an odd-one out, the 122 km race of this event has also been labelled an A-race for the Asia Trail Master Championship. Concretely, this means both the 230 km and 122 km score 500 points. The 230 km victor gets 50 bonus points, however, as 230 is more than 100 miles (the so-called 100 miles bonus for all finishers).

Therefore, the 122 km also has a competitive field even when current ATM Championship leader Alessandro Sherpa has pulled out. The Italian also has to allow his body, particularly his ankle, to rest for a while before resuming the ATM championship chase at the V Trail in Laos in two weeks. Sherpa leads the championship, but several others are still well within striking range. The men’s championship is more open than ever, and even Spain’s Salva Rambla can still join the title debate. A newcomer on the scene since a month, Salva finished on the podium of each of his three Indonesian races. Now running the 122k in Chiang Rai, the Catalan is certainly a man to watch. His main rival for the win is likely to be Thai: Sanya Khancai returns to the ATM scene eight months after his fantastic dual and second place in UTKC. Khancai has had to cope with management issues in the past months, and is keen to put all that behind him in Chiang Rai. His main challenger in Thailand, and winner of UTCR last year, Jay Jantaraboon will be running a shorter distance this season.

Another remarkable name on the start list since his victory at Ijen 100 is South Korea’s Sungsik Joh. For many it was an upset victory, but look at the course characteristics and his previous good result in Sungai Menyala, and one realised that Sungsik Joh had been flying under the radar for many months. In Chiang Rai, he also finds a course that should be to his advantage. Based on Ijen, the sympathetic South Korean could run to the podium this weekend as well.

It will be interesting to see if there’s any Thai runners making the jump to the top of the leaderboard this weekend, besides Sanya Khancai.

We will be reporting live from Chiang Rai throughout the weekend.

The race preview of the second Thai race this weekend, Ultra Train Nan, follows tomorrow.

Ultra-Trail Chiang Rai will be the longest points race in the 2018 Asia Trail Master Championship. While keeping last year's inaugural 122 km race course, the people at teelakow in Thailand are adding 'The Ultimate 200' to the programme. And actually the course is 220 km.... For lovers of long ultras, this will be a feast! Both the 220 km and the 122 km are marked as A-races, meaning the winner scores 400 performance points on top of the 100 for finishing. The 220k finishers will receive the additional 50-point '100 miles' bonus. Also the top 10 of the 66K C-race will receive ATM championship points according to our points system.

Venue of the event will again be the great Singha Park in Chiang Rai, which is relatively close to the airport as well. Chiang Rai is a tourist area, so your companions can visit the sights while you are doing the running. The 220k starts on the 19th of October at 6 am, the 122 km starts 24 hours later. 

Registration is open!

Ultra Trail Chiang Rai

Jay Jantaraboon was the fastest in Chiang Rai

The Thailand blockbuster weekend had a couple of unexpected twists as several of the protagonists failed to reach the finish line! Both in UT Chiang Rai and UT Nan 100, Thailand's own top runners delivered outstanding performances on the other hand. Jantaraboon Kiangchaipaiphana in UTCR 122 and Sanya Khancai in UTN 100 were a class of their own. In the battle for the Asia Trail Master Championship, nothing changed at the top as Steven Soonseng Ong and even Tahira Najmunisaa Muhammad Zaid   did not finish in Chiang Rai! 

Steven Ong was running comfortably in second place, albeit at a reasonable distance behind Jay Jantaraboon. But painful ankles and a couple of wrong turns in the second half seemingly demotivated the Malaysian ace and he called it quits after about 95 km. Ong therefore remains third in the ATM championship, behind Arief Wismoyono and Isaac Yuen Wan Ho. 

Tahira Najmunisaa started as the big favourite in the women's race, but she quickly discovered two things: first, that her body was still in fever and apparently unrecovered from Mesastila Peaks Challenge, and second, that Australia's Joanna Kruk was in superb shape for this race! Half a year ago on the more technical UTKC trail, Kruk finished second and clearly behind Tahira on the 100K. But in Chiang Rai, Kruk found a course that suits her characteristics as a fast runner more and she put Tahira under pressure from the start. Feeling too weak due to the persistent illness, the 2016 ATM Champion and current championship leader decided at the first water station there was no point in racing. Kruk nevertheless continued her stride and even stayed close to Ong, which is remarkable. Joanna Kruk is now a second Australian woman to watch for in future ATM races! The other one, Kim Matthews, sees her potential chances of winning the ATM Championship grow a bit more with Tahira’s DNF, just like Indonesia’s Ruth Theresia. All three remain very close together in the ranking. 

