For the latest information about USA Track & Field’s MUT program including 2023 national championships, world championships and U.S. team selection criteria you can visit the USATF MUT webpage.
Location: Orlando, Florida
Name of Attendees and Absentees:
At both general sessions there were enough Executive Committee members present for a quorum.
Executive Committee Members Present: Nancy Hobbs (Chair), Meghan Canfield (Vice Chair), Megan Lacy (Secretary), Joe Jurczyk, Roy Pirrung, Addie Bracy, Lin Gentling, Jason Bryant
Executive Committee Members Absent: Hayley Pollack, Max King, David Fuentes, Eric Blake, Richard Bolt, Michael Wardian
Speaking Guests: Vin Lananna – USATF President, Ryan Cash USATF Coordinator, Long Distance Running Events, David Katz – RRTC, Willie Banks – World Athletics, Brad Birling – USATF Merchandise Warehouse Coordinator, Andy Carr – USATF LDR Record Keeper, Phil Greenwald – Records Committee, Michael Scott – LDR Division Chair
Additional Attendees:
Pamela Allie-Morrill (Adirondack), Larry Alserda (Utah), McLin Anderson (FL), Kelly Flathers (Southern CA), Sara Brist (MT), Michael Daney (NM), Yen Darcy (Southern CA), Jeffrey Goldstein (AZ), Camille Herron (AAC), Charlene L Hinton (VA), Kristen Hislop (Adirondack), Robin Jeffers (Mid Atlantic), Christo Landry (AAC), Sandra Lovelance (VA), Andy Martin (Exclamation Sports), Tom McTaggart (NY), Kristina Miner (CT), Joe Monks (FL MLD and MUT), Gary Morgan (Alumni), John Morris (Ozark), Grayson Murphy (AAC), Ron Nardo (LI), Edward Neighbour (NJ), Ashley Newton (KY), Jane Parks (RRTC), Scott Peters (FL), Jim Peterson (Inland NW), Mickey Piscitelli (Niagara), Christopher Rinaldi (NJ), Edwin Roberts (Mid-Atlantic), Pam Smith (AAC), Terry Sudria (Dakotas), Levi Thomet (AK), Andy Wacker (AAC), David Watkins (Inland NW), Ashlie Watts (VA)
Note: Since there were several guests at both sessions, the Draft Meeting Agenda was not conducted in order. Guests came and presented when available.
For a printable PDF version of these meeting minutes CLICK HERE.
FRIDAY – General Session #1
Date: General Session #1 12/02/2022 at 1:00 PM ET
General Session #1 was called to order by Chair Nancy Hobbs at 1:11 PM on December 2, 2022.
1. Welcome – Introduction and Attendance
a. All participants signed in via a sheet circulating in the room. Emails and names will be recorded so that we can send additional information out after the meeting.
2. Introduction: Brad Birling, USATF Merchandise Warehouse Coordinator
a. He is the one that makes sure everyone gets their kit for international teams.
b. Questions:
i. Lin asked how to request kits for an international competition.
1. Send list with team name and date, athlete and staff names, email address and phone numbers to Ryan Cash (our MUT USATF Liaison). All athletes will receive the statement of conditions and the order details for the uniform/kit.
ii. Nancy asked if there were any updates with respect to getting more MUT-specific items in the Team USA kit.
1. Brad said that there would be more pockets in the future. They are currently working with Nike on this. Nancy stated that it would be beneficial for athletes, especially those that competed in the recent USA kit, to provide feedback to her so that she can provide that feedback to USATF.
iii. Jim Peterson stated that it would be beneficial to provide feedback soon so that it could potentially be incorporated to the Paris 2024 kit.
3. MUT/ATRA Fundraising Initiatives:
a. USATF MUT is not fully funded by USATF. There is supplemental funding provided by ATRA, American Trail Running Association. In order to help bridge this funding gap, ATRA often has fundraisers to help raise money to support athletes. Right now, there is an active fundraiser with Rubicon Coffee. When you purchase their Long Distance Dark Roast, $5 goes back to ATRA earmarked for the mountain/trail teams.
