While John Ellis is running The Punisher in his bid to become the 2019 Asia Trail Master Champion, why don’t we listen to the excellent Endurance Asia podcast with last year’s champion Alessandro Sherpa? Scott talks to Alessandro who shows himself as very open-hearted in this fascinating interview. As his year as champion is coming to an end, we can be certain that Alessandro will not bow out without a strong performance in TNF Malaysia Mountain Trail Festival on 14 December, the ATM Final that he still has on his agenda for 2019. Should Ellis fail to clinch it tonight in Philippines, we can rest assured that Sherpa will play a role in the conclusive battle in Malaysia in a fortnight.

In any case, we are looking forward to seeing a fully fit Sherpa back in action on the ATM circuit in 2020!

The 5th edition of The Punisher, a pretty nice trail race on Babak Samal Island off the coast of Davao CIty on Mindanao in the southern Philippines, could see the crowning of the new men’s Asia Trail Master Champion. John Ellis decided not to sit around and wait till the big ATM FInal in Malaysia in a fortnight and try to wrap things up already tomorrow. To achieve that he must do one thing he actually is pretty good at: winning the race! It would boost his total ATM points tally to 2725 (see our news piece earlier today), which would be out of reach for his two remaining title rivals Hisashi Kitamura and Milton Amat.

However, Kitamura wouldn’t be the ‘Karate Kit’ if he were going to let that happen without a fight. The Kuala Lumpur-based Japanese changed his plans for the weekend and re-directed his flight from Osaka to Davao with the purpose of giving Ellis once again a good solid run for his money. Those two have been going head-to-head for most of the season, mostly with Ellis gaining the upper hand at the end, but their epic battle in Ultra Trail Chiang Rai is likely to be remembered as the ‘race of the season’. Kitamura made the Hong Kong-based Australian suffer like hardly ever seen before. Tomorrow on the 80km course on Babak Samal, it’s the rematch! It matters for Kitamura, because he cannot afford Ellis to add more points to his total at all or his own championship chances are virtually over. The race course is generally quite runable - which suits Kitamura - but has its share of technical sections as well to pay attention to.

The Uglow ace may get some help, however, as one local runner is keen to make a name for himself on home soil this weekend: Arnie Macaneras. He was the man who bravely followed John Ray Onifa at CMU for a good while before breaking down. Macaneras learnt from his over-enthusiasm in the Cordillera and came back on Mt Talinis to push Kristian Joergensen to the limit. It is fair to say that Macaneras has the potential to be a spoiler for Ellis’ ambition to conclude the ATM Championship. The young Filipino has nothing to lose and wants two big scalps on his trail record. It will be interesting to see how the two ATM title contenders are going to deal with him.

Other podium contenders in the men’s race this weekend if the dice rolls right for them are Michael McLean, last year’s race winner Rexell Aguirre and who knows Grandmasters Richard Akol and John Eruel Oquino, the latter not for nothing the number 8 in the ATM Championship ranking this year.

In the women’s Punisher 80k. race we will be looking out for Hong Kong’s Jcy Ho. The Oxsitis ambassador will aim for her second ATM race win of the season after scoring the 70k at Vietnam Mountain Marathon last September. Jcy Ho is 9th in the Championship standings and not a title contender, but as she will also run TNF MMTF in two weeks could still earn herself a final spot in the top five by the end of the season.

Jcy will be competing for the win and the podium against Rhea Batac, recently podium in the V Trail Laos, former Punisher race winner Manilyn Mamugay Grandmaster Cheryl Bihag and Karen Widmer from Switzerland.

Just a month ago at UTCR, Ellis and Kitamura ran each other to pieces. Will they do so again now with the ATM Championship title very much at stake on Babak Samal Island this Saturday?

John Ellis, also known as a co-founder of the popular T8 brand

He enjoys the competition with his “idol” Ellis a lot, but he certainly prefers to beat him too: Kitamura!

