The latest stop of the 2024 UTMB World Series is The Canyons Endurance Runs by UTMB which takes place on April 26-27.
More than 2,500 registered runners will descend on the historic gold-rush town of Auburn, California, an iconic destination in trail running and considered the birthplace of mountain ultras in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range.
The event features four different distances – 25K, 50K, 100K and 100-mile.
There’s the added incentive of this being the 2024 Americas Major for a second year in succession and not only does it offer all finishers additional opportunities to qualify for the UTMB World Series Finals held at the world’s biggest trail running event, UTMB Mont-Blanc, but it’s also a Golden Ticket Race for The Western States Endurance Run (WSER).
The top two male and female finishers in the 100K distance will win their place on the start line of the 2024 WSER.
Follow LIVE
We’ll be providing updates and reports on both the 100M and 100K races and you can track the progress of athletes in real time here.
And in a first for the UTMB World Series in the Americas, there will be LIVE broadcast coverage meaning that fans from around the globe can tune-in to watch the action as it happens.
The broadcast will feature the 100K race from start to finish, alongside replays and finish line action from the 100M, plus the start and finish of the 50K. In addition, global broadcast coverage will be available on L’Équipe in France, iQIYI in China and streamed on DAZN bringing worldwide visibility to a global audience.
The start and expected finish times (all local) for the races are as follows:
Friday, April 26
9:00 am – 100M race start – at China Wall
Saturday, April 27
Approx. 2:00 am – First finishers of the 100M race expected
5:00 am – 100K race start – at China Wall
Approx. 5:00 pm – First finishers of the 100K expected
6:00 am – 50K race start – High St. in Downtown Auburn
Approx. 9:30 am – First finishers of the 50K expected
7:00 am – 25K race start – High St. in Downtown Auburn
Approx. 8:30 am – First finishers of the 25K expected
The Canyons Endurance Runs by UTMB
start list
The full start lists for all four races – which are subject to change – can be found here.
Read on for our analysis of some of the star names who will be doing battle.
Notable runners
Route
For the first time, the 100-mile and 100-kilometer races will both start at China Wall and finish in downtown Auburn.
The 50 and 25-kilometer races will both start and finish in downtown Auburn.
Detailed course maps can be found here: 100 Mile Course, 100K Course, 50K Course and the 25K Course.
Analysis
Zachary Garner (USA, UTMB Index 853) and Canyon Woodward (USA, UTMB Index 812) will go head-to-head in the men’s 100M race, with Woodward hoping to improve on his third place from 2023, after losing the lead at 106 km.
His teammate, Elena Horton (USA, UTMB Index 705) started 2024 with a win at Black Canyons Ultras 50K and will be looking to bring that form to the front of the Women’s Elite race.
The 100K race features a who’s who of top elite runners, including 2022 UTMB Mont-Blanc winner, Katie Schide (USA, UTMB Index 801). She’s already qualified for Western States but will be using this as ideal prep.
The 2022 Canyons 100K and 2022 Western States winner Adam Peterman (USA, UTMB Index 931) also knows how it feels to win on this course, but will need to hold off strong competition, including 2022 CCC winner, Petter Engdahl (SWE, UTMB Index 925).
The depth and strength of the field continues in the 50K race. Dani Moreno (USA, UTMB Index 784), Jennifer Lichter (USA, UTMB Index 773) and Tabor Hemming (USA, UTMB Index 738) are amongst the top-ranked athletes in the Women’s race, while eyes will also be on Tokyo Olympic Marathon bronze medalist, Molly Seidel (USA, UTMB Index 640).
She was forced to miss the US Olympic Marathon Trials in February because of a knee injury and it remains to be seen what sort of form she’s in.
In the Men’s race, the 2023 The Canyons Endurance Runs by UTMB 100K champion, Cole Watson (USA, UTMB Index 881) and a series of world-class competitors, including Eli Hemming (USA, UTMB Index 912) and Daniel Jones (NZL, UTMB Index 905), are taking part.
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