Divina: 2nd place in UT Mapawa. 

ATM Champion Manolito Divina had better fortunes at the Ultra Trail Mapawa in Cagayan de Oro, Philippines, compared to last year, but he still had to accept one runner was faster than him. John Ray Onifa from Visaya is a new face in the Asia Trail Master circuit and one we will be following closely in the future! Onifa took the bull by the horns at the Mapawa Nature Reserve and led the race very quickly, even building up an advantage of half an hour over Divina, who ran alongside Dane Kristian Joergensen. Tolitz did what he could to bridge the gap to Onifa in the final 10K, but crossed the line 16 minutes adrift. Second place means 450 points, while for sure he was hoping to get the full pot of 500. Divina is still a strong candidate to keep his Asia Trail Master title, but nothing else than victory at Clark-Miyamit Falls Ultra - a race he won the past three years - may be essential. Divina is now 5th with 1950 points, 450 and 1 race less than championship leader Arief Wismoyono. 

Wilnar Iglesia tried to keep up with the pair, but eventually had to settle for fourth place in his third ATM points race of the season. Aldean Lim from our sponsor AHON gaiters & socks had an excellent run to finish in fifth place, even one place ahead of last year's winner Jonathan Pido. 

Introducing John Ray Onifa: winner of UT Mapawa ahead of Divina and Joergensen!

In the women's 50k race, Sandi Menchi delivered another commanding run and won her third ATM points race of the season. With 1550 total points in the bag and five races to go, Menchi is still a candidate to join Tahira Najmunisaa, Ruth Theresia and Kim Matthews in the battle for the women's championship. Will she run CM50 or will she not? That is the question. Joining her on the podium at Mapawa were Maria Luisa Prado and Agustorain Sabanal. 

Sandi Menchi remains unbeatable in Philippines. WIth 3 race victories in 2018 she still is in the mix for the ATM Championship with 5 races to go

Ultra Trail Mapawa is on this weekend with nearly all the Filipino stars present in Cagayan de Oro. That includes Asia Trail Master champion Manolito Divina, for whom it will be an important race to safeguard his chances to defend his title later this year. Mapawa Nature Park features a rollercoaster of a course that is 50k in length and has quite some technical bits. It is one of two ATM races on the southern Philippines’ island of Mindanao, the other one being the Mt Apo Sky Race in April. 

For ‘Tolitz’, winning this race is not a given. First of all, he only arrived fourth in this race last year, even though he did suffer an ankle injury on the way. Secondly, last year’s winner - local runner Jonathan Pido - is back along with other strong competitors like Kristian Joergensen and Wilnar Iglesia. Especially Iglesia is doing well in the ATM championship himself and will be keen to grab as many points as possible this weekend to boost himself into the top 10. For all top Filipino runners there is still their own SuperTrail coming up next month, Clark-Miyamit Falls Ultra, which means it can be expected several of them will still be making strides forward in the ranking. Other outsiders for podium placings are Thumbie Remigio and Dean Lim, the latter from the AHON squad. 

In the women’s race, the big favourite is of course Sandi Menchi, who will be doing her third ATM points race of the season after winning Cordillera Mountain Ultra and Sungai Menyala Forest Trail. Interestingly, including this weekend’s UT Mapawa, Menchi seems to have a preference for 50K races. Generally acknowledged as one of Asia’s most talented trail runners, Menchi is not out of the championship battle yet, but she will need both CM50 and Izu Trail Journey SuperTrail races to still catch up with the current female top 3 in the ATM Championship. Candidates for the podium of the 50K race in Cagayan de Oro are Patricia Ann Morota, Trisha Reyes and Maria Luisa Prado. 

We will be reporting on our social media channels as usual as soon as information flows in. Connectivity in the area can be modest.