Popular local runner Manilyn Mamugay is a former winner of The Punisher.

After her impressive series of performances in September, Team Oxsitis’ Jcy Ho is a victory candidate this weekend as well in her bid to climb into the ATM Championship top five by year’s end

John Ellis and Asuka Nakajima enter the final fortnight of the 2019 Asia Trail Master Championship as points leaders and therefore the runners to beat. On Saturday The Punisher 80k race In the Philippines marks the start of the ultimate points rush that culminates in the TNF Malaysia Mountain Trail Festival in Taiping, Perak, on 14 December. It is wonderfully exciting that both the men’s and women’s championship have not yet been decided until now. Nothing and nobody is certain yet. More, the women’s title campaign is bound to continue all the way to the last race in Taiping with no fewer than five amazing contenders for the throne. The men’s campaign, however, could conclude prematurely as Hong Kong-based Australian John Ellis has decided to take the bull by the horns and punish his rivals at … The Punisher!

So what are the potential scenarios to unfold in the next two weeks? Here’s the lowdown on the 2019 ATM Championship:

The Men: John Ellis can wrap it up this weekend thanks to SuperTrail wins

Today’s ranking:

1. John Ellis (AUS/HKG) - 2650 points (5+ races)

2. Hisashi Kitamura (JPN/MAS) - 2575 points (5+ races)

3. Milton Amat (MAS) - 2525 points (5+ races)

4. Tomohiro Mizukoshi (JPN) - 2290 points (5+ races)

5. Koi Grey (PHI) - 2264 points (5 races)

6. Sukrit Kaewyoun (THA) - 2200 points (5+ races)

Every single contender has reached the plateau of 5 races, so according to the rules of the ATM Championship - the Five Best Count system - it is or has been all about eliminating a runner’s ‘worst’ points performance during the season in order to still add more to his total points tally. (All six runners meet the other key conditions: at least one race abroad, and at least one SuperTrail). It is therefore significant now to look at each runner’s remaining ‘improvement potential’ in the four remaining races on the ATM calendar. As a reminder, the top 3 in the last races get:

• The Punisher: 500 points - 450 - 425.

• Ultra Trail Panoramic 100 miles: 550 points - 500 - 475

• Izu Trail Journey: 550 points - 500 - 475

• TNF MMTF: 550 points - 500 - 475

And so we arrive at the following:

Only John Ellis, Hisashi Kitamura and Milton Amat remain in the game. Tomohiro Mizukoshi is too far behind on points already to still surpass Ellis’ current total of 2650. Mizukoshi, who will run Izu Trail and MMTF, has an improvement potential of +300 in those two races, which puts him at 2590 - theoretically enough to finish second in this year’s Championship. Last year Tomohiro ended the season in third place. Koi Grey only has MMTF on the agenda, in which he can up his total to 2400 max (+136). For the colourful Flipino, it will be key to stay ahead of Sukrit Kaewyoun at MMTF, as the Thailander - who also runs UT Panoramic - still has an improvement potential of +250 to put him in the best case at a total 2450. So what about the Big Three:

• John Ellis: will run Punisher and MMTF for sure, and leaves UT Panoramic optional. If he runs all, his improvement potential amazingly still is +150 as he can still eliminate his 3rd place in Sungai Menyala Forest Trail (425 points) and 3rd in the 9 Dragons (475 points). Maximum Total: 2800 points.

• Hisashi Kitamura: will run Punisher, Izu Trail Journey and MMTF. His improvement potential in those three races is ‘only’ +100, putting him on a max total of 2675 points. Clearly, for Kitamura it is key that Ellis does not score any more points, which is why the spectacular Uglow runner has decided to skip his planned Osaka Marathon and fly to Davao instead to go head-to-head with John Ellis once more to prevent his idol from scoring a decisive victory…

• Milton Amat: will run UT Panoramic and MMTF. Has the biggest improvement potential of the Three with +175, and that puts him at a theoretical maximum total tally of 2700 points.

