Held on November 22-24, 2024, RMB Ultra-Trail Cape Town will be the final race, in the first edition, of the Gran Canaria sponsored World Trail Majors Series.
The World Trail Majors is a non-profit association formed by 10 independent trail running events with the aim of promoting the sport… ‘in a diverse, sustainable, and respectful way that aims to safeguard the original spirit of trail/ultra running.’
The association is formed by Anta Hong Kong 100 Ultramarathon, Black Canyon Ultras, The North Face Transgrancanaria, Mt FUJI 100, MIUT – Madeira Island Ultra-Trail, Swiss Canyon Trail, South Downs Way 100, Quebec Mega Trail, Grand Raid des Pyrenees and RMB Ultra-Trail Cape Town. 2024 is the inaugural year for the race series.
The Ultra-Trail Cape Town headline race is 98km with 4972 m of elevation gain, taking in the scenery surrounding Cape Town.
With the World Trail Majors Series rankings still to be finalised, the race action is expected to be highly competitive in Cape Town as some of the best runners in the world challenge to be listed on the honours board in the inaugural edition of the long-distance trail running series.
The Cape Town event takes place in the Table Mountain area, the iconic mountain next to Cape Town where the ocean can be seen on both sides of the mountain.
Ultra-Trail Cape Town was first run in 2014 with just 40 runners and a fifteen-hour time limit, so tight that only 14 runners finished the race in this time.
In 2023 the cut-off was 24 hours, but 27 athletes finished in the fifteen hour time limit of the first race and were rewarded with a special medal called the ‘Original medal’. 66 countries were represented in 2023, with the event now a key ultra running destination on the African continent.
With technical sections, steep climbs, and sandy beaches, the RMB Ultra-Trail Cape Town – or simply UTCT – is an event with plenty of varied terrain where all-terrain skills are required by the runners as changes in pace and terrain are a continuing feature of the race.
The race starts at 04:00 local time, when temperatures can be cool, in single digits, even though summer is beginning in the southern hemisphere, with temperatures reaching around 30ºC in the middle of the day.
www.ultratrailcapetown.com
www.worldtrailmajors.com