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

Next year on 14/15 April we have the return of a meanwhile classic Chinese trail race in Asia Trail Master: Ultimate Tsaigu, previously known as Tsaigu Tangsi Plus. The event features a tough 100K and 65K courses through tea plantations, bamboo forests and rugged mountains. While there are also shorter distances available, the two main races require adequate preparation. The event location is Linhai, a nice tourist place not too far and easily accessible from major cities Hangzhou, Ningbo and even Shanghai. 

There is plenty of English language assistance for this event, which is very international-minded and welcoming to non-Chinese participants. For more details you can go to the summary cover page below. Registration goes via Iranshao:

http://iranshao.com/register/reg_races/TsaiGuTrail2018?locale=en

XX/XX - Ultimate Tsaigu (CHN)

Our sponsor COMPRESSPORT is helping you everywhere you run. So, of course also for the big Asia Trail Master finale in Japan on 10 December: the IZU TRAIL Journey.  Via Qoolmart.com all runners can benefit from serious discounts on a range of COMPRESSPORT items as shown below. 

That is not all, Qoolmart is chipping in itself and provides discounts on all kinds of trail running accessories useful for IZU TRAIL, including energy nutrition and drinks.

Please note that Qoolmart offers Free International Delivery and No Minimum Purchase Required. 

Go to http://qoolmart.com/izu-trail.html

The 2018 edition of the Coast To Coast Night Trail Ultra in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, has been cancelled. The organisers have announced this unfortunate news last weekend. The event was scheduled for 10/11 February as the first genuine ultra race of the 2018 ATM season. 

We will announce in due course if another race can fill the now available spot on our ATM race calendar. 

The prime trail race in South Korea is again open for registration. In 2018, Korea 50K takes place on the usual weekend in April with the race day on Sunday, 22 April. The venue and race course has remained largely the same, although the official distance is currently reduced by 1k to 58K. This is a hilly race in the forests around DDC, a suburb of capital capity Seoul, to which it is connected by subway. 

The registration is open and it is suggested not to wait too long, as in its third year of Asia Trail Master, it has become one of the more popular races on the tour given its convenient location. 

Registration Link:

http://en.korea50k.com/03/

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

Definitely one of the most underestimated races on our Asia Trail Master calendar is Penang Eco 100. Runners look at the profile and elevation gain of the 100 miles and 100K and expect one of their easier ultras of the season. To their surprise, finishing Penang Eco 100, however, is a real challenge. Course-wise, the venom is in the tail and the unrelenting heat and humidity will teach you a thing or two about proper hydration during races. Penang Eco 100 is a well-deserved Malaysia SuperTrail race also in 2018.

The event stays on the same weekend in the middle of May, which means 13/14 May 2018. The two core distances for ATM points remain, 100 miles and 100K, and less ambitious runners can also opt for 50K or 35K. Please note that at this event, there are NO ATM championship points for the two just mentioned shortest distances.

Bukit Mertajam is still the host town, which provides comfortable accommodation nearby, but you can also just stay in Georgetown and Penang, and take advantage of shuttle bus options. 

For detail, please check our cover page or the official event website, where you can also sign up already.  

http://endurancenature.com.my/index.php/penangeco1002018/

XX/10 - Penang Eco (MAS)

Eastern Russia, and in particular the Vladivostok-Primorye region, is gradually becoming a hub for outdoor sports in this part of the year. Autumn turns the landscape in this part of the world to its most beautiful, with many different colours everywhere. For the second time, Asia Trail Master is happy to promote a modest but great trail race here in its championship series. The Mount Falaza Ultra Trail is a 50K run through forests and a rocky mountain, Falaza, with an elevation that will get the respect of the more technical trail runners in the field of participants. This weekend's main race, which starts and finishes at the Gribanovka Ski Resort, measures 60 km and an elevation gain of 1830 hm. Shorter distances are also available for the less ambitious. 

Race director Alexey Chacklov is himself an excellent multisport athlete, who is known for his exploits in adventure racing in China, as well as on the MTB. Mount Falaza Ultra Trail is one of his event babies, and him and his team are looking forward to welcoming ever more international runners to his event. This year's race favourites are expected to be locals with Vladimir Popov arguably as the man to beat. Nadezhda Hosanenko is another one to watch out for. 

