Trail & Ultra Weekly Recap — March 16–22
Story of the Week: Dauwalter's Chianti Masterclass
The race of the week — arguably the race of the early season — was theChianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120kin Tuscany, Italy (March 21–22).
Courtney Dauwalter's late pivot to Tuscany from the storm-hit Tenerife race paid off in spectacular style, as the ultrarunning GOAT swooped late to overhaul Norway's Yngvild Kaspersen for the women's title in the 120km Chianti Castles race — finishing 10th overall.
Dauwalter had been set to race the 110km Tenerife Bluetrail by UTMB but extreme weather forced organizers to cancel just days before the start, leaving her suddenly without a race. She quickly landed on the Chianti start list as a last-minute entry.
The race itself was a thriller. Dauwalter, Kaspersen, and Rachel Entrekin (USA) were still locked together at the Teneta Perano checkpoint at 87km. Approaching 100km, Kaspersen moved a fraction clear, and with 15km remaining she was two minutes ahead of Entrekin, who in turn had a minute on Dauwalter. Then Dauwalter turned on the afterburners. She crossed the line in 11:31:55 to claim the win.
In the men's race, France's Thomas Cardin pulled away from a five-man lead group, with Italy's Andreas Reiterer second and France's Vincent Bouillard third.
What it means: With her Chianti win, Dauwalter qualified for both the 2026 Western States 100 and UTMB — setting up a potentially unrivaled season, should she choose to accept both invites. She declined her Western States Golden Ticket, but the speculation about her summer plans is now in full swing.
IAU 50k World Championships — India (March 16)
The field raced on a 10-loop course with just 32 women and 44 men, with the event having been pushed back from December 2025 due to air quality concerns. By 15km, Naomi Robinson (Great Britain) had already secured a commanding lead, going on to finish nearly four minutes ahead of every other woman.
On the men's side, Alex Milne took gold in 2:46:09, with compatriots Charlie Davis (2:47:14) and Logan Smith (2:47:29) completing a full British podium sweep. The first 19 men all finished under three hours. A historic day for British ultra running.
US Weekend Racing
At the Two Prairies 50k, both course records fell — Scott Hoover winning in 4:45 and Jessica Lane in 5:28. Elsewhere, at White Tank Mountain Regional Park in Arizona, Mandi Goudie and Matthew Bradner won the 50 miler in 11:48 and 9:06 respectively.
Key results at a glance
🥇 Chianti Ultra Trail 120k (W): Courtney Dauwalter — 11:31:55
🥇 Chianti Ultra Trail 120k (M): Thomas Cardin
🥇 IAU 50k World Champs (M): Alex Milne — 2:46:09
🥇 IAU 50k World Champs (W): Naomi Robinson
🏆 Two Prairies 50k (M): Scott Hoover — 4:45 (CR)
🏆 Two Prairies 50k (W): Jessica Lane — 5:28 (CR)
Looking Ahead
Next up on the UTMB World Series is a triple-header weekend on April 9–12: Desert RATS Trail Running Festival in the US, Istria 100 in Croatia (168k), and Ultra-Trail Mogan in China. Big racing incoming!