The men’s podium in Chiang Rai was completed by Thailand’s Pornmongkol Phuthong and Britain’s Robert Butcher. They had a nice competition with Yim Heng Fatt, Lausay Niong and Wasin Monghkolmalee. The women’s podium was quite controversial, unfortunately, as seemingly inadequate trail marking in the last 10K section to the finish caused many runners to lose the way at nighttime. Adelinah Lintanga and Lily Suryani were about to finish second and third, but the Malaysian never even got to the finish at all after hours of running in circles. Suryani managed to get back on the right trail but only on Sunday morning and with the assistance of a Thai runner who knew the course. Montha Sunthornwit inherited second place, with Woraphan Kijsawasai third in the official race result. The fact that the same happened to even Joanna Kruk (she needed 6 hours to complete the last 10K for the same reasons) has urged us to consider giving out ATM points to the affected runners according to their ranking at the last CP, due to the impact on their rankings. 

Over in Nan, Sanya Khancai scored his second career ATM victory when co-favourite Pharait Varesin dropped out of the race at CP3. Khancai was never threatened and won comfortably in 14:35. First woman was also second overall in the race, Phichanan Mahachot in 17:32, who stayed just ahead of Atip - the second man. Jan Nilsen again saw his foot spoil his party. After deciding to downgrade to 50K instead of 100K, Nilsen felt it was enough halfway through the race - even though he was in the lead at that point. Nilsen gave it his all last year in the ATM Championship, and clearly seems to have overstretched himself a bit. We wish the Norwegian a speedy but especially full recovery, so we can see him back at his best in 2018! 

Joanna Kruk was an outstanding winner of the women's UTCR 122 race

This weekend all eyes are set on Thailand for the second time this season, as both Ultra Trail Chiang Rai and Ultra Trail Nan are points races in the 2017 Asia Trail Master Championship series.    Just ike UTKC in February, this Thai “blockbuster” looks set to leave a firm mark with Malaysians Steven Soonseng Ong and Tahira Najmunisaa Muhammad Zaid both in a position to reach out to the Asia Trail Master championship title. 

Two ATM points races in the same country and on the same weekend seems odd. COMPRESSPORT, one of our main sponsors, is supporting both events, however, and therefore so do we for this year. The field of participants in both Chiang Rai and Nan is quite strong with several ATM protagonists and aspiring Thai runners ready to compete on quite tough courses. 

Beginning with UT Chiang Rai, Steven Ong and Tahira Najmunisaa lead the pack on paper for the 122 km race that has a total elevation gain of over 5000 hm. It looks like the ideal race for 40-year-old Ong, who this year has taken plenty of trail runners to school. Two weeks ago at Mesastila Peaks Challenge he lost the lead in the ATM points championship to Arief Wismoyono, but a fine result in his fifth race of the year will put him back on top. Wrapping up the championship at Chiang Rai is mathematically impossible, though. Still, Ong would put all the other title contenders on the defensive with just 6 races to go. Tahira Najmunisaa is in exactly the same situation. After her repeat victory at Mesastila, she finally reclaimed the top spot in the female championship, and another win in Thailand this weekend can boost her total by another 50 points. It’s her sixth points race - only the best five results count - and 500 points for winning Chiang Rai is better than the 450 she scored by winning the 50K in Brunei’s Beach Bunch Trail Challenge last February. Besides, Tahira can stay undefeated on the ATM tour in already 11 races… 

Both start as clear favourites for the win, yet in Ultra Trail anything can happen, especially as the weather in Chiang Rai is forecast to be hot and humid. Other strong runners ranked high in the ATM championship are Yohanis Hiareij and Yim Heng Fatt, while we look forward to getting to know many local Thai runners! In the women’s, there is a chance of an all-Malaysian and all-Malatra podium as the Lintanga sisters Adelinah and Jassica are joining Tahira to Chiang Rai. Joanna Kruk, Tan Hongpin, Lily Suryani, Cheryl Bihag and local Montha Sunthornwit are podium challengers on a good day as well. 

UT Nan takes place in the Northeast of Thailand and is the home area of one of Asia Trail Master’s most celebrated runners. Grandmaster Jan Nilsen hails from Norway but has been living in this part of Thailand for a while and is of course taking part in the 100K this weekend. Nilsen is still struggling with his foot injury and is no guaranteed winner, though. Thailand’s own runners Phairat Varesin and Sanya Khanchai are just two who know how to win ultra trail races as well. In the women’s race here, Phitchanan Mahachot is another local runner to watch out for as she makes her debut in the Asia Trail Master series. 

We will be reporting live from both events this weekend. Stay tuned to our facebook, twitter and instagram channels as usual. 

Pharait Varesin is among the top favourites in UT Nan this weekend

Grandmaster Jan Nilsen will be running in home region in UT Nan

Steven Ong ready to reclaim the number 1 spot in the ATM Championship

Adelinah Lintanga is a podium candidate in Chiang Rai, and can re-enter the top 5 in the women's ATM Championship