4. Remarks from USATF President, Vin Lananna
a. Vin Lananna came to present the President’s Award to Lin Gentling, a USATF MUT Executive Committee Council member.
b. He stated that this organization has done a great job of growing, thinking outside of the box, and that he would love to continue to help it grow. He also congratulated the team in Thailand at the World Championship.
c. He stated that the best way to provide feedback or suggestions is to bring those to Nancy (Chair) and that she will communicate them to him. Jim Estes is our representative on the USATF board.
d. Questions:
i. Camille Herron asked if there was any progress towards an exhibition event at the 2028 Olympics in LA.
1. Lananna noted that this was originally part of the plan for the summer 2022 World Championship, but the infrastructure in Eugene was limited and made it difficult to do any additional events. Nancy also noted that there have been conversations about LA, but not much traction. World Athletics does have a focus on MUT and integrating it with other events since the discipline is growing.
ii. It was noted that it would be great to have more board members join our meetings and also attend a championship. The committee extends invitations to attend any championship or meeting.
iii. Grayson Murphy asked what it would take to get MUT athletes on the Tier system like track and road athletes.
1. Lananna suggested going through AAC to discuss this. Medals drive funding, so as the sport continues to grow, this should be possible at some point if it is something important to the athletes, they should work with the AAC.
2. Andy Wacker asked how we could present this to AAC and was told to discuss with Will Leer (Chair of AAC) outside of a meeting to determine next steps.
iv. Lin also noted that there is no prize money at the Ultrarunning World Championships. Nancy noted that there was $60,000 of prize money at the Mountain and Trail Running World Championship this year in Thailand.
5. Minutes
a. After review, Jim Peterson made a motion to approve the meeting minutes from the 2021 Hybrid Meeting. Roy Pirrung seconded this motion. All were in favor and no one abstained.
6. Certification of road/track courses for record purposes
a. 2022 USATF 100 mile Road Championship
i. David Katz, Chair of the USATF Technical Road Running Committee was present for this conversation.
i. There was a situation at the 2022 USATF 100 Mile Road Championship (Hosted by Jackpot Ultra – now under new race management in 2023). The course was changed after certification, remeasured and determined to be short. Therefore, the course was not record eligible.
ii. David Katz noted that in track, there are officials all over the course, but it is more challenging in long distance events that span several hours (potentially days for ultras) and cover a larger course area. Mistakes happen on the largest stages (there were cones incorrectly placed at the 2016 Olympics) and it is not possible to guarantee a mistake will not be made.
iii. The following changes are proposed to greatly reduce the chance of something like this happening again:
1. RRTC proposes that a World A level measurer be on site during the entirety of the event so that they can continue to verify that the course is being run as certified.
2. RRTC would like all courses to be pre-verified by an A level measurer. This is necessary for World Records, but is done for American Records as well, it would reduce risk further.
a. Andy Carr (USATF LDR Record Keeper) noted that the course was short at the USATF Masters Mile National Championship this year. Right now, in the rulebook, it was a suggestion to pre-verify the course, but in the future it will not be optional.
iv. The goal is to protect athletes and protect spectacular performances.
v. David Katz also went through the Record Process at a high level:
1. Step 1: A pending record (American Record, World Record, World Best) is set
2. Step 2: The RRTC and Records committee immediately go into action. There is immediate concern if the record is a total surprise and the measurement team never even heard from the Race Director.
3. Step 3: There are specific requirements for each type of record. For example, all records must occur at a sanctioned event.
4. Step 4: If all requirements are met, then Max Seigel (CEO of USATF) has to sign off on the documentation.
vi. Questions:
1. Lin Gentling asked who would pay for this?
a. David Katz stated that USATF is open to it as they do not want to negatively impact the athletes or have bad press. There does need to be an increase in funding somewhere to make this happen though.
2. Meghan Canfield asked what it takes to become a measurer.
a. David said that anyone can become a measurer technically but that it takes more time to become a World A or B level measurer. It also takes a body of work to demonstrate that each person is good at it over a long period of time.
3. Camille Herron asked if the original measurer, Paul Fritz, World B Level Measurer, was present when the Jackpot 100 course was remeasured in October. Camille Herron mentioned how Mr. Katz said the original measurer must be present during the re-measurement (with the World Grade A measurer), according to the RRTC procedures (see the following: https://www.flipsnack.com/USATF/pre-race-post-race-verification-guidelines/full-view.html).
a. David stated the original measurer, Paul Fritz, was not present. He spoke about how the rules are slightly different for each organization. [ML1]
b. David noted that we need to protect both the new record holder and the prior record holder. He said his phone was available 24 hours a day if anyone had additional questions about course measuring. He also reiterated that the goal of these rules are designed for safety, integrity of performance and to ratify records.
c. David also noted that he would talk to Renee Washington in the National Office. [ML2]
4. Lin asked how we request precertification of a course.
a. David let everyone know that they should go through Chair Nancy Hobbs and she will talk to David about precertification.
