The Season XI (11) Champions will be crowned at Mu Cang Chai Ultra Trail in Vietnam in ten days from now, but the overall Points King and Queen of the season are already known. Hiroyuki Matsuda from Japan and Kimberly Flores from Philippines!

Both runners score more ATM Championship points than anyone else in their male and female categories during the course of the season that started with Luang Prabang Trail in Laos mid-October 2025 and lasted until - de facto - Borneo TMBT Ultra and Shiga Kogen 100 at the very end of August. Matsuda scored 1925 points in his best four races of the season, which included three big race victories: BUTM 105, BTR Bali 100 and Mantra 116. Partially based in Indonesia, Matsuda’s engine really got going in Sabah in April. Before BUTM, he ran slightly under the radar with two fifth places in Tahura Trail and 9 Dragons 50km, although that may just as well be an indication of where his real strength lies: the longer ultras. Matsuda preceeds his compatriot and 2023 Points King Hisashi Kitamura by 25 points. Running fewer races than in previous years, largely due to his relocation to Tokyo from Kuala Lumpur, the Karate Kit nevertheless still grabbed a second place at Deep Japan Ultra and two big race wins at the end of the season (Minamiaso Caldera Trail and TMBT), raising his total to 13 career ATM race wins. Kitamura hopes to finally clinch the ATM Championship title in Vietnam, after finishing second already twice in 2024 behind Jeff Campbell and 2019 behind John Ellis. Third place in the Season XI points ranking is for Kik Suello from Mindanao in the Philippines, confirming his upward trajectory to becoming one of Asia’s finest trail runners with also two race wins: Sierra Madre Trail Ultra and Hardcore 100 Miles (H1).

Kimberly Flores started her journey towards the top of Mindanao’s female trail running pyramid already back in August 2025 when she won The Punisher 80km on Samal Island. As Shally Yuson struggled with injury for most of the season, Flores continued to score race win after race win in Season XI: Mount Apo Sky Race, New Corella Trail Ultra, MUSPO and Marilog Ultra. In between was also a second place at Hardcore 100 Miles, behind the country’s leading lady from Luzon, Angelie Cabalo. Flores is one of many young trail talents who have come to the foreground in Mindanao over the past few years. Overall ATM Points Queen with 2000 points, the upcoming Championship Final in Vietnam will be her first big race abroad. It will be interesting to see how she fares outside Philippines. Japan’s Chisato Kario already knows everything about racing outside her home country. Fifth in last season’s Championship Final, and now second in the overall points ranking with 1715 points. In April, she collected a victory at BUTM 50 in Malaysia as well. Third in the ranking is Singapore-based Filipino Mia Revilla with 1705 total points. A new name this season and just like Chisato Kario and Hiroyuki Matsuda BUTM played a big role in her campaign: Revilla won the women’s 100km at that event.

The full ATM Points Ranking of Season XI can be consulted on our dedicated webpage. The ranking determines qualification for the seasonal ATM Championship Final, which this year is held in Vietnam at Mu Cang Chai Ultra Trail.

Hiroyuki Matsuda booked his first ATM victory at BUTM 100. BTR Bali 100 and Mantra 116 would follow.

Kim Flores also finished her first ever 100 miles race in 2nd place: Hardcore 100 Miles in early May.

Godwin Mirar and Rejlen James are the overall Points King and Queen, respectively, of Season 10 in the Asia Trail Master Championship series. Both scored 2000 points in total, more than anyone else in four races during the season that began with Dieng Trail Run in Indonesia last year and ended with Ijen Mountain Marathon, also in Indonesia, earlier this month. Godwin Mirar succeeds Wilsen Singgin on the palmares, while Rejlen James follows Julieann Morales. 

The ATM Points Title neatly reflects the maturity Godwin Mirar has gained over the past months, after a rocky start of his season. First, he DNFd together with Kristian Joergensen as the duo went off course in Lam Dong Trail, and then the 25-year-old Filipino saw a near certain victory slip out of his hands in the final section of a bitterly cold Vietnam Trail Marathon. A couple of months later came the reset. Godwin Mirar ran his home race in Bukidnon, Mount Kalatungan Ultra, and took his first ever ATM race victory. Barely two months later, he impressed everyone with his showing in Penang Sky Race - taking his second win in superb style. Two wins, a fifth place and a DNF did not suffice to qualify for the highly competitive Team Philippines, so Godwin added The Punisher and Borneo TMBT Ultra to his race schedule in August. On Samal Island he collected race win number three, in so doing eliminating the DNF in Lam Dong from his points tally. He also crossed the finish line first at TMBT, but a mandatory gear infringement relegated him to second place afterwards. Still, he also deleted the 375 points of VTM and replaced it with 450 of TMBT and in so doing ended up with 2000 points, also including the 50-point Abroad Bonus for having traveled to at least 1 race abroad. In the final points table, he has 75 points more than 2024 ATM Champion Jeff Campbell and Singapore’s Chris Timms. His Filipino compatriots Roberto Cain III and Kik Suello are fourth and fifth in the final ranking of the season, indicating once again how dense the competition in his country is. 

