S12 of the ATM Championship season opens with Luang Prabang Trail

When one season ends, the next one is ready to go! Last week we were still in Vietnam celebrating the new ATM Champions at the final race of Season XI in Mu Cang Chai, and now we are already in neighbouring country Laos for the opening of Season XII. Just like a year ago, Luang Prabang Trail hosts the seasons opener with its 75 km race starting at 5:30 am local time on Saturday.

All runner accounts have been reset, everyone starts back from zero and the qualifying for next year’s S12 Championship Final begins! The regulations have remained exactly the same for the new season, i.e. winners of ATM Championship Qualifiers score 500 points, second place gets 450, third place 425 and so on until rank 25 in the race result. Each runner’s best four races will be taken into account for the final points ranking at the end of the season. The best five men and best five women will be automatically invited to join the Final - scheduled to take place in another exciting location in Myanmar by the end of October. Indeed, it will be a few weeks later due to the world championships of trail running taking place early October. Check out the regulations in any case, there’s also some bonus points for people who do a race abroad and for people who finish in the top 25 of a 100 miler (or longer). Everything is as transparent as ever and can be consulted on our dedicated webpage.

As previous seasons have shown, it hasn’t become easier to win or score Top 10 in our annual Championship, but achieving that and even just qualifying for it has therefore also become all the more rewarding for efforts done over a period of twelve months.

Luang Prabang Trail takes place in a great location for the opening of S12. A UNESCO World Heritage City, former capital of Laos, and an event that appeals to genuine trail enthusiasts. Deliberately kept ‘boutique-style’ by organisers Green Step to avoid overcrowding on the precious trails around the city and its nature reserves. The 75 km race course was introduced last year and has an estimated elevation gain of 2780 hm. That sounds moderate, but participants should not focus on the numbers here. If anything were proven in 2025 it was the underestimation of the difficulty level. First of all, we’re in Laos and surrounded by rainforest - it’s going to be hot and potentially humid.

Japan’s Taichi Yui was the men’s winner in 11h28 - with quite a gap on the other contenders. For Yui it was the first step towards a very successful Season 11 campaign, in which he finished 12th and second Japanese behind Kitamura last weekend. In other words, Taichi Yui is a serious competitor and he needed 11h28 for the 75km here. Fastest woman a year ago was Vietnam’s Luong Dong Anh in 20h04…

Looking at the start list for this weekend, we first of all see the names of three Golden Grandmasters - two of which have even already become ATM Legend: Philippines’ Mario Yap and Malaysia’s Kenneth Mun Keat Yow. Both seem to be going head-to-head in their attempts to finish the Trail to Immortality, introduced in January for runners who have completed the four levels of the Grandmaster Quest. Mun Keat Yow, by the way, ran the open public race at Mu Cang Chai last week, too! The third Golden 4-star Grandmaster on the start list is also from Malaysia: Munin Sundram. The trail runner from Taiping has had a relatively quite year hampered by injury and is basically returning to the scene this weekend, hoping for better luck in Season 12.

Among the expected victory contenders we are looking forward to T8 athletes Isaac Yin Tse King in the men’s and Jessica Lam Hoi Yee in the women’s. For Isaac it will be a step up in competitive distance, being known in Hong Kong for excelling in shorter distance races. Indonesia’s Yanizar Surydratama could be a great guide for him. Already once on the podium in Laos in the other event, V-Trail, Surydratama - running for Salomon - proved to be in good form just over a month ago at the ATM Candidate Race Tunggul Melati Trail in Selangor, Malaysia. Good old Thailander Santi Phongsraphang can also never be underestimated when he feels good on the day. Just like Amorn Kimnguan and Monthatip Rakpan, Santi did run Mu Cang Chai last week also, though. In Laos, there’s also always expat runners showing up who could create the surprise. Philippines’ Lauron Rizalyn could also be a podium contender in the women’s 75k race.

ATM will be broadcasting live from Luang Prabang on Saturday with start and finish, and produce the usual video and text updates throughout the day.