The new ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Series got under way on 28-29 May at ÖTILLÖ Swimrun Utö in Sweden. No less than 19 nationalities and almost 750 competitors found their way to the island of Utö in the Stockholm archipelago to compete in the weekend’s swimrun races – ÖTILLÖ Swimrun Utö, a 39.8K qualifier race to the ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Championship, taking place on 5 September 2016, and ÖTILLÖ Swimrun Sprint Utö, a shorter sprint version of 12K.
The main race at Utö is a 39.8 km long swimrun where athletes alternate between trail running and open water swimming, around the beautiful but tough course on Utö and surrounding islands. The top teams are increasing their speed year on year and the Swedish brothers Jonas and Lars Ekman were the first team over the finish line as the only team under four hours with 3:56:49.
The 38.9 km long race is a tough course with varied, technical terrain including slippery rocks, tight trails in the forest, steep hills as well as gruelling long gravel roads and cold 9-12 degrees water of the Baltic Sea. There are 16 different swim sections, meaning 32 changes between running and swimming. The key is to be fast in and out of the water. Athletes run in their wetsuits and swim in their shoes.
Eight top teams qualify to the ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Championship: top 3 men, top 3 mixed, top 2 women. ÖTILLÖ is celebrating its 11th edition on 5 September 2016. 120 teams participate and 700 teams are on the waiting list. To make it to the finish line before the cut-offs and darkness athletes ‘can never stop’.
The next race in the ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Series will be held on 18 June, for the first time on the Isles of Scilly, a group of islands south west of mainland England.