Godwin Mirar will be one of the logical race favourites in Saturday’s ATM Championship title race. If he can keep his nerves in check and his head cool, Mu Cang Chai Ultra Trail may very well be his real international breakthrough. 

Rejlen James once again proved she is the trail Queen of Sabah this season, winning in all three major events: BUTM, KAR Ultra and Borneo TMBT Ultra! Combined with a second place behind Nepal’s Dilu Limbu in Trail des Gombak 100, that also results in 2000 points for her four best races of the season. She collected the 50-point Abroad Bonus for traveling to Philippines and do Sierra Madre Trail Ultra in the Rizal mountains near Manila. Given James has a reputation for struggling when racing abroad, she actually did well in that race also: second place behind local hero Cecille Wael. Overall, a highly consistent and impressive season again for Rejlen James, who deservedly takes the ATM Points Title this year. In the final ranking, she preceeds Philippines’ Shally Yuson (who clearly made a step forward in performance this season) and Kuala Lumpur-based Filipino Ritzy Amor - another exciting newcomer this season, combining trail running with boxing, muay thai and wall climbing. 

Rejlen James will not be claiming her spot in Team Malaysia for the ATM Championship Final this coming Saturday. Despite very good race results also in the 2023 and 2024 seasons, she could not deliver the same performance in the Finals and has therefore decided to give it a miss this year. Her place in Team Malaysia has been taken by first reserve Yvette Chong Mi Chin from Sarawak, a very busy bee in our ATM series who sees her perseverance rewarded with a second qualification for the Finals after the first in 2022. 

Men’s Overall Top 10 of Season 10

1. Godwin Mirar (PHI) 2000 points (6)

2. Jeff Campbell (CAN/HKG) 1925 (4)

3. Chris Timms (GBR/SGP) 1925 (4)

4. Roberto Cain III (PHI) 1900 (5)

5. Kik Suello (PHI) 1875 (5)

6. Kristian Joergensen (DEN/PHI) 1825 (5)

7. Muhammad Faris (MAS) 1775 (4)

8. Wilsen Singgin (MAS) 1775 (4)

9. Hisashi Kitamura (JPN) 1715 (4)

10. Oswald Maikol (MAS) 1700 (4)

Women’s Overall Top 10 of Season 10

1. Rejlen James (MAS) 2000 points (5)

2. Shally Yuson (PHI) 1925 (4)

3. Ritzy Amor (PHI) 1825 (5)

4. Adelinah Lintanga (MAS) 1630 (4)

5. Shekinah Velasquez (PHI) 1590 (4)

6. Lalitah Lintanga (MAS) 1580 (4)

7. Metzi Joy Alson (PHI) 1555 (4)

8. Cecille Wael (PHI) 1480 (4)

9. Nurul Emyra Fazira Isnariah (MAS) 1470 (4)

10. Yvette Chong Mi Chin (MAS) 1460 (8)

Season IX is approaching its big and exciting conclusion at the Championship Final hosted by Borneo TMBT Ultra in Malaysia in just under a month’s time. Points have been scored since mid-December last year, and the qualifiers in each country have been identified. The five highest male and female scorers per country in our ‘best-of-four’ points system will team up to compete for the individual and team championship titles, provided they have completed minimum two races on our calendar during the past nine months. Indeed, this has also been the shortest competitive season since our inaugural championship in 2015. Popular demand made us move forward the date of our Championship Final towards Q3 rather than the end of the year.

It will be the third year in a row that the ATM Champions will be crowned following a 1-day shoot-out between the best performers of the season in our series. A format that has definitely boosted excitement and anticipation for trail running fans and Asia’s competitive-minded trail runners. For some, just being part of their country’s team in the ATM Final is the goal, but for the elites it is a real opportunity to focus, challenge and test themselves against runners hailing from the same region or continent. A chance to be in a proper race for podium, prizes and recognition before a potential step further up the ladder at the sport’s global level.

Regularity also matters in sport and any elite can have a bad day on the day of the Championship Final. Hence, we also like to highlight the runners who in the course of the past season have scored the highest points totals: the Points King and the Points Queen. This year, the honour goes to Malaysia’s Wilsen Singgin and Philippines’ Julieann Morales! Both athletes have totalled 1900 ATM points in four races, more than any other male or female runner.

Wilsen Singgin managed to score two ATM race wins and, interestingly, both in the 50km medium distance category. The Sabahan has been around since 2019 and built up a reputation as one of the strongest and most technically-skilled long ultra runners in Southeast Asia, but this season his focus has very much been on the 50km - with great success. Younger than Sabah’s stars Milton Amat, Gustin Tiam and Daved Simpat, Singgin looked a bit stuck last year but his increased running pace this year has boosted his performances again. To the extent, he might just as well pull off an upset at Borneo TMBT next month - particularly if it were to be a wet and technical race. In the final points standings, Singgin preceeds Filipino Jevie Cagatin, who scored 1800 points, and fellow Malaysian Mohd Sulhan with 1750.