The Indonesia SuperTrail, Mesastila Peaks Challenge, as expected shook up the ranking for the Asia Trail Master Championship. Both male and female standings saw a new leader at the end of the tough volcano race. They are familiar faces as well: Arief Wismoyono was the 2015 Asia Trail Master Champion, and Tahira Najmunisaa is of course the defending 2016 women's champion. Both athletes are not done yet for the season, and certainly look strong contenders for this year's title. 

The full ranking can be consulted via Race Timing Solutions in Hong Kong: http://m.racetimingsolutions.com/rankings/2017

MALE ATM RANKING
As of 10 October (provisional)

1.  Arief Wismoyono (INA) 2400 (5) 
2.  Isaac Wan Ho Yuen   (HKG)  2210 (5). 
3.  Soonseng Ong (MAS)  2125(4) 
4.  Yim Heng Fatt (MAS) 2040 (5+)
5.   Pablo  Diago Gonzalez (ESP) 1935 (5)   
6    Cao Ngoc Ha (VIE)   1900    (4)
7    Hendra    Siswanto (INA)    1870    (5)
8    Manolito Lupig  Divina (INA) 1500   (3)
9    Gaspard    Dessy  (BEL)   1300    (3)
10   Aleksis    Capili  (THA)  1205  (3)
11    Yohanis    Hiariej  (INA)  1180    
12   Norman    Koh (SIN)   1090    
13  Aris Sopiandi    Muklis  (INA)  1020    
14  Sefli    Ahar (BRU)   1000    
15  Tran    Duy Quang  (VIE)  950  
16    Jun    Kaise  (JPN)  925    
17    Affindi Bin Nudin (MAS)   915    
18    Wilnar    Iglesia   (PHI) 890    
19    Arnold    Lozano  (PHI)  875    
19     Rexel    Aguirre  (PHI)  875    
21     Kris    Van De Velde (BEL)   867    
22     Ari    Masrudi (INA)   820    
22     Duc Quang    Nguyen  (VIE)  820    
24     Joseph    Sibal   (PHI) 797    
25     Jan    Nilsen (NOR)   795

ATM Women:
 
1       Tahira    Najmunisaa Muhammad Zaid  (MAS)  2600    
2       Kim    Matthews   (AUS)  2585    
3       Ruth    Theresia  (INA)  2575    
4       Shindy    Patricia  (INA)  2250  
5.      Lily Suryani (INA) 2225  
6       Cheryl    Bihag  (PHI)  1820    
7       Adelinah    Lintanga (MAS)    1800    
8       Mila    Marlina   (INA) 1500    
9       Siawhua    Lim (MAS)   1325    
10       Le Phuong    Vy   (VIE) 1145    
11       Ina    Budiyarni  (INA)  1125    
12       Kwan Yee Jocelyn    Cheung  (HKG)  1030    
13       Sandi Menchi    Catlona Abahan    1000    
13       Yelena    Mitrofanova  (RUS) 50K1000    
15       Christine    Loh Woon Chze   (MAS) 995    
16       Jassica    Lintangga  (MAS)  900    
17       Thi Duong    Nguyen (PHI)   925    
18       Manilyn Napone    Mamugay   (PHI) 900  
19       Bo Young    Jan  (KOR)  100    
20       Eni    Rosita (INA)    790    
20       Patricia Ann    Morota  (PHI)     
22       Irah    Hernandez (PHI)   770    
23       Thi Tieu Phuong    Nguyen (VIE)  740    
24       Islami Fitri    Zahra (INA)   730    
25       Moana    O'Sullivan (NZL)    725

David Giannelli doing a Bolt - a fantastic winner of this year's Mesastila 5 Peaks

