Long-distance running is among the fastest rising discipline in the last 10 years, with an over 300% increase in participants. Adamello Ultra Trail aims to keep on trending upwards from September 23rd to 25th
Figures don’t lie: ultra-running as a sport is living its golden years. A joint research by RunRepeat and the International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU) has shown a huge rise in participation in the so-called “ultra” running races, i.e. those with distances over the marathon-length of 42.195 km, in recent years. At the end of the last century, the total number of practitioners at the international level was around 40.000 runner runners, compared to 610.000 of two years ago, before the start of the COVID pandemic a major leap of over 1600%, of which 345% in the last decade alone.
The trend is international and clearly visible: since 2009, the number of participants in ultra-running events has been higher than that of marathons, and since 2015 also higher than that of 5 km races. Among the Countries with the most athletes, Franceholds the overall lead, while Italy sits in 5th place worldwide, and grazes the top-10 (12th) for the ratio of ultrarunners related to the total population.
Adamello Ultra Trail has directly witnessed this growth: from the about 50 registrations of its debut season, in 2014, the Ultra Running event organised between Alta Val Camonica and Alta Val di Sole has reached 650 athletes in 2021, a threshold which the OC hopes to exceed in 2022. For the 8th edition of AUT, scheduled from September 23rd to 25th, the closed number of participants has been raised to 800overall for the three distances(170, 90 and 35 km).
One of the main triggers of this progression of the discipline is the willingness to immerse in the nature and experience stunning landscapes. That’s certainly the case for Adamello Ultra Trail, set in the Pontedilegno-Tonale area, . That’s certainly the case for Adamello Ultra Trail, set in the Pontedilegno-Tonale area, a territory devoted to outdoor sports all year round, from skiing to cycling, relying on stunning views, high-quality hospitality and the absolute dedication of its inhabitants to the beauties of the Adamello Park and Stelvio Nature Park.
Following a record year for overall attendance and international participations, the Paths of the Great War wait for another memorable event from September 23 to 25.
