News - Wed 12th Sep 2018 - Welcoming The World's Best To The Scottish Highlands - Salomon Skyline Scotland

Welcoming The World's Best To The Scottish Highlands

12th Sep 2018

The greatest line up of mountain runners the UK has ever witnessed is gathering in Scotland this week for the 2018 Salomon Skyline Scotland™ event, which plays hosts to the Skyrunning® World Championships (13-15th), the Golden Trail Series (15th) and the MIGU Run Skyrunner® World Series (16th).

After four biennial International Skyrunning Federation (ISF) World Championships held in Italy, France and Spain, this year the Scottish Highlands welcomes 2,000 runners from almost 60 countries to race the VK, SKY and ULTRA disciplines. 

 
We're ready, are you?

We're in town and ready to go! Hello Kinlochleven! Are you ready for #SkylineScotland 2018?

Posted by Salomon Glen Coe Skyline on Wednesday, 12 September 2018

 

Marino Giacometti, ISF President, commented, “We’re very proud and pleased to present the 2018 World Championships in the beautiful Scottish Highlands and, with the organisation of Skyline Scotland, we are confident the events will be a perfect showcase for Skyrunning attracting the world’s best athletes for some intense competition on this technical terrain.”

Additionally, the SKY category race also counts in the new Golden Trail Series. The Golden Trail Series combines five of the most iconic short-distance trail races on the planet into a dream tour for both athletes and fans. The series tears up the rule book on prize money, with a mammoth prize pool to be shared equally amongst the overall top 10 men and women at the Grand Final in South Africa.

 

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Preparations for the 2017 Salomon Ben Nevis Ultra™. 2018 build started on Tuesday 11th this year. 

 

Greg Vollet, Salomon Running Global Sports Marketing Manager says, "We chose the Golden Trail Series races because they are the most exciting races to follow where the winners aren't decided until the very end,” Vollet continued, “Five legendary races full of adventure, emotion and competition, each celebrating a key component of the spirit of trail running. Zegama has the best fans, Mont Blanc Marathon has the best scenery, Sierre-Zinal is the fastest, Pikes Peak has the altitude and Ring of Steall is very technical. So, this is the best of the best."

The fourth and final day of competition is saved for the flagship Salomon Glen Coe Skyline® race, which features in the MIGU Run Skyrunner® World Series and its world class reputation for sheer brilliant, technically demanding terrain and difficulty was confirmed by 2017 winner Kilian Jornet who said, “What a cool race! Glen Coe Skyline is absolutely the one to do!”

The 2018 Salomon Skyline Scotland™ races are:

 

VERTICAL - Salomon Mamores VK®: Thursday 13th September

The celebrations open with the Salomon Mamores VK on Thursday 13th September. The race has already proven to be a destination race (already on the Vertical Kilometer® World Circuit in 2017) with its very Scottish take on the Vertical Kilometer® format. Over a 5km distance, the route gains 1,000m from sea level, initially on good trails before breaking out of the tree line and tackling the flanks of Na Gruagaichean direct. This section is steep and rough, before a wonderful rocky ridge leads to the 1056m-high Munro summit with panoramic views in all directions.

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GB runner Jon Albon - 2017 EXTREME Skyrunner® World Series Champion will be racing in the ULTRA in 2018 ©guillemcasanova.com

 

ULTRA - Salomon Ben Nevis Ultra™: Friday 14th September

The ULTRA world champions will be determined at the Salomon Ben Nevis Ultra™ on Friday 14th September. The new Salomon Ben Nevis Ultra™ course has been redesigned for this Skyrunning® World Championships and naturally still incorporates the spectacular summit of Britain’s highest mountain, Ben Nevis. The route is 52km with 4,000m of ascent, but avoids the most technical ground in contrast to the revered Salomon Glen Coe Skyline® race on Sunday.

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2017 Salomon Ben Nevis Ultra™ winner Donnie Campbell will be challenging the world's best - Check the Start List! ©guillemcasanova.com

 

SKY - Ring-of-Steall-Skyrace: Saturday 15th September

The Salomon Ring of Steall Skyrace® race has proven a popular choice for runners and the 2018 edition will decide who are the SKY World Champions on a classic 29km Skyrunning course that features 2,500m of vertical climb on uncompromising mountain terrain that includes easy scrambling, steep ascents, ridge traverses and technical descents. This race also counts in the Golden Trail Series, in which it is the final race to decide who attends the series final in South Africa next month. A huge amount is at stake for the elite runners.

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Spanish Skyrunner® Laura Orgué won the Salomon Ring of Steall Skyrace™ in 2017 and will race again, but will likely face intense competition from awesome British athletes like Victoria Wilkinson (2017 British Fell Running Champion), Holly Page (with win after win in the 2018 MIGU Run Skyrunner World Series) and Annie Conway (2016 WMRA Long Distance World Champion. Check out the START LIST©guillemcasanova.com

 

For a full preview of the athletes taking part in the 2018 Skyrunning® World Championships please refer to the International Skyrunning Federation press release:
"2018 Skyrunning World Championships – heading for the Scottish Skylands"

 

Salomon Glen Coe Skyline®: Sunday 16th September

The Salomon Glen Coe Skyline® is broadly considered to be one of the most challenging mountain races in the world and follows in the finest tradition of the most prestigious Skyrunning races, fusing mountain running and alpinism in a pure test of speed, endurance and skill on an uncompromising, world-class course. The route features long and sustained sections of scrambling terrain, which is roughly equivalent to moderate standard rock climbing. The 2017 edition was won by Skyrunning superstars Emelie Forsberg and Kilian Jornet, both setting new course records.

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Kilian Jornet storms to a new course record at the 2017 Salomon Glen Coe Skyline®. Will he be able to defend his title in 2018? Check out the START LIST

©guillemcasanova.com

 

Coverage of the events continues here on our website and social media - #SkylineScotland - with live results from Thursday and GPS tracking Friday-Sunday.

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