5. Camille Herron asked if there was an appeal process for records and measurements.
a. David said yes, and that this was done through the Sports Committee. He noted that there is a mechanism to change rules that are determined to protect athletes and the Sport Committee and RRTC will make common sense changes if necessary.
b. How can we as a committee prevent this in the future?
i. The MUT liaison should always double check to make sure that the Race Director has not changed anything about the course. Lin suggested that we should potentially have the Race Director sign something stating that they did not change the course. If the course is changed from the certified route, this makes it ineligible for records.
ii. The person that certified the course should be at the race. This should help the athletes feel more confident that they are racing on a certified course.
iii. We need to discuss further how we can address safety issues that cause modifications to the course.
7. Records – Update from Andy Carr
a. There were 43 records submitted in 2022. 38 masters and 5 open records.
b. There are 29 records that are already ratified or ready to ratify at today’s meeting. All records can be found here in the document library [ML3] .
c. There are 10 deferred records due to course measurement scheduling issues and there are 4 rejected records.
d. These 29 items were presented to ratify:
i. 5, 25, 32, 33, 41, 42, 43, 49, 52, 53, 54, 63, 71, 72, 80, 86, 89, 90, 92, 104, 105, 106, 107, 109, 115, 116, 117, 122, 123
e. Deferred Items:
i. 2, 40, 44, 45, 50, 51, 79, 103, 108, 114
f. Rejected Items:
i. 23, 24, 70, 73
g. Camille Herron noted that the language in the World Athletics handbook for track races was that the “..cones shall be placed…” not “…cones must be placed… “.
i. Andy Carr noted that the track record she was referring to was being deferred as the Records Committee gathered more information.
ii. Jason Bryant made a motion to ratify the following records: 5, 25, 32, 33, 41, 42, 43, 49, 52, 53, 54, 63, 71, 72, 80, 86, 89, 90, 92, 104, 105, 106, 107, 109, 115, 116, 117, 122, 123. The majority was in favor. No one was against ratification. There was one abstention.
8. Willie Banks – World Athletics (WA) Presentation
a. Willie Banks is our current council member for World Athletics. He was nominated 4 years ago and holds the position until the end of 2023. He is currently running for reelection.
b. He stated that he has been in charge of an 8 year plan that was developed after surveying all member federations (214 total) and unanimously approved.
c. He stated that a focus of the plan was MUT and how we build the sport outside of track – race walk, road, trail, ultra.
d. Willie stated that he can take our success in MUT and show other federations to help continue to grow the sport. He also stated that there is an initiative to have a MUT World Championship through WA with broader participation before or after the event.
i. Lin Gentling confirmed that this would also include road ultra events.
ii. Andy Wacker stated that there may be challenges when combining the championships since the Trail and Mountain races require different terrain that is typically less available in a large city.
e. He noted that two key initiatives at World Athletics right now were that the delegation is equal in gender and clean sport.
f. He also stated that the votes at World Athletics were not public and no one can see who voted for what. He stated that he talks with USATF leadership about every vote and that he did not vote for the Russian Federation to be reinstated.
g. He provided his email ([email protected]) if anyone had additional questions. He also will provide his phone number upon request.
h. Questions:
i. Lin asked what relationship World Athletics has with IAU?
1. Willie was unsure off the top of his head but stated that he would discuss with his contacts at World Athletics.
2. Lin also stated that she would like if World Athletics had a better relationship with WMRA.
ii. Garrett Heath asked if there was any feedback from the World Championships available yet.
1. Willie stated that they were just getting data from the 2022 World Athletics World Championships and that Seb Coe was very data driven and would use that information to drive decision making.
2. Nancy noted that she just received information on livestream views and downloads of the recent WMRA Mountain and Trail World Championships that she can share.
