The World Mountain and Trail Running Championships have so far been living up to their name. More than 1,300 athletes from 68 countries around the globe participate in four contests – the Vertical, the Trail Short, the Trail Long and the Mountain Classic – giving it their all on the challenging courses. We have spoken to participants from Nepal, Mexico and Zambia, who act as representatives for athletes from Asia, Latin America and Africa.
Nepal has sent a total of three athletes, including Asia’s top ultra runner, Sunmaya Budha. She has participated in a vast number of international races and, according to the ranking of the ITRA, the International Trail Running Association, is the eighth-fastest runner over 100 kilometers. Budha is going to compete in the 86.9-kilometer Trail Long on Friday, along with her teammate Arjun Kulung Rai. “We want to demonstrate our potential as a world-class mountain and trail nation,” says Sunmaya Budha. Nepal is best known as the land of the eight-thousanders, but also has amazing trail terrain to offer. Nepalese athletes, including Dawa Sherpa, Bhim Gurung and Mira Rai, have been active in the scene for a long time - and very successfully.
The two World Cup runners from the Himalayas “know about the challenges of growing up in the remote villages of a poor country. We are amazed at the modern progress that is possible here in the villages of this region,” says Budha. The athletes are traveling with their team leader Preeti Khattri. They inspected parts of the course and were at the Hoadl and the first checkpoint. “The landscape is as beautiful as around our home towns in the Himalayas, but the lifestyle is very different from ours,” says the 24-year-old athlete. Sunmaya Budha dropped out about halfway through Friday’s race, while Arjun Kulung Raj came in 50th place.
Coming from a completely different part of the world, the Mexican participants represent the indigenous Raramuri people from the Sierra Tarahumara. It is their first attempt at the World Trail Running Championships; last year in Chiang Mai, they didn’t participate. With Antonio Ramirez and Onorio Tomas, two Raramuris are going to compete in the Trail Long. “For us, running is part of our daily lives, as we walk 30 to 50 kilometers a day to get to other places in the mountains,” says Onorio Tomas, 25.
The Raramuri live in the mountainous regions of Mexico's north-east, towards the US border. In Mexico, they participate in mountain runs to earn money for food. “We run in our typical regional costume and our special running sandals,” says Tomas. The so-called huaraches are made of rubber material and can last over a distance of up to 300 kilometers. Onorio Tomas and his teammate Antonio Ramirez are opting for Mexican food during the competition, getting energized by burritos (corn tortillas with beans) and Pinole (roasted corn that’s ground up and dissolved in water). “We only drink and eat natural products,” says Onorio Tomas. The athletes have already competed in races in Japan, Canada, Hawaii, the Czech Republic, the United States and Spain. They finished the Trail Long in Innsbruck-Stubai in 49th (Onorio Tomas), respectively 118th (Antonio Ramirez) place.
Karl Midlane from Zambia is a relatively unknown contestant, but one that is no less likable. The 27-year old is his country’s only participant at the World Championships. Midlane was born in Zimbabwe, but for professional reasons, his family moved to Zambia, Zimbabwe’s neighbor to the north, in 2013. The former tennis player got into trail running through friends who took him to the mountains around Cape Town. He got hooked immediately and last year, he finally decided to go abroad and compete in international races. He turned the globe and his finger tapped Innsbruck almost intuitively.
“In January I flew to Innsbruck - with just a few hundred euros in my pocket and without a plan. All I knew was that I wanted to build a life here. What I did do was let my country nominate me for the World Cup,” says Midlane. Trail running is still under the radar in Zambia, but Karl Midlane wants to help set up a trail running association after his year in Innsbruck. “We have great terrain and very strong runners. At home, I train with marathon runners,” he says.
He feels very comfortable in Innsbruck. “The community here accepted me very quickly, the scenery is stunning. And Innsbruck is very centrally located. From here I can access basically all the important races in Europe,” says Midlane. A day before the race, on Wednesday, he took a day’s leave from work. He finished Thursday’s race in 123rd place out of 185 participants. On Friday he’s back in the office, probably with badly aching muscles – but happy.
