AWRA, organising company of New Corella Trail Ultra and Maco de Oro Trail Ultra, has informed us that the former NCTU event in Davao del Norte cannot be held in December this year following a decision made by local authorities. NCTU was scheduled to be a new Championship Qualifier in Philippines with a 70km race category that automatically also merits a Grandmaster Quest point. AWRA has therefore moved its October event - Maco de Oro Trail Ultra - to the weekend of 12/13 December instead. Runners should note, however, that said event, i.e. Maco de Oro Trail Ultra, will not be a Championship Qualifier as the date conflicts with existing events on our Championship Calendar that weekend (Izu Trail Journey and Soimalai Ultra). On the other hand, Maco de Oro Trail will offer a Grandmaster Quest point to all finishers of the 75km race.

The event takes place in the rugged and diverse landscapes of Maco, a coastal and mountainous municipality known as the“Gold Coast” of the province Davao del Sur in Mindanao, Philippines. The venue is about 1 hour away from Davao international airport.

The Maco de Oro Trail Ultra (MULTRA) has a 75km as longest distance with approx 3200 metres of elevation gain. The race course is diverse and will combine steep ascents, technical descents, forest trails, and scenic ridgelines. The event description continues: “The race showcases the raw beauty of Maco de Oro—where lush tropical forests, mineral-rich mountains, and coastal landscapes converge—offering a true test of endurance, strategy, and mental resilience. More than just a race, Maco de Oro is a celebration of outdoor adventure, local culture, and eco- tourism—highlighting the municipality’s growing potential as a premier trail running destination in Mindanao.”

The route will also follow more famous hiking and trekking trails such as the Manipongol Trail. There’s several nature and tourism spots in the area, too. For example, the Bilawa Mainit Hot Waterfalls and Lake Leonard, which is a volcanic crater lake. There’s also several beach and coastal experiences, perfect for post-race relaxation and recovery. The municipality reflects a rich blend of agricultural and indigenous Mansaka culture.

It is recommended to follow the facebook page of the event to stay up-to-date on any news.

A genuine long endurance trail running festival will be held for the second time from 22 to 29 November in Pai, Thailand, this year and has been confirmed for our Grandmaster Quest calendar. At this ambitious event, runners can score a GM point at no fewer than five different races spread out during the week, of which the 100km is the shortest and taking place on 28/29 November. One week earlier, 500 Thailand already gets going with the massive Ultimate 500km race starting at noon on Sunday, 22 November.

Organised by Route Map, which also brings you Akha Trail and UTCM, runners also have a 300km and two distinct 200km races to choose from. The official website linked below has all details on the various race courses.

The event aims to attract mega ultra enthusiasts to Pai and Mae Hong Son in the northwest of Thailand. Fans of ATM may remember UT Panoramic from before the covid times taking place in the same areas.

500 Thailand is labelled as a ‘Race for Humans - not designed to break you, but to reveal you’. Pai is a quiet town surrounded by mountains, forests, and morning mist. Gateway to Pai is Chiang Mai, which is where you would fly to. As the transportation map below shows, from Chiang Mai there are shuttle vans and busses that can be reserved. Regardless which race category you choose, the shortest is 107km with 4500hm so you need to get your mandatory gear in order before the start. The 500km has a whopping 25,000hm and a cut off time of 168 hours (noon on Sunday, 29 November). The first 200km race (Mandra to Jig Jong) starts at the same time as the 500 on the 22nd, but the 300km and 2nd 200km (Jig Jong to Phi Lu) start on Wednesday, 25th of November - so please pay attention.

You can follow the official facebook page below to stay up to date. Registration is open, but not very long anymore, so decide quickly.

No surprises for the course of this season’s ATM Championship Final at Mu Cang Chai Ultra Trail in Vietnam on 3 October. The course is the same as the one presented last year, when the event had to be cancelled due to the heavy aftermath of a typhoon that devastated northern Vietnam. The race to determine the successors of John Ray Onifa and Priya Rai as Asia Trail Master Champions will start just before sunrise at 5 am. As always, the ATM Final race will start separately from the open public 75km and the other open distance categories at the event. Both defending champions from Philippines and Nepal, respectively, are also expected to defend their titles in the 75km long race with an estimated elevation gain of 3700 hm. When dry, the route is expected to be quite runable. Wet weather could make it muddy and slippery, on the other hand. Views along the route are exquisite. One can distinguish 8 clear hill peaks on the below course map. The Finish follows a descent of 5-6 kilometres.