9. Duffy Mahoney/Ryan Cash – USATF Liaison to MUT
a. Ryan Cash, USATF Coordinator, LDR Events
i. Duffy Mahoney has officially retired as of 2022. He has been our MUT liaison. Now, Ryan Cash is the liaison for all LDR groups outside of Masters LDR (Men’s LDR, Women’s LDR, Cross Country, Road Running Technical Council, LDR, MUT)
ii. Ryan shared that he is happy to come to our meetings and prefers to stay in the know on everything going on with the committee. Nancy stated that he was a great resource at our last Executive Committee meeting and that she would continue to keep him updated as to when the Executive Committee meetings are along with the agenda.
10. MUT Runners of the Year
a. The Runners of the Year were announced here
b. In the past, MUT has had about 20 awards and a contributor of the year award.
c. There was feedback via email that we should break down the awards into sub-categories again as we have in the past.
d. Contributor of the year seems to be more feasible as there can be set criteria and submission processes.
e. There was 100% participation this year with Executive Committee members for voting for the MUT Runners of the Year.
f. Challenges with selecting MUT Runners of the Year:
i. If there are more awards, it is a huge time commitment. There would need to be a volunteer to focus on this throughout the entire year.
ii. If there are less awards, it is very difficult to compare performances based on distance, type of race and level (Junior, Masters, Open)
iii. It could be more valuable if written into a sponsorship contract if there is just an overall athlete of the year as opposed to different categories of Runners of the Year. Some athletes do have bonuses in their contracts for being the Runners of the Year.
g. Additional Comments:
i. Levi Thomet noted that instead of having a junior award, we could recognize the top XC or trail athletes via a special letter in the mail (similar to Brooks PR Letters for top high school track athletes). This could be less work than selecting a junior athlete of the year but get more junior athletes excited about mountain and trail racing. Nancy noted to put Levi in touch with Max King as he has a Youth Task Force that just started. Jason Bryant also noted that he would be interested in supporting this as well and using MileSplit to find promising trail and mountain athletes.
ii. Andy Carr noted that the Executive Committee could use their discretion to determine how many awards would be provided based on how strong the performances were each year and how difficult it was to compare performances across distances.
h. No one is currently focused on this work. If there is not a volunteer to focus on this area, then it is only feasible to do 5 awards: Contributor of the Year, M/F Open and M/F Masters Runners of the Year. It was also suggested to have Open awards for each discipline and gender- Open Mountain, Ultra, and Trail, and then have only one Master’s award (8 awards total).
11. Rules
a. Phil Greenwald, USATF Rules Committee representative stated that there were two rules that would be up for vote later today.
i. Assistance Rule: see item 25.b.i for final wording
ii. Doping for National Records 261.3. – see item 25.b.ii for final wording
1. Notes related to this rule: This change will impact open American Records recognized by World Athletics
2. This will make it possible that a 100K AR could be faster than the 100K WR if testing is completed within 24 hours but not immediately after the event.
b. Other notes:
i. If a MUT Executive Committee member, athlete or Race Director knows of a potential American Record or World Record attempt, they should reach out as soon as they can.
ii. Jason Bryant ([email protected]) noted that he will work with Phil and Andy Carr on this if anyone has any questions.
There was a motion to recess at 2:59 PM on 12/03/22 by Kelly Flathers that was seconded by Jim Peterson. All were in favor and no one abstained.
SATURDAY– General Session #2
General Session #2 12/03/2022 at 10:00 AM ET
General Session #2 was called to order by Chair Nancy Hobbs at 10:01 AM on December 3, 2022.
12. Finances
a. Currently, the budget is the same in 2023 as it was in 2022 – $110,000. There is also funding for 18 drug tests, which will be distributed at the national championships throughout the year. Each drug test is estimated to be $1700, for a total of $30,600 drug testing funds.
b. Yesterday, at the budget session, Nancy asked for additional funding. She asked for an additional $25,000 in the international team budget. Typically, when international teams travel, there is a team doctor and 12-15 total staff for a trip with 35-40 athletes. At the 2022 Mountain and Trail World Championship, there were only 5 team staff members and no team doctor. This was not enough, especially when crewing ultrarunner athletes and when an athlete had to go to the hospital and there were only 3 team staff left for the other 37 athletes.
i. Nancy noted that this additional funding is not guaranteed or expected. It is possible to receive a portion of the funds requested. The long-term goal is for USATF MUT to be a fully funded program, but in the meantime, ATRA will continue to get creative with ways to help fund the teams.
ii. Nancy also noted that it is important to communicate how the additional funding will help USATF grow membership. There is now a Masters World Mountain and Trail Running Championship that requires an active USATF membership and is open to athletes ages 35-79.
