Expected race winners on the very tough 100km at Brah Yang Trail Summit near Dalat in Vietnam last weekend. The event is organised by the same team as Prenn Trail Summit and is a new entry on our Championship and Grandmaster Quest calendar this season. Le Trong Nghia took the men's victory in 24h35, less than 12 minutes ahead of experienced Hoang Huu Thang. In third overall was the fastest woman: Le Thi Hang in 28h20, showing how hard this race is. (video below). Third on the men's podium is Mai Quang Trung. Second female is Loc Thi Phuong Anh and Pham Ngoc Dan Chau completed the podium. The finish times say enough about the difficulty level of the race. Some argued it is indeed the toughest race in Vietnam.

The 50 km was won by pre-race favourite Nguyen Dang Quang in 8h06. He preceded Trung Nguyen - winner of Kalaw 100 in Myanmar last month - by a comfortable margin. Hoang Van Hon took third, just ahead of Tran Thanh Tan. For Hoang Van Hon it was a disappointing end to his race, which he led earlier but then went off course for a long time. The same happened to Quang Tran, who returned to trail running after spending past two years on the road. He finished 9th, also absorbing penalty time for gear infringements. The women’s race was won by Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc in 10h41. Le Thi Khanh Dung was second and Nguyen Dang Quynh Nhu third on the podium.

Also the 50k at the Brah Yang Trail Summit is very technical for a trail race in the Dalat area. Local competitors are said to have a significant advantage, having spent time to train on the terrain.

For Nguyen Dang Quang and Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc it is the first ATM race win. Their performances boost the hopes for a strong Team Vietnam at the Season 11 Championship Final at Mu Cang Chai Ultra Trail on 3 October.

With special thanks to Trung Nguyen

Season XI of the Asia Trail Master Championship series continues this weekend with the Brah Yang Trail Summit in Vietnam, a new entry on our Championship calendar. From the same organisers as Prenn Trail Summit, this event features two qualifiers with ranking points: 100km and 50km. On the start list we find a few names of runners whom we have not seen in quite some time.

On the men’s 100km, for example, we find none other than Quang Tran. For a long time considered the benchmark for male trail running in the country, Quang focused on marathon and road running over the past two years and longer. Brah Yang will be kind of his return to long ultras. He will be up against several other strong trail runners such as recent Kalaw Ultra Trail Run winner Trung Nguyen and last year’s Brah Yang race winner Nghia Tran. Also, Russia’s Evgenii Makarov is a contender - he was second behind Trung in Myanmar a month ago.

The women’s 100km sees the presence of Loi Luong, fourth in our Season 9 Championship Final at Borneo TMBT Ultra in 2024. Loi has kept a low profile since and has actually been out of general competition running for quite a while. Let’s see what she can do in Brah Yang against other strong Vietnamese contenders such as Le Thi Hang.

On the 50km we are looking forward to the performance of Nguyen Dang Quang . The talented youngster is a local and the Brah Yang area is his training ground making him the one to beat. Last year, he still had to leave victory to the aforementioned Nghia Tran - who is running the 100k this weekend. Lots of runners on the start list of the 50km, though, so we might just as well get to know a new name, too!

Quang Tran

When trail runners think of Dalat in Vietnam, they generally see runable, gently rolling pine forest trails passing by several coffee and tea plantations. Time for something spicier. Brah Yang Trail Summit promises to cater for the lovers of tougher mountain terrain and high elevation runs. Organised by Unique Events & Media that also brings you Prenn Trail Summit, this event from 6 to 8 March will show a different side of the wider Dalat region and offers two qualifiers for the ATM Championship points ranking (100km and 50km) and also two Grandmaster Quest distances (100km and 70km).

Already last year, when Brah Yang was a Candidate Race, runners were surprised by the diversity of terrain. The 100km is a challenge. Starting at 9pm on Friday, runners have 37 hours to complete the course and conquer the nearly 9000 metres of elevation gain.

Conquer Brăh Yàng, Yan Doan, Ba Mountain, Co Tien Peak, and many other summits within a mighty mountain range.  At the same time, be immersed in the symphony of old-growth forests and cascading waterfalls, listening to the deep mountain sounds. Lose yourself in mythical tales weaving through each summit, live among the cultural richness of the K’ho people, and bask in the stunning natural beauty.