Conclusion: if John Ellis collects the 500 for winning Saturday’s The Punisher and eliminates his 425 points from Sungai Menyala, he climbs +75 from 2650 to… 2725 total points, which is out of reach for both Amat and Kitamura.

Ellis had a brilliant game plan before the start of the year with a clear focus on performing in the SuperTrails and collecting all the bonus points along the way - even doing the 100 miles at Penang Eco. This is now proving to be Kitamura’s achilles heel, as he scored fewer points than Ellis in those particular top races. As for Milton Amat, we mentioned it in our race report of The Moon 100 back in June: his laudable fair-play gesture to help and assist his collapsed friend Wilsen Singgin and giving away a certain race victory while doing so is now costing him. The difference between winning and second place is 50 points, and had he scored the win in Moon 100, there would be no way for Ellis to become ATM champion already this weekend. Cruel, but alas. Nobody can blame Milton for what he chose to do: he most certainly deserves the “Fair Play Prize” of the season!

And yet, it is not over until it is over. To finish first, Ellis first needs to finish :-).

Below is our lowdown on the women’s ATM Championship conclusion.

The Women: Wide open battle with Nakajima setting the benchmark

Today’s ranking:

1. Asuka Nakajima (JPN/INA) - 2475 points (5 races)

2. Fredelyn Alberto (PHI/HKG) - 2414 points (5+ races)

3. Siokhar Lim (MAS) - 2400 points (5+ races)

4. Cecile Wael (PHI) - 2240 points (5+ races)

5. Montha Sunthornwit (THA) - 2205 points (5 races)

6. Carrie-Jane Stander (CAN/CHN) - 2069 points (5+ races)

7. Christine Loh (MAS/SIN) - 2050 points (4 races)

8. Veronika Vadovicova (SVK) - 1980 points (4 races)

We highlight the top 8 because the two runners in 7th and 8th respectively are among the Female Five to watch out for especially in the context of the Asia Trail Master title battle. Ces Wael, Montha Suntornwit and Carrie Jane Stander may all still compete in the next two weeks, but they can no longer match the current benchmark of 2475 points set by Asuka Nakajima.

Asuka Nakajima, Fredelyn Alberto, Siokhar Lim, Christine Loh and Veronika Vadovicova are the five contenders for the 2019 ATM title.

Let’s take a closer look at those five runners’ improvement potential in the remaining four races of the season. In fact, we have more flexible scenarios than in the men’s and for sure it will remain an open battle until the final 85 km race in Malaysia on 14 December. Asuka Nakajima leads with 2475. Her 5th and ‘worst’ result is 425 points (also for 3rd place in Sungai Menyala - like John Ells), so in MMTF she can improve still by +125 to 2600 total points. Mind you, that is if she wins MMTF. Nakajima is recovering from injury sustained at Borneo TMBT and is hoping to be fully fit for MMTF as it will indeed be a hit-or-miss for the always smiling Japanese runner, who switched from road to trail and emerged on the scene back in January by winning Tahura Trail in Indonesia, the ATM season opener. In any case, it is unlikely Nakajima will go into MMTF as the Championship points leader…

Hong Kong-based Filipino Fredelyn Alberto is second in the current ranking with 2414 points. She will run UT Panoramic first and could already hop ahead of Nakajima right there in northern Thailand next week. Alberto’s 5th result ‘to eliminate’ is also 425. Winning the 100 miles would mean +125 and that would put her on 2529 before MMTF. If she finishes 2nd in Panoramic, she ends up with 2489 points, still more than Nakajima today. Scoring the race victory in MMTF would deliver another+100 to Alberto so she as maximum total potential of 2629 points.

