Tait Hearps wins fantastic Kosci50 duel while Kate Avery underlines class in women's race

Australian-based runners took the 50km titles at the 2024 Ultra-Trail Kosciuszko by UTMB as Tait Hearps (AUS) and Kate Avery (GBR) came out on top.

Hearps took out the win in the Kosci50 men’s race in 4:10:05 after an exciting battle with two-time Olympian Ben St Lawrence (AUS), who eventually finished just a minute behind Hearps in second. Tom Driscoll (AUS) rounded out an all-Australian men’s podium.

In the women’s Kosci50 race, Melbourne-based British runner Kate Avery (GBR) once again demonstrated why she’s one of the best 50km runners in the country with a gun to tape victory.

Brilliant battle

“I’m pretty exhausted, but very happy. I’m stoked, I came here hoping to win, and it was definitely a pretty solid field, I knew Ben would be really hard to beat. I was a bit nervous and wanted to just go out and give it a crack and start strong and also enjoy the course, which I did, it was stunning. I suffered a bit at the end but managed to hold on,” said Hearps.

The Coffs Harbour runner was at the front of the race from start to finish, jostling for the lead with St Lawrence before pulling away through the middle sections of the course.

“We started together and then I just had a relatively solid pace, and then we hit that first descent, which was so fun, it was just super flowy and smooth, and I felt like it was quite controlled. I definitely wasn’t bombing it, but let it rip and had fun with the descent. I managed to get a bit of a gap there and then just rolled through the valley,” said Hearps.

St Lawrence was able to claw back the gap as the pair ascended to Eagles Nest, the final checkpoint, with Hearps experiencing some sickness as he reached the top of the climb. Fortunately for Hearps, he was eventually able to recover well enough to hold of St Lawrence over the final 4km descent to the finish line in Thredbo to take out his first UTMB World Series race win.

“I guess I had a decent gap by Thredbo [Village Green checkpoint] but I really suffered on that last climb and was just shuffling by the end, vomiting quite a bit at the top and really expecting to see Ben pop out around every corner. I just managed to hold the gap at the top and then held on down the descent.”

‘Running scared’

“I’m feeling pretty wrecked right now, but I actually feel quite emotional because I just didn’t expect to run as well as I did, so I’m super pleased to pull it out. It’s great to have so many friends and family here as well, it’s pretty special to be here,” said Avery after her success.

During the early and middle sections of the race, Avery managed to gap Kimber Mattox (USA) with around 30 seconds, and eventually pulled away to victory in 4:43:52 – more than seven minutes clear of the American in second. Norwegian runner Vilde Moser (NOR) completed an all-international podium, crossing the line in 5:00:18 to secure third place.

“I was definitely running scared, especially that last descent because that’s definitely not my strength, so I just thought I had to keep moving. But the first long descent, I feel like it was so early on, I didn’t want to absolutely annihilate it down there, even though you’re still moving down it, I tried to somewhat stay controlled. So I think that’s where the gaps came back together, but overall I just felt like I ran my race.

“The support is fantastic, there’s people most of the way around the course, besides the far climb. The support is amazing, and the course is beautiful. It was great,” she said.

Avery’s win today means she has claimed the 50km title at both of Australia’s UTMB World Series races, having won Ultra-Trail Australia by UTMB in May, and she also finished second at New Zealand’s Tarawera Ultra Trail by UTMB in February.

Kate Avery wins women's Kosci50 2024 [Photo credit: Sportograf | UTMB] — Kate Avery wins the women’s Kosci50 [Photo credit: Sportograf | UTMB]

By finishing on the Kosci50 podium, the top three men and women secured direct qualification into the OCC (50km) race at the 2025 UTMB World Series Finals in Chamonix, France.