13. Social Media/Marketing Update
a. Pam Smith noted that there is a 24 Hour Team Facebook page with 19,000+ followers and an Instagram page that has over 5,000 followers. The pages focus on ultramarathons, but also covers trail, mountain and marathon races. You can also follow the page here @us24hr_team and https://www.facebook.com/US24HR.
b. Richard Bolt (not in attendance), a USA Team Leader and Executive Committee member leads social media and marketing efforts for ATRA. The ATRA website now has a menu option for USATF MUT that links to a page specifically for USATF MUT race and team opportunities. This is supplemental to the USATF event page and can be updated quickly with selection criteria, championship dates and other news.
c. There are also the following social media pages:
i. Instagram – USATF MUT: @usmtrunningteam ATRA: @atratrailrunner
ii. Twitter – USATF MUT: @usatf_mut ATRA: @atratrailrunner
1. For many championships, these pages live tweet the races.
d. Please like and share the pages to continue to promote the sport!
14. National Championship Bids:
a. National Championship bids are now reviewed and approved by the USATF MUT Executive Committee. Before, these were reviewed at the Annual Meeting. This has changed because it was hard to get everything together at the same time for everyone to read through ahead of time, it took up most of the time available for other topics at the annual meeting and the timeline did not always provide enough time for athletes to prepare for the qualifying races.
b. When reviewing national championship bids, USATF MUT looks for at least $2,500 of athlete prize money, travel, lodging and/or entry support for elites and cross checks dates for conflicts with existing races.
c. The National Championship Bids are included in a Google Drive here:
d. There are currently 6 National Championships planned for 2023:
1. 50K Road National Championship (Caumsett at Heckscher State Park) – March 12th
2. 50K Trail National Championship (Ragged 50K) – August 6th
3. Vertical Kilometer National Championship (Sunapee Scramble) – April 29th
4. Classic Mountain Up/Down Championship (Sunapee Scramble) – April 30th
5. Half Marathon Trail National Championship (Moab Trail Half Marathon) – November 4th
6. Marathon Trail National Championship (Breakneck Point Trail Marathon) – May 6th
e. If you know anyone that is interested in hosting a race, here is the form to submit: www.usatf.org/bids
f. Jason Bryant noted that he is going to update the USATF MUT Championship Liaison documentation as it is out of date.
i. Lin Gentling noted that typical liaison responsibilities include:
1. Working closely with the timing system personnel to ensure that everything is running smoothly
2. Gathering quotes & pictures from top finishing athletes.
3. Remaining on site until the last USATF participant has finished.
g. Questions & Additional Notes:
i. Camille Herron asked if Lake Sonoma 50 miler would be a 50-mile national championship (the event will be a selection race for the 80K Trail Team for Austria 2023).
1. Nancy Hobbs noted that the Race Director would have to submit a bid for it to be considered as the 50-mile National Championship and nothing has been submitted and is not anticipated (the race is in April). The RD has been very supportive of hosting the selection race. Nancy did confirm that there would be spots available to elites looking to race, since the race is technically already full. Nancy also said that all athletes should let her or someone on the MUT Committee know if they would like to race and don’t yet have a confirmed spot.
ii. There were several questions related to the bid process and minimum requirements.
1. Meghan Canfield noted that that was the standard bid form and to ignore the minimum prize money requirements and the requirement to cover flight cost.
iii. Camille Herron asked if the Mad City 100K would be a National Championship.
1. Nancy stated that it is not a national championship this year and that actually the Mad City race will only be a 50K this year as the 100K is not financially feasible in non-championship years.
iv. There was a question as to whether we could encourage Championship events to have a host hotel.
1. Nancy stated that most events do publish a host hotel and this is helpful for anyone who wants to attend the event including age groupers and non-elite participation. We will be sure to confirm that our Championships have a host hotel listed on our website (Liaison can follow up). Some races have hotels listed on their websites and Nancy made a note to pass on the feedback.
2. Joe Jurczyk noted that many participants often do not know that these races are USA Championships.
a. Chris Rinaldi stated that he thought the best way to increase USATF registrations is to provide discounted rates for championships for USATF members.
Nancy noted that there was some language that she had historically included in outreach to participants that were not registered for the USATF Championship but were registered for the race.
v. Chris Rinaldi asked about regional association level races.