You can also check the video of the course to get a feeling of what to expect. Qualified and confirmed ATM Finalists will receive the GPX file also via the dedicated whatsapp group in the coming days.

Argel Dave Estrologo and Rearose Abi-abi ruled the F’lomlok Trail Run 70-kilometer held last September 5-6 at the Landan Elementary School in Polomolok, South Cotabato. The event received the ATM Candidate Race label. Local runners had the upper hand in the competition, with the 70k as the main distance category and a potential new Grandmaster Quest race for next season.

Estrologo of Tupi, South Cotabato clocked 15 hours, 4 minutes & 38 seconds to win the men’s open 70km race. Second was 37-year-old Anthony Tenefrancia, also of Tupi at 15:08:12 followed by Roger Piloton [15:11:08]. Abi-abi, on the other hand, finished 5th overall and the first in the women’s side at 17:13:46. Jonalyn Sevilla [20:32:10] is second followed by Hannah Aivie Miranda [20:32:14].

Lawyer Kathrina Vanessa Hagoriles of the Lady Justice Endurance Events is the race chairman. She recently also became an official ATM Grandmaster.

It is with great pleasure that we can announce today a new 4-star Golden Grandmaster! Jyh Hann Lim, a.k.a. Trevor Lim, finished his 20th ATM long ultra at the A1 Philippines event in Ifugao, Luzon, at the end of last month. It was also a big cherry on the pie, as Trevor ran the 100 Miles at that event! The Malaysian trail runner, originally from Sarawak, has been around ATM for nearly ten years. He started his Grandmaster campaign back in 2017 with VMM 70. His journey took him all across Asia, as Trevor did not want to restrict himself to his home country.

After he became a Silver Grandmaster at the 9 Dragons in February 2025, Trevor finished Trail des Gombak 100 in Selangor and The Magnificent Baling 100 in Kedah. Afterwards, he traveled abroad again to complete Izu Trail Journey 70 and Deep Japan Ultra 80 in Japan. For his final and 20th race he chose a Filipino event - the only one on his record - and the longest race he has done during his entire GM adventure: the aforementioned Altra 100 Miles. In total, Trevor ran 1990 km during his Grandmaster Quest.

“The most beautiful moment wasn’t when I finished the A1 100 miles race,” says Trevor. “It was realising that somewhere along those 2000-odd kilometres, I had stopped chasing finish lines and instead started collecting a lifetime of stories and friendships.” Let’s give him a big thumbs up, huge congrats for new 4-star Golden Grandmaster Trevor Jyh Hann Lim!

TREVOR LIM’s GM RECORD:

• Asia Trail Master Grandmaster Quest races:
  3x 70km, 1x 80km, 13x 100km, 1x 110km, 1x 130km, 1 x 160km
  Total distance: 1990km

  
  1. Vietnam Mountain Marathon 2017 70km
  2.Ultra-Trail Panoramic 2017 100km
  3.Vietnam Jungle Marathon 2018 70km
  4.Penang Eco100 2018 100km
  5.The Magnificent Merapoh Trail 2018 100km
  6. The Most Beautiful Thing 2018 100km
  7.Ultra-Trail Koh Chang 2020 100km
  8.BUTM 2022 100km
  9.Cameron Ultra 2022 100km
  10.Seoul 100k 2022 100km
  11.Bali Ultra 100k 2023 100km
  12.MMTF 100 2023 100km
  13.Kadamaian Adventure Race Ultra 110 2024 110km
  14.Prenn Trail Summit 2024 100km
  15.9 Dragons 50/50 2025 130km
  16.Trail Des Gombak 100km 2025 100km
  17.The Magnificent Baling 100 2025 100km
  18.Izu Trail Journey 2025 70km
  19.Deep Japan Ultra (Uonuma 80km) 2026
  20. Altra 100 Phillipines 2026 (100miles)

Tunggul Melati Trail was a new ATM Candidate Race near KLIA airport and Putrajaya in Malaysia last weekend, Basically a night race for the faster runners wiith an evening start of the 85km and 65km main categories. The courses are generally quite runable, especially given the dry conditions of the past days, but the main difficulty - Bukit Tunggul - comes at the very end of the race. The expected favourites for victory also delivered: ATM FInalist and Grandmaster Ritzy Amor won the women's 85km race and finished third overall, behind the men's winner Amierul Amin and Bali's Nizar Surydratama. Grandmaster Rasyid Salehuddin was third on the men's podium just behind Amor, also a Grandmaster. Last month, Amierul Amin also won the Magnificent Baling 100, a race on our Grandmaster Quest calendar.

