UTMB 2021: ‘rebirth’ sees Mont Blanc trail races return but with fewer Asian runners
- ‘Beautiful to be able to organise UTMB again,’ says co-founder Michel Poletti after event was cancelled last year
- Asian hopes carried by Hong Kong-based trio in men’s race and Japan’s Kaori Niwa but they face tough challenge from Europe and US
Between August 23-29, the world’s best trail runners will go head to head in the Alps, competing in seven different races up to 300 kilometres long. The main race, that gives the whole event its name, is the UTMB – the 170km circumnavigation of Mont Blanc.
UTMB co-founder Michel Poletti told the Post that after the uncertainty and lockdowns, it was “beautiful to be able to organise UTMB again.” He called the return a “rebirth”.
Poletti explained that, because of France’s “pass sanitaire” – a nationwide electronic health pass, made compulsory during the UTMB, the event will proceed largely as it did pre-pandemic. The only differences will be runners starting in waves, and food and drink at checkpoints handed out by volunteers rather than the runners helping themselves.
Another difference is that because of the pandemic, Asian representation at the 2021 UTMB will be much reduced.