1. Lin Gentling is the MUT Chair for Associations. Lin’s email is [email protected] if anyone wants to learn more about having regional races.
2. Chris Rinaldi noted that it is challenging to get current MUT race directors to see the value of having a USATF sanctioned event. Jason Bryant noted that when approaching a race, it is important to focus on how you are making their event better as an association.
vi. Camille Herron asked about other potential championships in the works.
1. Nancy noted that it was difficult this year because the two Mountain and Trail Running World Championships were so close together (Thailand in November 2022 and Austria in June 2023). It will be easier in 2024 when there is much more time to find and announce selection races (for the 2025 World Championships in Mountain and Trail).
2. Nancy noted that Jamil Coury is considering bidding for the 24 hour, or 100 mile trail and/or 100K for 2024, Mike Foote is looking at his race The Rut for a potential bid and McDowell Mountain Frenzy is also considering a bid.
15. Updates on World Championship 2022 – Thailand
a. Athlete takeaways – Andy Wacker (Classic Up/Down and Uphill Mountain Race)
i. This was the first time that both the mountain and trail races were at the same world championship event. There were about 50 countries represented and there were 6 races total:
1. Classic Mountain Up/Down
2. Uphill Mountain Race (similar to a VK, Skyrunning’s trademarked term, but not confined to the same distance to elevation gain ratio)
3. Junior Mountain Race
4. 40K Trail Race
5. 80K Trail Race
ii. Highlights:
1. In the Uphill Mountain Race, Allie McLaughlin won and the women won gold as a team. Joe Gray came in 6th in the men’s race.
2. Adam Peterman was the 80K World Champion and the team also won gold.
3. The women’s 40K team came in second.
4. In the Classic Mountain Race, Allie McLaughlin doubled back to come in third. The team also came in bronze-medal position.
iii. Feedback:
1. It was nice to have the camaraderie of everyone being on the team together as they were able to cheer on each other in their races.
2. It was challenging for team staff to have the 40K and 80K going on at the same time.
b. Athlete Takeaways – Addie Bracy (80K)
i. Overall, it was a good experience, but there were some areas of improvement:
1. There were only 3 staff members available to crew both the 40K and 80K.
2. Some staff had never crewed an ultra before.
3. There were no electrolytes available at the other aid stations besides the one with team staff, so she had to carry 1 liter of electrolytes in her hydration pack. With the weather, this was potentially dangerous.
4. Addie noted that it is important for the host country to understand what the athletes need and potentially do a trial run prior to the World Championship.
5. The event followed UTMB rules, which required a jacket, safety blanket and other items not as relevant in a humid jungle environment.
6. There was a citizens 50K during the 80K. Addie passed about 300 walkers on the trails while racing.
7. It would be great to bring an overall medal count into the next World Championship to further strengthen the team element of the event.
ii. Nancy noted that they would be meeting in January (with the IAU, ITRA, WMRA, WA) to discuss all this feedback and that next year’s event should be more dialed in.
c. Questions and Comments:
i. Chris Rinaldi noted that the social media coverage was great and easy to follow along with. Andy Wacker noted that it helped that they had two professional photographers there as well, Mike McMonagle and Peter Maksimow.
16. WMRA International U18 Mountain Running Cup 2022 – Italy – Lin Gentling to provide a review, highlights and feedback.
a. Historically the race has not been well advertised and so there is now a subcommittee Youth Task Force that is focused specifically on getting more youth athletes involved in mountain and trail running led by Max King. Website is now live: https://trailrunner.com/youth/
b. There was a lot of community support where the race took place. Each team had a host that spoke the language of the team. Team USA’s host was very helpful.
c. In the Junior Women’s Race, Alyssa Sauro of Virginia won the individual title.
d. Next Year, the race will take place May 27th in Annecy, France.
i. The problem with this date is that it will likely conflict with state track and field championships.
17. Masters World Championship – 2022 – Ireland (uniform kit for participants)
a. This was the first time that the athletes had to be associated with their national federation to compete.
b. A good showing for USA – 25 US athletes attended and received a USA kit.
c. Next year, the event will be in Madeira, Portugal the 17th and 18th of September.
d. There are two races, a mostly uphill race and a 25K.
e. Anyone is able to participate from ages 35-79 that are registered with USATF. Uniforms are free for all athletes. Each athlete can only have one uniform set (singlet, bottom) for each four-year cycle.
f. Each age group scores with 3 or more athletes.
g. In September 2022 in Ireland, the 50-59 women came in third.
h. Questions & Comments:
i. Lin Gentling asked if there was a maximum number of participants and if the kits were part of the MUT budget.