Amierul Amin finished in 12h15, indicating that the 85km race in Selangor, close to Putrajaya and Sepang was probably a bit tougher than generally assumed. The gap to Suryadratama was nearly two hours with Ritzy Amor still a bit further back.

On the 65km it was Yusof Abdul Manan taking victory by just 14 minutes over Chin Tat Lim. His finish time was 9h21. The women's race was won by Halimatun Sa'adiah in 10h38, ahead of fresh Grandmaster Ang Yee Mei, who completed the first level of her GM Quest just a week ago at Borneo TMBT.

Tunggul Melati Trail had well over 1500 participants for its second edition this year, spread out across several distance categories. It is expected to be held on the same early September weekend nest year as well.

Trail running remains a highly delicate activity in many ways and this week was again proof how tough it can be to organise trail running events in the wild, open nature spaces that we all love so much. Indonesia’s Ijen Green Trail has been forced to postpone the event to late November due to forest fires and the ordered total closure of the Ijen Crater Tourism Park for safety reasons, and also Malaysia’s Jagoi Ultra risks to fall victim of the worst haze and air pollution striking Kuching and Sarawak in over a decade. “Deliberate” forest fires in neighbouring Kalimantan are blamed for this annual environmental problem that some years also badly affects even farther away places like Singapore. Several other events in Sarawak have been cancelled already and at the time of writing Alpha Sports Events and its passionate director Josh are hoping the worst will be over come Saturday morning and the Air Pollution Index decreases to the extent an endurance running race can be held without exposing people to significant health risks. Obviously, the local authorities in Sarawak are closely monitoring the situation and will have the last word in the end.

It’s a potential nightmare scenario for quite a few runners who were still hoping to get themselves qualified for the ATM Championship Final in Vietnam next month. Jagoi Ultra is a Championship Qualifier for the first time and attracted a substantial and international field of runners for the 70km race, which is also valid for the Grandmaster Quest of course. No fewer than 50 Filipino runners made the trip to Sarawak, amongst them also Godwin MIrar - the 25-year-old top talent who left it a bit late this season in his attempt to qualify again for the Championship Final . Mirar ranks sixth in the Filipino points ranking with 3 race results, which means he needs to count on someone in the top five declining the opportunity to race for Team Pilipinas in Vietnam. In Philippines, many runners do four races or more during the season, and as always it’s the best four results that count for each runner. Running only three qualifiers is always a gamble in a country with lots of ambitious and competitive athletes.

Also Vietnam’s upcoming talent Sung A Phu needs a Jagoi result to get himself in Team Vietnam, after missing all his country’s own qualifier races earlier in the season. Last weekend, he was 5th in TMBT 50. Japan’s Tomohiro Mizukoshi will be relieved to know that he will remain fifth in his country’s ranking, which means he will be part of the ATM Final for the fifth consecutive time - a feat only very few have accomplished. Singapore’s Deric Lau - another established finalist - is in the same situation as Sung A Phu, as are several runners from Brunei Darussalam.

Quite a few Malaysian runners have also been hoping to still sneak into the top five at the last moment, especially on the women’s side. Celeste Teo and Joyce Yong Hie Ying, for example.

For sure, a final decision on whether the race can go ahead will be taken as late as possible. We will update about what happens on our facebook and other channels.

UPDATE : On Friday evening, following emergency meeting with local and regional authorities , all outdoor sporting activities were suspended, including Jagoi Ultra. The races therefore could not take place.

Trail running continues to grow and new events keep blossoming in the southern Philippines. Today we are happy to announce that Gold Rush Trail has obtained the ATM Candidate Race label for its next edition on 16/17 January 2027. it will be the first ATM labelled event in Zamboanga Peninsula and the Northwestern part of MIndanao. Organised by Parokya ni Basti Happy Feet Events and event director Rhodel Sarande, Gold Rush Trail Ultra features a 50km as main distance category. Less ambitious runners can also choose the 25km, 10km or 7km at the event.

The 50km is challenging with over 3000 metres of elevation gain. The course goes through the backyard playground in the Gold Rush Hills of Sibutad in Zamboanga del Norte. It is not the first edition of the event, but with local support the idea is to create wider awareness and attract trail runners from further away . To get there, you may taken a domestic flight to Dipolog airport, coming from Manila or Cebu. There’s also plenty of busses from Cagayan de Oro.

Via the facebook page below you can stay up to date with the event proceedings. There’s also a nice video teaser to get you in the mood. Registration is also already open.

