World Trail Majors welcomes
Vietnam Mountain Marathon to Global Stage
Sapa’s Vietnam Mountain Marathon (VMM) has been accepted to the exclusive list of just 12 races on the World Trail Majors circuit, alongside some of the most historical and prestigious ultra trail events worldwide. This puts Vietnam’s trail running firmly on the global stage, establishing it as one of the premium mountain running destinations in the world.
With the inclusion of Vietnam Mountain Marathon as part of the The World Trail Majors, Vietnam now sits alongside Australia, Canada, France, Hong Kong/China, Japan, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, the U.S.A and the United Kingdom as nations with a race in this prestigious group.
World Trail Majors is a non-profit alliance of 12 emblematic events, many of which first laid the seeds of trail running in their respective nations, just as Vietnam Mountain Marathon kick started trail racing in Vietnam when it became the first ever ultra trail race in the country, back in 2013.
Each World Trail Major offers runners the very best of its region, with each race hosted by passionate, experienced teams whose common goal is to share the greatest possible trail event with their runners.
Some of the key races Vietnam Mountain Marathon is now aligned with include the USA’s Black Canyon Ultras presented by Hoka; South Africa’s RMB Ultra-trail Cape Town; Portugal’s MIUT-Madeira Island Ultra-Trail and Spain’s The North Face Transgrancanaria. Alongside VMM, two other Asian races are on the circuit: Japan’s Mount Fuji 100 and the Anta Hong Kong 100.
RMB Ultra-Trail Cape Town Race. Photo: Fahwaaz Cornelius
Alongside providing a curated bucket list of iconic races, the World Trail Majors offers a ranking system and overall championship prizes for elite, professional runners.This year’s female World Trail Majors joint champion is the USA’s Courtney Dauwalter, arguably the greatest female ultra runner of all time.
Photo: Courtney winning at MtFUJI 100 ©Fuji Hakone Izu Trail Support
Representing World Trail Majors, Steve Brammar, Race Director of the Anta Hong Kong 100 recently came to Vietnam Mountain Marathon 2024 to experience the race first-hand. He said: “The World Trail Majors is an alliance of the world’s most beautiful trail races. Each race is a passion project and celebration of gorgeous places, collective effort and trail running spirit.”
“With its epic landscapes, welcoming villages and strong community ties, Vietnam Mountain Marathon is a perfect fit for this group and we are delighted to welcome the VMM team.”
Janet Ng of World Trail Majors and President of the International Trail Running Association (ITRA), also came to this year’s Vietnam Mountain Marathon, running the 50km distance.
Janet said: “It is an absolute pleasure for us to welcome the Vietnam Mountain Marathon into the World Trail Majors. The breathtaking mountain views, the incredible organization by the team, and the warm support from local communities make this race truly special.
The villagers along the route with their smiles and the high-fives from the kids gave us the energy we needed to keep going. I am sure you will all enjoy this beautiful and authentic race that also has a meaningful impact by generously supporting local charities.”
Race Director of Vietnam Mountain Marathon and the full Topas Vietnam Trail Series, David Lloyd, said: “We are proud to join together with the 11 other great races that comprise the World Trail Majors, seeing it as a great opportunity to unite together with world class races.”
“Now that we have made it through the application, race inspection and voting process, we look forward to bringing the beauty of Vietnam’s oldest trail race and the country’s trail culture to the world.”
“With a history dating back to 2013 and thousands of runners from 50 nations taking part, Vietnam Mountain Marathon is truly one of the friendliest and most welcoming races you could wish for. This friendliness, combined with incredible trail scenery and the culture of the many ethnic groups create an experience that truly lives up to the World Trail Majors tagline as a Race of a Lifetime.”
VMM Vice Race Director and COO of organiser Topas Travel Vietnam, Tran Ngoc Quan, has been part of the event since its inception. He said:
“VMM being recognized as one of the World Trail Majors is a tremendous honor, a testament to all the effort, passion that Topas team have invested in this event since 2013. It also brings a responsibility to strive to make the race even more successful.
We hope that the Vietnam Mountain Marathon being welcomed into the World Trail Majors is not just seen as an achievement of the Topas organising team, but also a victory for the community that loves trail running in Vietnam, and a source of national pride on the international stage.
Vietnam Mountain Marathon is about more than simply running trails – it is about supporting the community, developing tourism, and promoting Vietnamese culture to the world.
With VMM having the quality stamp of the World Trail Majors, the event, and Vietnam, is truly on the global mountain running stage.”
At VMM, the flagship World Trail Majors distance will be the VMM100km with 5,500m gain, but 70km, 50km, 21km and 10km trails also take mountain runners on incredible routes through Vietnam’s Northern mountains and small villages.
Alongside the great variety of trails, Vietnam Mountain Marathon is known for its mountaintop finish line lodge, where runners stay long after their finish to enjoy an awesome party atmosphere, complete with good music, fires and even two mountain top infinity pools for the ultimate recovery session.
The whole race, from expo to finish party, is famed for its friendly atmosphere, with the local runners warmly welcoming international runners to their trails. The people of Sapa also come out in force to support the race, which is by far the biggest annual international event in the town.
Vietnam Mountain Marathon is proud of its strong charitable ethos – it is part of the Topas Vietnam Trail Series, which has now raised over USD 500,000 for charity.