Wondering About the Competitiveness of UTMB

Exactly a year ago, in the lead up to a historic 2022 edition of UTMB in Chamonix Zoë Rom asked the question in Trailrunner:

“Will 2022 Be The Last Big UTMB?”

Now, looking at this year’s lineup I think we can easily answer Zoë’s question with ‘NO’. The lineup for both the men’s and the women’s races looks absolutely stacked. And UTMB has found a way to create a system that ‘ostensibly’ let’s the every day runner accumulate their stones and get through the lottery to fulfill their dream to run around Mont-Blanc while at the same time keeping the attractiveness high for pros that they are willing to do what it takes to get to toe the line in Chamonix. In turn UTMB is doing everything in their power to find ways to tweak their rules to enable pros to obtain a bib with Courtney Dauwalter and Mathieu Blanchard being the latest pro runners confirming their attendance for 2023.

Given, it is pretty easy for UTMB right now, with absolutely no other races in the world even remotely in the same echelon when it comes to attractiveness for runners, pros, sponsors, brands and the media. The spectacle that is UTMB in Chamonix each August is unmatched.