Malnad Ultra: first ATM points race in India

India is growing as a trail running destination and Malnad Ultra illustrates that fact as the first official points race in the Asia Trail Master Championship series. The 6th edition of the very popular event in the heartland of Indian coffee in Karnataka, Western Ghats, has two traditional race categories that provide points: 100km and 50km. The terrain, through hilly coffee plantations, is quite runable and explains the tight cut-off times given the distances.

More than 1200 people signed up for the event, which is taking place in a very remote area northwest of Bengaluru (formerly known as Bangalore). As the RD told ATM, do not expect to be able to perform any video livestreaming. It is part of the charm of Malnad Ultra to be away from every-day mobile connectivity for a few days.

ATM Grandmaster Shashwat Rao will be among the competitors on the 100km, having just returned from a strong run in South Korea at the Ulju Trail 9 Peaks. Shashwat has been all over Asia in the years 2018-19 and it is great to see him back post-covid. With a good result this weekend, he can qualify himself for the ATM Championship Final in Philippines on 17 December. Another Indian running star who can achieve that is Nupur SIngh in the women’s category. Earlier this year, Nupur traveled to Saudi Arabia just after she resumed training and scored a very solid second place. She has had global running goals this year, such as the world championship ultra road running, which is why we haven’t seen more of her afterwards. Dengue fever also hampered her progress. Dengue is pretty serious, so Malnad Ultra will be a test case for Nupur to see how well she has recovered.

ATM will be on-site during the event and will be reporting as much as the mobile connectivity allows.