The 50km is a challenging yet breathtaking route that takes you to the legendary Yan Doan summit. As the website reads: “ To reach it, you’ll journey through an endless pristine rainforest where sunlight filters through the canopy, birds sing melodiously, leaves rustle in the wind, streams babble urgently, and your footsteps crunch softly over a carpet of forest leaves. It's peaceful and strangely enjoyable.” The 50km race has a total elevation gain of nearly 3500hm, making it one of the toughest of the season! The start is scheduled for Saturday at 5 am, making it a daytime race for most. Lucky, the temperatures in Dalat usually remain moderate. The cut off time is 21 hours.

Grandmaster Quest runners can also choose the 70km category with 5200 elevation gain. 

No matter which distance you pick, this is a race to prepare for physically and mentally. You can find all details via the website below, and stay up to date via the event’s facebook page. Make sure you read through the mandatory gear requirements and general race regulations when signing up. The host venue is the Kala reservoir irrigation dam at Di Linh Cultural Park. To get there you can take busses from Ho Chi Minh City, or domestic flights to Liên Khương International Airport in Đức Trọng (Dalat), from where you can take taxi or grab.

It is a trail blockbuster weekend in Vietnam with the Vietnam Ultra Marathon points race event in Mai Chau in the north, and Brah Yang Trail Summit near Dalat in the south as an ATM Candidate. Organised by the URS Team that brings you Prenn Trail Summit towards the end of each year, Brah Yang has attracted quite some Vietnamese trail stars including Loi Luong and Nghia Tran. The 60km main race stars at 9 pm on Saturday evening, meaning it is mainly a nighttime race.

As it is an ATM Candidate Race, there are of course no points to be scored. Loi Luong can afford to side-step away from VUM as she already has two big results in the pocket this season and is the top ranked Vietnamese female in our current Championship ranking. For Nghia Tran it is a bigger gamble. He scored a great second place in Lam Dong Trail last November, but certainly requires at least one more good result to finish the season in the top five of the men’s ranking and receive the invitation to join his country team in the ATM Finals at Mu Cang Chai Ultra Trail on 4 October. The same applies for Nguyen Van Chung, second in Prenn Trail Summit last December, and also choosing Brah Yang over VUM this weekend. And so are a few others solid local runners. Plenty of ATM points races still to go this season, however, and the attendance of many competitive runners certainly makes a great case for the new event, Brah Yang Trail Summit.

A few other expected contenders for the podium are To Tan Tai, Dau Tuan Kiet and Nguyen Dang Quang (4th in Lam Dong Trail). In the women’s 60km race, there is also Nguyen Thi Nguyet (2nd place in VTM), Truong Vo Bich Phuong and perhaps the young Kon Tap Trang.

Loi Luong choosing this weekend’s ATM Candidate over VUM

Nghia Tran

One of the female podium contenders: Truong Vo Bich Phuong

We are happy to announce a new Candidate Race in Vietnam, organised by the Unique Events & Media team that also brings you Prenn Trail Summit. Brah Yang Trail Summit takes place in Di Linh in Lam Dong Province and features 60km, 35km, 27km and 10km options with the longest category scheduled to start on Saturday night. .

Brăh Yàng Mountain is a place with a lot of spiritual value in the region. The race will go through the wild terrain of Brăh Yàng peak and other large and small mountains in the middle of the vast Di Linh plateau. The trail course will see a lot of green tea hills, but also goes through coffee fields and villages of the K'Ho Sre ethnic group. Those choosing the 60km need to be aware of the elevation gain in the race: 3900 hm, which is quite serious. The highest altitude is 1848m above sea level, so runners should also be mindful of potential chilly conditions.

Information on accommodation options and transportation can be checked on the comprehensive event website, linked below via the button. Important to note for international runners is that you can fly to Liên Khương International Airport in Đức Trọng, which lies between Dalat and Di Linh. From Ho Chi Minh City there is a bus travel time of approx 7 hours, so you might wish to opt for the domestic flight instead.