1. Nancy stated that it was part of the masters running budget (for 2022) and that there is not currently a cap that she is aware of.
ii. Grayson Murphy noted that this would be a great thing to include as a reason to join USATF. The kit pays for the membership.
18. International Events 2023 – Team Selection. Information is here.
a. Current 2023 Team Opportunities are included on the ATRA website
b. 2023 NACAC Championship
i. Canada is hosting the championship and reviewing bids currently. The event will be sometime between August and September. Since we are still unsure on the date, that is why there is no selection criteria yet.
c. 2023 Challenge Stellina
i. The event will be in August and there will be 3 men and 3 females selected to the team, but there is no selection criteria yet because there is uncertainty as to when NACAC is and we’d like to announce both event selection at the same time. Nancy suggested Loon as a potential selection race, but asked everyone to provide suggestions if they had them.
d. World Mountain Running Association – World Cup 2024
i. The schedule for this should be announced by the end of the year
ii. There are typically 12-16 events and points are accumulated throughout the season
iii. It is primarily in Europe but there is an effort to expand it to the U.S. because it is very difficult for anyone outside of Europe to qualify for the final right now
e. 2024 Pan-American Championship
i. This is a potential team race in 2024 when there is no World Championship
f. World Rankings
i. There are many different ways to compare athlete’s performances
ii. UltraSignup
iii. World Athletics ITRA Ranking
iv. WMRA Ranking
19. World Championships 100km – Team selection for 2024
a. Lin Gentling was on the team staff last year and provided an overview:
i. Both U.S. teams were unranked and relatively new to international team competition (only one returning team member from the 50K team on the women’s side)
ii. The women’s team won the team title and had three athletes place in the top 11. (Courtney Olsen – 4th, Anna Kacius – 7th, Nicole Monette – 11th)
iii. The men were led by Eric Lipuma in 29th and finished 13th in the team standings
b. Camille Herron noted a course issue that occurred when a cyclist turned too early, which resulted in all athletes having to do a small loop at the end to ensure they ran the appropriate distance.
c. There is currently no date for the 2024 Championship.
20. World Championships 24 Hour – 2023
a. This event was supposed to take place in Romania in 2021 but was postponed due to COVID
b. The qualifying window is until July. Qualification criteria are listed here.
c. An athlete can qualify at any certified race
d. The championship will be in Taiwan in December 2023
21. IAU 50km Road Championships – 2023
a. There was no championship in 2022
b. Selection criteria is listed here
c. The championship will take place on May 28th in Port Elizabeth, South Africa
d. The course is currently unknown.
e. Team Staff is Lin Gentling, Meghan Canfield and Lion Caldwell.[ML4]
22. IAU Congress and Label Designation
a. When a race has a label designation, it helps with the ability for athletes to apply for travel grants. Travel grants are based on 50K, 100K or 24 Hour prior performance.
b. Any race can apply for free for a Label Designation at this link. [ML5] It requires paperwork to be completed
23. Adaptive Athletes in MUT
a. Zach Friedley is an adaptive athlete and reached out about any MUT paralympic opportunities. It is difficult for adaptive athletes to compete with able-bodied athletes and there is no category for them in trail and mountain running.
b. He is interested in leading an effort to determine if there is an opportunity for an adaptive category at the World Championship. He has already talked to UTMB as well.
c. If anyone else would like to serve on this task force, let Nancy Hobbs know.
24. Collegiate Running Association
a. It is free to be a member and anyone can join. Anyone who is current enrolled in a college course can compete in the CRA events.
b. Reach out to Nancy Hobbs if you are interested in learning more.
25. Rules Committee Update – Phil Greenwald
a. The Rules Committee has met since General Session #1 on Friday the 2nd.
b. Updates:
i. The assistance rule was passed with minor wording changes to clarify that someone cannot be paced by someone outside of the event. Final Wording:
1. Add Rule 144.4(k) as follows: “Athletes running in close proximity to one another. NOTE: Where ultramarathon events include multiple distances running concurrently on the same loop course and/or a large number of laps this allowance applies to athletes running different distances and/or are on different laps, See note at the end of this rule.”