Italy's David Gianelli was the surprise winner of last weekend's Mesastila 5 Peaks Challenge in the beautiful Mesastila Resort & Spa in Central Java, Indonesia. Giannelli, who hails from northwestern Lombardy but recently moved to Australia, was part of a leading trio consisting also of Jason Robinson and local hero Arief Wismoyono, which decided the pace of the race from the get-go. Other favourites such as Fandhi Achmad, Wilnar Iglesia and Isaac Yuen Wan Ho missed the early breakaway and never got into contention for the victory. Achmad struggled with his poles, and Yuen Wan Ho with a knee injury sustained halfway in a fall. On th way up to Merbabu Giannelli managed to go solo with Wismoyono and Robinson still close behind him. After a short dip in pace during the Merapi descent, Gianelli steadily increased his advantage again on the second Merbabu climb and the remaining Telemoyo ascent to win in 18:12! Indonesia's own Arief Wismoyono arrived a superb second in 20:05. The 2015 ATM Champion, who won this race two years ago, managed to drop Jason Robinson in a descent. He is back at his best level and regains the top spot in the ATM Championship ranking with 2400 points in five races. Robinson struggled with stomach cramps in the final stages to complete the course in 21:33:43. In fourth was Fandhi Achmad in 22:31:49. Muhammad Fauzi had a strong second half and came home fifth (23:09:22). The same applies for Aris Sopiandi Muklis, who was number six in 23:53:34, overtaking Philippines ' Wilnar Iglesia in the last section (24: 54:09). Malaysia 's Yim Heng Fatt edged out Isaac Yuen Wan Ho for 9th place. The Hong Kong runner got an injured knee that prevented him from running in the last 30k. Isaac moves up to third place in the ATM Championship, still behind Steven Ong, but ahead of Yim Heng Fatt.  

Arief Wismoyono took the bull by the horns and with success: 2nd and new leader in the ATM Championship!

As last season, Malaysia's Tahira Najmunisaa won the women's race in 25:01:15. She dominated from start to finish, but got sick and suffered from fever in the final hours. Tahira is back on top of the ATM Championship ranking and remains undefeated in 10 ATM points races! Ruth Theresia and Shindy Patricia completed the podium, but well behind the Malaysian. Theresia deserves great credit as she actually tried to keep up with her ATM championship rival, but had to let go and as she was 'rebooting' , Shindy Patricia caught up and the Compressport duo stayed together for the rest of the race. Jocelyn Cheung from Hong Kong is a fantastic fourth place today. Lily Suryani came in fifth. One place behind Suryani, who finished her seventh race of the season! - was the astonishing Eni Rosita. One year after being victim of a crazy acid attack, Eni returned to Mesastila to finish the race she could not finish last year.  Respect. 

Tahira: still undefeated in the ATM series and again on top of the ranking!

Shindy and Ruth came home together for second, but well behind Tahira

On the 65k, Pablo Diago Gonzales eventually had the better of young Malaysia talent Mohammad Affindi in 11:16. After a tight battle between the two runners, the Spaniard went solo on the last climb of the race and still scored a gap of 31 minutes. It is Pablo's third ATM race victory of the season and he does a great job for the ATM Championship ranking! Indonesia 's Yurika Chen - also in just his third trail race ever - completes the men's podium in third place. Vincent Chalias is a great fourth place today. Dzaki Wardana did not make it to the finish, missing out in a lot of ATM Championship points. 

Kim Matthews was the fastest 65k woman in just over 14 hours. Two weeks after winning the Vietnam Mountain Marathon, Matthews is the closest competitor to new championship leader Tahira Najmunisaa! It's very close between the top 3 women now: 1. Tahira 2600 (5), 2. Kim Matthews 2585 (5), 3. Ruth 2575 (5)

Pablo Diago Gonzales watches the finish of Malaysia's Mohamad Affindi after both competed hard for the victory on the 65K 4 Peaks race. 

A new face in the Indonesian ultra trail scene: Yurika Chen