2021 intended event calendar
Planning anything has become a game with an uncertain outcome in most sectors of public life during the covid 19 pandemic, and even more so when it concerns mass participation events and international country border crossings . Later than usual, but very happy to be able to do so, Asia Trail Master is now releasing the ‘intended’ 2021 event calendar for the merged 2020/2021 Asia Trail Master Championship and Grandmaster Quest. We felt that ‘intended’ describes the current calendar better than ‘provisional’, as it signals our dedication to make the below a reality, and give all runners a reliable guideline for what they can expect in the coming year. Nevertheless, more than ever this is a temperamental animal and we hope runners will understand and remain cautious when doing any planning.
Even though there are several positive sounds coming out in the media these weeks about the approval and availability of vaccinations soon, we must be realistic and accept that nothing much will change yet in the first quarter of 2021, and possibly even longer. We have therefore decided to focus very much on the second semester in the belief - or should it be ‘hope’ - that international trail running events will again become possible by then. Certainly, not every country will open its borders at the same time and we will remain flexible to make adjustments, if needed, and in agreement with the local event organisers.
In the mean time, following Thailand, Vietnam and Japan, Indonesia is one of the Asian countries that looks set to allow events to take place for domestic runners-only. Tahura Trail in Bandung, West Java, and the returning Coast to Coast Night Trail Ultra in Yogyakarta, Central Java, are scheduled for 23 January and 27 March, respectively. As we have approved in the other countries just mentioned, participants will be scoring points for the Asia Trail Master Championship but only their best of the two results will be retained if they run both events.
Tahura Trail will therefore once again be the official first race of the new season. More details will be coming out later this week.
The below event calendar is by no means complete. Some events originally scheduled for early in the year are postponed to an as yet undecided later date. These events, such as Cau Dat Farm Ultra in Vietnam and EcoTrail Al Ula in Saudi Arabia, have been left out of the calendar for the time being. Also UTKC in Thailand, one of the more popular early season events since several years, will be skipped in 2021 and substituted by a new Thai entry in our series in November: Doi Nhok Trail. Other new entries so far are High Trail 9 Peaks Ulju in South Korea and Mu Cang Chai Trail in Northwest Vietnam. The 9 Dragons in Hong Kong already announced the cancellation of the 2021 event a few weeks ago.
The Malaysia Mountain Trail Festival (MMTF) in Taiping will close the season on 18 December.
As we approach 2021 and draw a line under this difficult year, Asia Trail Master will keep providing updates to the calendar, as weil as launch a series of innovations to enter the new year full of optimism and energy. In this context, we also recommend everyone to get your friends together and team up for the 7 Missions virtual team challenge from 11 to 17 January!
Intended 2021 event calendar
more events will still be added
Championship chasers should check carefully which race(s) of an event offer points
Grandmaster Quest challengers always score a point when a race is 70km or longer
all is subject to pandemic development
2020/21 ATM Championship:
23/01/21 - Indonesia - Bandung - Tahura Trail - 42 km
27/03/21 - Indonesia - Yogyakarta - Coast To Coast Night Trail Ultra - 70 km (to be confirmed in due course)
24/04/21 - South Korea - Dongducheon - Korea 50K - 58 km (event date to be confirmed)
06/06/21 - Philippines - Negros Oriental - Puncak Tanawan Ultra 70 km (event will be confirmed before 1 April)
20/06/21 - Japan - Niigata - Echigo Country Trail - 60 km
26/06/21 - Thailand - Koh Samui - Monkeys Trail - 160 km & 1 medium distance to be confirmed (both A status)
10/07/21 - Indonesia - Malang - Mantra Summits Challenge - 116 km & 75 km (both A status)
17/07/21 - Philippines - Mindanao - MUSPO Ultra - 100 km
24/07/21 - Malaysia - Cameron Highlands - Cameron Ultra - 100 km
07/08/21 - Thailand - Chiang Mai - Ultra Trail Chiang Mai - 160 km & 65 km (both A status)
28/08/21 - Vietnam - Sapa - Vietnam Mountain Marathon - 160 km & 100 km (both A status), 70 km (B status)
11/09/21 - Malaysia - Sabah - Borneo TMBT Ultra - 100 km & 50 km (both A status)
18/09/21 - Vietnam - Yen Bai - Mu Cang Chai Trail - 50 km
25/09/21 - Malaysia - Kemensah - The Great Malaya Trail - 50 km
02/10/21 - Indonesia - Bondowoso - Ijen Race to the Blue Flre - 105 km (A status) & 75 km (B status)
09/10/21 - Malaysia - Penang - Ultimate Trails of Penang - 100 km
16/10/21 - Japan - Nagano - Hakuba Trails - 52 km (event to be confirmed)
16/10/21 - South Korea - Yeongnam Alp - High Trail 9 Peaks Ulju - 105 km (event date to be confirmed)
16/10/21 - Vietnam - Pu Luong - Vietnam Jungle Marathon - 70 km
23/10/21 - Thailand - Chiang Rai - Ultra Trail Chiang Rai - 250 km & 100 km (both A status)
30/10/21 - Hong Kong - Lantau Island - Lantau 70 - 70 km
06/11/21 - Thailand - Doi Nhok Trail - 110 km & 58 km (both A status)
20/11/21 - Laos - Vang Vien - V Trail - 85 km (event to be confirmed)
28/11/21 - Philippines - Luzon - Cordillera Mountain Ultra - 47 km
04/12/21 - Philippines - MIndanao - The Punisher - 80 km
12/12/21 - Japan - Izu Peninsula - Izu Trail Journey - 70 km (event date to be confirmed)
18/12/21 - Malaysia - Taiping - MMTF - 80 km (ATM Final, precise race distance to be confirmed)
ATM Candidate Races:
13/03/21 - Malaysia - Langkawi - The 9 Dragons
11/04/21 - Malaysia - Sarawak - Jagoi Heritage Run
Dates to be confirmed for: Alicia Ultra (PHI), Bali Ultra Trail (INA), Bali Volcano Race (INA), Malnad Ultra (IND) and more
The bridge to a better 2021?