Veronika Vadovicova is for many the top favourite, despite she ‘only’ has four results so far and her fourth was a B-race (Tsaigu 80). The Slovakian said goodbye to Shanghai in July and went back to live in her home country, but she is back to complete her ATM campaign with Izu Trail Journey and MMTF. She does need those 6 results, because the 380 for winning Tsaigu 80 won’t be sufficient. If Veronika were to win Izu Trail Journey she would collect 550 and enter the Championship Final with 2530 points in the bag. On a side note, that means if Veronika wins Izu and Fredelyn wins UTP 100 miles, the difference between them is 1 single point in favour of the European… If Vadovicova then proceeds by claiming the race win in Malaysia, she obviously earns the ATM title as well with a total of 2700 points. To remember here is therefore that winning only Izu Trail Journey won’t be sufficient.

Now about the two Malaysian matadors among the Five: for many it might be surprising that Siokhar Lim is a genuine candidate for the ATM title, but if you look at her track record of the 2019 season it should tell you enough. Not for nothing did she earn herself the nickname “Steel” when she finished and battled for the podium in both the gruelling Moon 100 and Penang Eco 100 miles within six days. For Siokhar Lim, it cannot be long and tough enough: her ‘worst’ performance was 7th in the 70km long Vietnam Jungle Marathon - by far the shortest race she competed in. Collecting bonus points in several races, Siokhar Lim has scored 2400 points so far and lies third in the current ranking. She is set to run both Panoramic 100 miles and MMTF, with a total improvement potential of +300 to finish with a maximum total of 2700 - same as Vadovicova. In all fairness, winning any one race will be a hard ask for Siokhar but if the others fail to deliver for whatever reason the Malaysian Grandmaster can certainly pick up the spoils. The women’s dark horse is known!

Finally and perhaps most importantly comes Christine Loh. The “Pocket Rocket” has had an amazing season illustrated by clever race planning and two great victories in Chiang Mai and in Chiang Rai. With only four results in the bag, she can still collect a full whack in UT Panoramic next week. That could boost her total from 2050 now to 2600 if she wins it. Even if she finishes the 100 miles race behind Alberto, she would still take the points lead with 2550! Christine Loh could then still boost it to 2725 if she grabs the win in MMTF.

In conclusion, the women’s championship is anything but decided and it may very well be Malaysian “Pocket Rocket” Christine Loh sitting in the hot seat as we reach the big final 85km race in her home country, TNF Malaysia Mountain Trail Festival in Taiping, Perak, on 14 December!

The Full ATM Championship Ranking can be consulted on the site of our partner Race Timing Solutions.

There’s three 2021 ATM Candidate Races in the Philippines in the first quarter of next season. Yesterday we highlighted the Philippine Mountain Marathon on Luzon, today we feature the Mount Kalatungan Trail Ultra on Mindanao. Scheduled for 1 March 2020, the event has a 80 km (50 miles) as main race.

Mt.Kalatungan is the 5th highest mountain (2880 Masl) in the Philippines which is located in the municipality of Pangantucan, Province of Bukidnon. Set up by a.o. ATM Grandmaster Rene Amigleo, this is another beautiful event in the region of northern Mindanao, which is becoming a hub for runners who like to train and race.

The race course of the Mt. Kalatungan Trail Ultra is a 98% trail, a combination of dirt roads, farm roads, single tracks( mostly going to the summit). Aside from the peak of mt. Kalatungan and Mt. Wiji, the route will take the runners to some of the tourists spots of Pangantucan like the Lake Napalit, Kidanggin Hot Spring, Bukal Blue Water(Kimereges) with the amazing views of the mountains, vallies, hills, grasslands, plantations and local villages along the way..The 80km is good for experienced trail runners only..

Please check all details via the event website

Distances/ Gunstarts/ Cut-offs

• 80km- March 1, 12:01 a.m- 25hrs

• 42km- March 1, 2:00 a.m- 16hrs

• 21km- March 1, 5:00 a.m- 8hrs

Registration period:

October 24, 2019 to January 20, 2020 at https://bit.ly/2MWIJGk

We are happy to have received a lot of new applications for our Asia Trail Master Championship series in the past couple of weeks, so apart from the regular championship points races, we will also announce plenty of Candidate Races in the coming time. The first 2021 ATM Candidate Race takes place on Luzon in Philippines and will in fact be the first race we will pay attention to in the new year. It takes place on 11 January 2020 - one week before Championship season opener Tahura Trail.

