The Trail Ultra (100 km) and Trail Run (43 km) categories of Spartan Trail World Championship have their first leaders and lightens the competition for the upcoming challenges. At Fjällmaraton, it was a perfect day for running in Scandinavian Peninsula with proper health and safety measures, and a star-studded elite field.
The first stop of the inaugural Spartan Trail World Championship (STWC) was held on August 1st at Fjällmaraton, one of the most popular and recognized races in Northern Europe. It’s a one-week festival with distances for every runner, this year, modified with aggressive health and security measures and following all the needed protocols to ensure a safe event.
Considering this situation, the race had to split their formats to an open race, where runners could start and finish on a marked course during a certain period of time, and an Elite Heat with limited spots, which would allow runners to compete for the $22,800 prize purse and the STWC ranking points.
Simen Hjalmar Wästlund – winner of the 100 km. Photo: Jonas Hoglund.
The 100k distance was valid for the Trail Ultra category of STWC, and had a changing race from the beginning. Pace was high from the start, and the distance debutant Simen Hjalmar Wästlund (Norway) was able to hold a good gap and take the win. Spartan Trail’s ambassador and 2019 UTMB winner Pau Capell (Spain) had a rough start but pushed his boundaries to finish second. Local running star Johan Lantz (Sweden) battled some stomach issues and finished third.
Patience was the key in the women’s race, with Spartan Trail’s ambassador Azara García de los Salmones from Spain (pictured top of page – photo: Jonas Hoglund) holding her pace from the start, to get to the lead around half of the race to finally take the win. Same happened to Anna Carlsson (Sweden) who ran consistently all day to end up in second. Lena Trillelv (Sweden) kept the good spirits all day and stayed in third position from the start. Full results for the 100k can be found here.
Lena Trillelv – 3rd place in the 100 km. Photo: Johannes Poignant.
KIA Fjällmaraton 43k is the Trail Run category race of STWC. It was buzzing from the start, with a group of world-class fast runners pushing forward for the win. It was Olle Kalered (Sweden) who managed to escape from the group, and set up a new course record for over 4 minutes on the finish line with a gap of almost 10 minutes with the runner-up. Mårten Boström (Sweden) was second, and Jesper Lundberg (Sweden) was third.
Something similar happened on the women’s race, with Tove Alexandersson (Sweden) mixing up with the front guys, destroying the course record and taking a 15 minutes difference with her runner-up. Fanny Borgström and Johanna Åstrom pushed together, but it was finally Borsgröm who took second, leaving Åstrom on the third spot of the podium. Full results for the 43k can be found here.
Additionally, a virtual challenge is open from today on Spartan’s website. Bringing Fjällmaraton’s experience to wherever you are, you have to run 100k as you can for the next four weekends. You can find more information on the Spartan website.
For further information, please stay tuned to Spartan Trail’s social media and follow the race action: @spartantrail | @spartantrailworldchamp
Pau Capell – 2nd place in the 100 km. Photo: Johannes Poignant.
About Spartan:
With more than 250 events across more than 40 countries on six continents, Spartan is the world’s largest obstacle course race (OCR) and endurance brand. Providing transformation through sport, Spartan attracts more than one million annual participants across all fitness levels, from beginners to elite. More than five million participants have finished Spartan events, creating a lifestyle that extends beyond races including health and wellness products, training and nutrition programs, and popular media content, which has made OCR one of the fastest growing sports in the world. Spartan events feature races at various distances, Stadion and Sprint: 5k and 20 Obstacles; Super: 10k and 25 Obstacles; Beast: half marathon and 30 Obstacles; and Ultra: 50k and 60 obstacles. Visit spartan.com for more information and registration.
Announcement from American Trail Running Association member Spartan Trail.
