Without doubt the GOAT (Greatest Of All TIme) of mountain running, Kilian Jornet Burgada has been dominant in the sport since 2007.

A four-time Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) winner and course record holder, six-time Skyrunner World Series champion in the Sky division, with three more titles over the Ultra distance, he has dominated the ultra racing scene with victories and records in numerous major races. He won his fifth HardRock 100 in a course record time in 2022.

Born in October, 1987 in Sabadell, Catalonia, Spain, Kilian Jornet grew up in the Refugi de Cap de Rac in the Pyrenees mountains, giving him the perfect environment to tackle the mountainous terrain that would pave his future successes. 

Ski mountaineering became a huge part of his early life, beginning aged 12, and competed at the La Molina race of the Spanish Cup in 2000. He became a junior member of the Spanish national ski mountaineering team in 2003, becoming a senior member three years later. 

Kilian Jornet gained elite athlete status in 2004 from the Consell Català de l’Esport and Consejo Superior de Deportes, and won the prestigious Premi d’honor d’esport català in 2004, 2005 and 2006. 

Away from ultra-running, Kilian Jornet summited Mount Everest twice on May 22 and May 27, 2017. 

Kilian Jornet Record and Results 

Kilian Jornet’s list of achievements is unrivalled. His first success at the Sky Running World Series came in 2007, a feat he repeated a year later in addition to his Skyrunning, Ultra and Vertical Kilometer European title in 2008. 

2008 was also the first UTMB success for him before 2009 brought further success at the Skyrunning World Series and UTMB. 

A second Skyrunning, Ultra and Vertical Kilometre European Championship followed in 2011 – as did his third success at UTMB –  before the double success of a Skyrunning World Series and Ultra Running World Cup titles in 2012.  

More success followed in 2014 where, for the first time, he took home the three prestigious titles of Skyrunning, Ultra and Vertical Kilometre European champion, Skyrunning World Cup champion and Ultra Running World Champion. He also became the Vertical Kilometre World Champion for the first time. 

Kilian Jornet had to wait until 2018 to record his next Skyrunning World Series title, and in 2019 he added a maiden Golden Trail Series Championship to his trophy cabinet. 

In addition to his championship winning prowess, Kilian Jornet enjoyed a vast amount of success in individual races. 

In addition to his successes at HardRock, he is a nine-time winner of the Zegama-Aizkorri, six-time winner of Sierre Zinal, four-time winner of Trofeo Kima, two-time winner of Recormdan Ultra Pirinu and three-time victor of the Winner Vertical KM Fully. 

In 2022, Kilian Jornet returned to UTMB and became the first person to complete the course in a time under 20 hours (19:49:32) 

His sister Naila Jornet Burgada and his partner Emelie Forsberg from Sweden also compete in ski mountaineering and skyrunning events. Since February 2016 Jornet and Forsberg have been living in Rauma, Norway. 

Jornet and Forsberg have two children, born in March 2019 and April 2021.