The Philippine Mountain Marathon is organised by Team Malaya in Kibungan and offers a 42km marathon distance roughly 60km or two hours north of Baguio, main town in the Cordillera mountain range. The race route has no overlap with the big Cordillera Mountain Ultra event in March. Other than the main 42km, there is also a 25km and 15km option.

Kibungan is known in the province of Benguet as the town with unique mountains resembling those of Switzerland. Deep ravines and cliffs separate and isolate many sitios and some barangays. Although some plateaus, hills and small valleys can be seen in the locality, Kibungan is dominantly mountainous. This is also illustrated by the elevation gain of the 42km race: well over 5000 hm! The Philippe Mountain Marathon is therefore clearly a race for mountain goats.

The nearest international airport is Clark. But Manila of course also works. First up is a bus or Grab car anyway to reach Baguio. From there you can connect to Kibungan.

Registration can be done online via the website of Kibungan Mountain Run and Team Malaya. More details can also be found via the event’s facebook page.

The first SuperTrail of the 2020 Asia Trail Master Championship series will again be the infamous 9 Dragons Ultra in Hong Kong’s New Territories. An event that has grown in reputation and popularity ever since it began and one that brings international and regional talent together over one full weekend of racing. The 9 Dragons’s flagship race is indeed still the 50/50 stage race: 50 miles on Saturday and 50k on Sunday. A race that caters for tough endurance specialists, as the last few years have shown. New - in the context of ATM - is that the 50k and not the 50miles single race will be the second SuperTrail race category for our championship. A measure we took following popular demand by runners to have more first-rate medium distance races in our championship to counter the perceived emphasis on ultra distances. The 9 Dragons Ultra event will therefore offer ATM championship points for both types of trail runners on 1/2 February 2020.

The event takes place in the New Territories of Hong Kong and is known for its vibrant atmosphere and excellent technical organisation.

To register for the 9 Dragons and read up on all details, visit the event website.

The two dominators in 2019: Kazufume Ose and Julien Chorier

Love em or hate em: the Hong Kong steps!

2018 ATM Champion Ruth Theresia had a tough time on the steps of HK, but has pledged to return in 2020!

It is of course already known for months, but also in 2020 the Asia Trail Master season will commence in Indonesia, and more precisely with the 8th edition of Tahura Trail in Bandung, West Java on 18 January. We cannot think of a better event to start a championship and are indeed delighted to have extended the agreement with Mr Agung Adijani, the driving force behind Tahura Trail. The event features a wide range of race distance categories, but it is of course the 42 km long trail marathon that matters for the ATM Championship, which in 2020 enters its sixth edition.

The race calendar for 2020 is beginning to shape up and features a number of meanwhile classic Asian trail races and a few exciting newcomers. To begin with the EcoTrail Al Ula in Saudi Arabia: a 80km awesome run in a new destination that has everything to become a tourism hotspot in future. The race course is our own design, in fact. Saudi Arabia is one of the new countries in the 2020 ATM season. The other big one is (most likely) India! On our website and our facebook page you can already see the list of 2020 races for the first four months. This list won’t change. In May we may very soon announce a second event to precede Vietnam Jungle Marathon, and also in June there will be changes to what we had in 2019. Stay tuned for updates. Malaysian runners should be aware that the SuperTrail this year will be Borneo TMBT Ultra, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2020.. The 100km is the key points race, but we are trying to elevate the 50k to the same status as well - given it is so competitive as well every year. Speaking of which, the 9 Dragons Ultra in Hong Kong now focuses on the 50/50 stage race and the 50k single race, too, so no longer the 50 miles. Throughout 2019 we have picked up vibes from elite and regular trail runners that there’s too much emphasis on ultra long distances. Hence, we will try to bring long and medium distance more in balance to the extent possible. Stay tuned via our usual channels.