Davao’s Julieann Morales was outstanding from December to March when she won Mount Apo Sky Race 100, Bagtit Ultra 100 and Mount Kalatungan Ultra 80 and all three in great style ahead of other qualifiers for the ATM Final. It gave her a safe margin to take a rest from the ATM circuit and see what the others are doing. However, as also Angelie Cabalo found out, three race results - even though all victories - are insufficient in Philippines with so many strong competitors and a ‘best-of four’ points system. Even though Morales was unable to win her fourth race - The Punisher - and could only take 4th place after arriving late at the start line, she still totals 25 points more in the overall ranking than second-placed Adelinah Lintanga from Malaysia, and 50 more than Rejlen James, also Malaysian. Julieann Morales is our Points Queen of Season IX. Let’s hope she can also make it to Borneo TMBT. Morales has never traveled abroad and is currently awaiting the delivery of her (first) international passport.

Forever competitive: Wilsen Singgin won in Simpur and KAR this year

Three victories in four ATM races: Julieann Morales had one heck of a season

For the first time ever this year, the Asia Trail Master Championship was decided in a winner-takes-the-title race between qualified runners in national country teams of maximum five men and five women. Those runners qualified by scoring the most ATM points throughout the 2022 season: an easy, transparent, fair and non-arbitrary system. Arnie Maceneras from Team Philippines and Hau Ha from Team Vietnam were the strongest runners in the ATM Championship Final and were crowned as the new champions accordingly. Nevertheless, it’s nice to take a look at the final points scoring table of 2022 as well. With our 50-point ‘abroad bonus’ added, for running at least one race outside your country of residence, Hau Ha is also clearly the number one in the women’s ranking as she remained unbeaten in four ATM races. Her masterpiece was of course winning the 100km of Vietnam Mountain Marathon overall. During the ATM Final on Mt Apo, Hau Ha showed mental resilience, too, after a difficult start and finding herself chasing another woman for the first time: Vanja Cnops, who herself scored 3 ATM wins in 2022 and is a great second in the final ranking. Ultimately, however, Hau Ha still put a lot of distance between herself and the others with an incredible descent of Mt Apo, and it went to show that the exciting Vietnamese newcomer on the scene is ready to go global next year. Cnops is second in the ATM points ranking, ahead of another great Southeast Asian newbie, Sally Yap from Sarawak in Malaysia.

In the men’s ranking, however, it is Japan’s Hisashi Kitamura who finds himself on the number 1 spot. The ‘Karate Kit’ collected 2000 ATM points in 2022, with three race victories (Echigo Country Trail, Cameron Ultra and The Punisher) and a 2nd place in Borneo TMBT 100. Those were his best four results that counted for the ranking. He also was 3rd in Vietnam Jungle Marathon and BUTM 100, 18th in Izu Trail Journey and 5th in the Mt Apo Sky Race. All in all, it was Kitamura’s best season ever, even though a performance dip in the autumn and a bad spell of covid before the Final made most people forget that. Kitamura was happy with fifth in the final race, on a course that was not his. Heading the ATM’s final ranking is a nice price of comfort for him, ahead of a year that may see some changes in his professional career that could also impact his running ambitions. Yet, Kitamura will play a role again in 2023, no doubt. Sabah’s Milton Amat also had his best season ever, to the point a lot of people feared he would run totally out of gas by the ATM Final. He came just five minutes short of catching Macaneras in the Championship-deciding race, after the Filipino had dropped him earlier in the last section of the Mt Apo summit attack. Amat is second in the ATM points ranking, ahead of Macaneras.

Looking at the Top 10 below, there’s a great mixture between race winners, multiple podium placers and consistent points-scorers.

Congratulations to everyone, have a smooth rest and a great end-of-year party before reloading the batteries for Season VIII of the Asia Trail Master Championship series starting at UTKC in Thailand on 21 January. Everyone’s points tally goes back to zero and a whole new story begins!

ATM Final Points Ranking 2022 - Men

1. Hisashi Kitamura (JPN) 2000 pts

2. Milton Amat (MAS) 1950 pts

3. Arnie Macaneras (PHI) 1875 pts

4. Mohammad Affindi (MAS) 1830 pts

5. Wilsen Singgin (MAS) 1700 pts

6. Thimo Kilberth (GER/INA) 1665 pts

7. Jeffery Budin (MAS) 1530 pts

8. Amir Zaki (MAS) 1505 pts

9. Gaetan Morizur (FRA/VIE) 1450 pts

10. Thang Hoang Huu (VIE) 1445 pts

ATM Final Points Ranking 2022 - Women

1. Hau Ha (VIE) 2050 pts

2. Vanja Cnops (BEL/SIN) 1975 pts

3. Sally Yap (MAS) 1900 pts

4. Cecille Wael (PHI) 1800 pts

5. Halimatun Sa’adiah (MAS) 1670 pts

6. Thi Lan Huong Vu (VIE) 1645 pts

7. Julie Ann Morales (PHI) 1640 pts

8. Irish Glorioso (PHI) 1600 pts

9. Emily Raga (PHI) 1570 pts

10. Izzah Hazirah (MAS) 1500 pts