The 14th edition of Borneo TMBT Ultra near Kota Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia, will go into the history books as one of the hottest on record. Views aplenty of the majestic Mount Kinabalu, but many participants on the 100km - in particular - needed to focus more on hydration and staying as cool as possible. Hisashi Kitamura seemed to be cruising to his second consecutive TMBT victoy, but even the tough Japanese elite runner admitted the last 30km were extremely challenging this year. He nevertheless had enough advantage over local Sabahans Oswald Maikol, himself a winner in 2024, and Willy Wilson, who has become a consistent podium contender this season. Kitamura reached the finish line in 13h55, almost one hour head of Maikol. Samry Sainin scored a great fourth place, ahead of Switzerland’s Simon Lattman. Bernardo Linus settled for sixth place.

The home crowd had a lot to cheer about as Lolitah Lintanga won her first ever ATM race and did so at TMBT 100. The youngest competitive runner of the Lintanga sisters was in control of proceedings basically from the start. Harlyn Richard initially kept pace with Lintanga and was probably hoping for an opportunity deeper in the race, but in fact the gap grew a lot towards the end. Another podium for Richard did mean she was assured of qualification for Team Malaysia in next month’s ATM Championship Final, where she can feature alongside Lintanga, too. Third in the race last weekend was Stlea Thomas, ahead of Philippines’ Maria Jocelyn Manalo Tuga and Japan’s Yoshie Kobayashi.

The men’s 50km had a very stacked field and a rather surprising winner at the finish line. Sheron Sariman very much stepped out of the shadow of his famous Sabahan compatriots Milton Amat and Wilsen Singgin by grabbing victory in a fantastic time of 5h46. Earlier this season, Sarimon was third in BUTM. He had been knocking on the door already a few times, but this is a breakthrough performance for him. Milton Amat managed to get second place, albeit 19 minutes later. Nevertheless, Amat still outpaced Vietnam’s Ngo Van Chinh, Japan’s Taichi Yui, Sung A Phu -also Vietnam- and Wilsen Singgin. The difference between Van Chinh and Yui - double race winner in Laos this season - was just over a minute. Van Chinh and Sung A Phu come from Sapa and are part of Hau Ha’s team. Both aim to qualify still for the ATM Championship Final in their home country at Mu Cang Chai Ultra Trail next month.

The women’s 50km saw the top favourite delivering the goods: Angelie Cabalo from Philippines wanted her name on the TMBT winners’ list and she achieved that in great style. Cabalo finished in 8h15. That was half an hour ahead of Singapore’s Zoe Tan, who has a subscription on second places in ATM races this season. For Zoe Tan, TMBT 50 was her third. The battle for third was interesting with long ultra specialist Adelinah Lintanga taking the podium ahead of the surprising Bruneian Ainul Mahmud. Melissa Ellexter did a great job to finish fifth and remains very much in the running for a spot in Team Malaysia next month.

Next weekend we still have another Malaysian Championship Qualifier. This time further south on Borneo island, in Sarawak: Jagoi Ultra. A 70km race that will be the last chance to score points this season.

While it was scorchingly hot and dry in Borneo TMBT Ultra last weekend, the weather couldn’t have been more different in Shiga Kogen 100 in Japan. A total wet race, which due to the elevated altitudes the race is held on also meant colder temperatures. Last year, Hisashi Kitamura won this race, the last qualifier in Japan for this season’s ATM Champonship, but he opted for his beloved TMBT race instead.

Takumi Sawayanagi was fastest last weekend , taking his first ATM race victory ahead of Nagisa Itagaki and Kazuki Matsumura. Kento Ikeda and Koji Sunaga completed the top five. Golden Grandmaster Tomohiro Mizukoshi had a difficult run , suffering from lower back pain and would finish outside the Top 25.

In the women’s 100km race, it was the experienced Sachi Nakano taking the win. Kirari Oi finished second, which propels her into her country’s top five in the ATM points ranking. Kirari Oi is thus qualified for the upcoming ATM Championship Final in Vietnam. Kumi Katagiri was third in the race, followed by Yuka Okusawa and Chihiro Matsumura.

Anyone who thought that Hisashi Kitamura had enough of Borneo TMBT Ultra after finally winning the 109km classic race last year was pretty much mistaken. The Karate Kit will be back again this Saturday morning in Sabah, Malaysia, for his final ATM qualifier ahead of the Championship Final in Vietnam in five weeks’ time. However, his big rival of the past years, local star Milton Amat, won’t be competing against him this year. Milton has chosen to go for the 50km race this weekend, and so has Wilsen Singgin.