Meanwhile, sign up for Tahura Trail and spend another fantastic weekend in the beautiful Bandung area, which also has an airport if you wish to avoid the car/bus journey from Jakarta.

Tahura Trail website and registration

2019 Video Recap: Mohamed Affindi scores a big win!

2019 Video recap: Asuka Nakajima takes inaugural win in women’s 42k!

At the start line, the men’s podium looked like it was written in the stars

Tahura Trail organiser Agung Adijani will once again open the Asia Trail Master Championship in 2020

Tahura Trail is truly the best season opener imaginable!

The TNF Malaysia Mountain Trail Festival in Taiping in Malaysia’s State of Perak is this year’s Asia Trail Master Championship Final on 14 December and the excitement is rising as the last weeks of running of 2019 approach. We are very happy to know already that almost every runner currently ranked in the top 10 of the men’s and women’s championship standings will be present in Taiping. MMTF has also pledged free entry and hotel for those top-ranked athletes. Anyone who still want to get inside the top 10 and enjoy the privilege should run The Punisher near Davao on 30 November. That’s the cut-off for MMTF privileges.

Below you can now see the final race course plan of the 85 km - the main race of the event. Last year the event was - unfortunately for some, fortunately for others - soaked in rain to the extent it can hardly rain more this time around. We expected a dryer race, but the biggest difference compared to 2018 will be that it will almost be a complete daytime race - at least for the protagonists. Start time is 6:00 am.

The second edition of the V Trail in Vang Vien, Laos, saw the sudden appearance of three main protagonists in the Asia Trail Master Championship. Both Milton Amat and Koi Grey in the men’s, and Montha Suntornwit in the women’s, saw a great opportunity to boost their championship ambitions and took part in this very technical 85 km long race. Sabah’s Uglow Running Project runner Milton Amat and Thailand’s Siangpure runner Montha Suntornwit maximised on it by winning, while Filipino Koi Grey suffered an unfortunate DNF after km 60 due to serious digestive issues. In terms of the ATM Championship, it means Milton scores an extra 50 points and keeps his title-winning chances open. Montha moves up to fifth place in the women’s with this win - her fifth result of the 2019 season. Koi Grey stays fifth and will be competing in Taiping on 14 December to keep that Top 5 spot.

Second place in the men’s race went to Thailand’s Teerawat Kanjanasuttiyakorn, who last month became 10th in the Ultimate 230 in Chiang Rai and earlier in the year scored 4th in Ultra Trail Luang Prabang. Local Lao runner Duangpeng completed the podium. In the women’s Rhea Batac from Philippines took second.

Koi Grey was running in second place when he had to retire with serious digestion problems

All smiles: Montha Suntornwit from Thailand scores a solid race victory in Laos

The 2nd edition of V Trail in Vang Vien, southern Laos, promises to be a hotly contested race for some of the final Asia Trail Master Championship points on offer this season. Top contenders Milton Amat from Sabah and Koi Grey from Philippines will be attempting to boost their total points tally even a bit more before the final day in Taiping, Malaysia on 14 December.

Milton Amat is currently third in the Championship ranking with quite some margin still to improve on points. The Malaysian starts as the favourite in V Trail, given his credentials in the most technical of trail races in South-East Asia. The 85 km should suit him as much as Koi Grey, another technical runner who this year has shown great consistency in his running. Grey is 5th in the Championship ranking and could leapfrog Tomohiro Mizukoshi once again as the gap is only 26 points. Amat and Grey will get competition from Michael McLean - never to be underestimated - and a list of Thai and local runners.

Connectivity-permitting, we will be updating regularly about the action in Laos on Saturday.

Milton Amat is the dangerman in the ATM Championship for Ellis and Kitamura

Koi Grey is a solid fifth in the ATM Championship and keen on doing even better than that