“The Following Year”

This is a post mostly for myself, but having spoken to a few other folks it seems there was some confusion on how elites can qualify directly for the Finals in Chamonix by placing in the top 3, or top 10 (at Majors), and how this plays out in reality.

From the official UTMB website:

The qualification period for the UTMB Finals is the calendar year prior to the finals, Events and Majors in 2024 will qualify for the 2025 UTMB World Series Finals.

I never parsed this sentence correctly and not until I chatted with Chrissi Faber for Singletrack (will post episode this weekend!) who came in 3rd at the Tarawera Miler last month, was I made aware of this.

All races in 2024 will allow you to qualify directly for 2025. Not for 2024. This qualification window is closed. So… seemingly, if you race, and place in any of the races in this calendar year you won’t be able to make it “last minute” to Chamonix. That window is closed, as of 12/31, 2023, and your last chance for direct qualification via placement was in Thailand at the Doi Inthanon by UTMB events.

IMPORTANT: this only addresses the direct qualification process by placing in the top 3/top 10 and not the index selection process: If your Index is high enough you can get special considerations that are beyond this post.