And yet, we should also not expect a walk in the park now for Hisashi Kitamura, even though he has appeared as strong as ever in the few races he has ran in Japan this season. The younger elites of the Sabahan runners, such as Oswald Maikol and Willy Wilson, will certainly try to follow him and be motivated to beat him when possible. Maikol has even won the 109km race already, in the year - 2024 - when the ATM Championship Final was held at TMBT on a slightly shorter and unique course. And let’s not forget Bernardo Linus, who had a great performance at BUTM earlier this year. Even Kitamura has had weaker days, also at TMBT where he will start for the sixth time this weekend. Four times second place, and one liberating victory against Milton Amat last year. The big goal for him comes early October. If the stars align for him and it doesn’t get too muddy in Vietnam, Kitamura will be more than ready to challenge John Ray Onifa and the other top guns for that so. far elusive ATM Champion title.

The women’s 109km looks more open as has become the norm in Malaysia this season. No outstanding favourite perhaps, but with Harlin Richard - second in the current ATM Malaysia points ranking behind Ryehana Jap who is running the 50 this weekend. An opportunity for Richard to take her first ATM race victory after podium places at KAR and BUTM this season. Also Lolitah Lintanga features on the 100k start list, contrary to her sisters Jessica and Adelinah, both aiming for the 50. A good result could push Lolitah back up inside her country’s top five in points ranking, which leads to automatic qualification for the ATM Final coming soon.

Ryehana Jap has been one of the revelations in Malaysia this season, competitively speaking. As a local Sabahan, she will be keen to take the top step on the podium. However, she doesn’t enter the race as the top favourite. That role should be assigned to Philippines’ Angelie Cabalo. One of the top elite runners in Southeast Asia of the past few years and a double race winner already earlier this ATM season. In May she won the famous H1 , Hardcore 100 Miles in her first attempt at the distance. Before that, Cabalo also was victorious in Sierra Madre Trail Ultra. A strong result this weekend could put her in Team Pilipinas for the ATM Final with just 3 races. Besides the aforementioned Lintanga sisters, there’s a few more contenders such as in-form Halimatun Sa’adiah and Singapore’s Zoe Tan, second in Mantra and in UTSG this season.

Milton Amat and Wilsen Singgin inevitabiy rank as the ones to beat in the men’s 50km. The main question is who will beat who. Until last year, the answer would have been Milton, but Wilsen had him a couple of times since then. TMBT 50 also has a special finish line, with a steep uphill climb at the very end. The 50k here also always brings about some new faces. One of them to be reckoned with is Vietnam’s Sung A Phu, coming from Sapa. Who says ‘ Sapa ‘ thinks of Hau Ha. Sung A Phu, indeed, is part of her team. Also Japan’s Taichi Yui, who won both races in Laos this season, is on the start list.

Running back in time

It’s very tough, yet also very popular. The 9 Dragons in Hong Kong has opened registration for its next edition on 27 and 28 February 2027, exactly one year after hosting our S10 Championship Final. All attention returns to the 50/50 stage race with 50 mIles on Saturday and 50km on Sunday. Who will be the successors of Nepal’s Man Kumar and Japan’s Yuri Yoshizumi, high-profile winners of this season’s edition?

The unique 50/50 stage race category and the 50km single race category will again be the qualifier races for the ATM Championship points ranking, while the 50/50 and the 50 Miles (87km) single race category also give finishers a point for their Grandmaster Quest. Registration is already open via the official event website, linked below. Do not wait too long because the 9 Dragons sells out in advance!

Taking place in Hong Kong’s New Territories, the 9 Dragons is one of those relatively few events in Southeast Asia that places a healthy emphasis on competitive performance, while at the same time showing heaps of respect towards every single finisher on Sunday afternoon. The marquee event, the 50/50, is essentially a stage race and merely turning up on Sunday morning at the start of the 50km long second stage is arguably tougher than the elevation gain to be conquered during the two runs. Some runners disintegrate during the 50km, others just seem to come alive. It makes for unpredictable situations and surprising changes of fortune at the front of the race, ultimately what sports fans enjoy to see.

Total elevation gain for the 50/50 is approx. 8079 hm. The 50 miles (84km) has 4600 hm and the 50km (53km) has a serious 3500 hm. The 9 Dragons is a challenge for everyone every year again. The not-so-fast runners should also keep an eye on the clock, especially on Sunday. Keep moving is the message. The reward is bliss.