2. Rationale: A clarification is needed on what constitutes assistance. This was originally raised in the context of ultra-events run on loop courses but is broadly applicable. Running together is allowed, more active assistance is not
ii. The Doping Control rule was amended. Final Wording:
1. Amend Rules 261.3 as follows: Rule 261.3: “Each athlete who achieves an American Record in any event shall submit to a doping control to be conducted in accordance with World Athletics Rules and procedural guidelines currently in force. In the case of a relay record, all members of the team shall be tested. The sample(s) collected shall be sent for analysis to a WADA accredited laboratory and the results sent, as indicated in Rule 261.2, to be added to other information required for the ratification of the record. If such testing results in a doping violation, or if such testing is not conducted, USATF will not ratify this record.
2. Records are subject to the following time limits for sample collection:
a. World Records (World Athletics) – immediately after the event as defined by WADA regulations
b. International Association of Ultrarunners records – within 24 hours after the event
c. American record – within 24 hours after the end of the event”
c. Jason Bryant highlighted the importance of communicating these changes to athletes. Camille Herron suggested adding a page to USATF and the ATRA website on “How to set a record.”
26. Other Comments:
a. Chair Nancy Hobbs opened the floor for additional conversations:
b. Anti-Doping:
i. Camille Herron noted that there is not currently any anti-doping information on the ATRA website. Nancy noted that this was a great idea and that there were resources within the site, but they were not all gathered in one place. Nancy noted that it could link to resources like SafeSport certification, USADA, Drug Resources for athletes and other similar pages.
c. Sanctioned Races:
i. Christine Porock Rogers asked for advice on how to get races on board with USATF and becoming a sanctioned event. Nancy noted that the New England trail program was strong and may be worth reaching out to learn from them. She also mentioned that ATRA offers event insurance that is less expensive that could be worth considering for trails races that are not ready for a full USATF certified event. Robin Jeffers also noted that the barriers (ex: SafeSport) make it more difficult to get people on board but also keep the sport safe. Christine also noted that you can get certified yourself to sanction races for $25.
d. Marketing:
i. Chris Rinaldi commented that sponsors should be responsible for making commercials and marketing the big events such as World Championships.
ii. Camille Herron noted that it is not beneficial to the sport when there is a USATF championship and USATF have a livestream for the event but retains the rights to. In those cases, it would be better for the events to be able to do their own livestream of the event. It was noted that it is possible to stream the open event in scenarios where not all participants are racing in the USATF championship race.
iii. Camille Herron also noted that Jamil Coury does a good job with livestreaming and would be a good partner on this.
iv. Nancy noted that the World Championship was livestreamed at the last minute and ended up having large viewing numbers.
e. Selected athletes not racing at World Championships
i. Andy Wacker noted that it would be beneficial to add some sort of athlete contract to accepting a position on a team that prohibits athletes from scratching from the team at the last minute.
ii. Nancy Hobbs noted that this is a hard thing to do when the team is not fully funded by USATF. She also stated that the goal is to always do what is best for the athlete, so they do want to be cognizant of this issue, but also not use strict language that prohibits athletes from doing other competitions close to championship races. The USATF goal is to get the best athletes on the start line, so Nancy noted that this would continue to be a discussion point on the athlete selection committees.
27. Mike Scott – LDR Division Chairperson
a. Mike Scott discussed the great growth in the sport that he has seen over the past several years. He thanked the committee and athletes for the hard work and noted that the MUT Executive Committee is very active and engaged.
b. He also expressed excitement that Ryan Cash was now acting as a liaison, which will help with getting faster reimbursement for athletes and staff.
28. Andy Martin – Exclamation Services
a. Exclamation Services is an agency that works with 8 USATF associations right now.
b. Their goal is to celebrate athletes and recognize those who compete at a national level
c. Andy is here to bring awareness to the program and is available to respond to any questions and help promote the sport.
29. AAC
a. Megan Lacy noted that she spoke to Will Leer about getting more involved with AAC and suggesting MUT initiatives. He said that the monthly meetings were open to athletes and that all athletes that came to the Annual Meeting should now be on the Slack channel, where those monthly meetings will be listed moving forward.
Roy Pirrung made a motion to adjourn at 12:01 pm. Lin Gentling seconded the motion and all others were in favor.
