After an exciting Vertical Nasego the previous day, won by Nina Engelhard and Patrick Kipngeno, attention turned to the 25th edition of Trofeo Nasego. With many of the same athletes lining up for both races, there was little doubt that Stage 13 of this year’s World Cup would be fiercely contested.

Trofeo Nasego has steadily grown in stature over the years, becoming a regular fixture on the international mountain running calendar and playing host to both Italian Championships and World Cup races. This year’s field reflected that status, bringing together reigning and former World and European champions, World Cup winners and leaders, alongside a new generation of athletes looking to make their mark.

All eyes were on Casto as the field gathered, on another hot day, for one of the most established races on the mountain-running circuit.

Saturday, 5^th September 2026. Casto, Italy hosted the opening leg of a demanding double-header this weekend, with Vertical Nasego serving as stage 12 of the WMRA World Cup before stage 13 follows on tomorrow at Trofeo Nasego. Conditions matched the intensity of the racing, with temperatures climbing into the 30s and testing athletes across both fields.

Vertical Nasego ranks among Italy's most demanding uphill-only races, and its reputation is well earned. The 4.2km course starts gently enough, but gradient increases sharply in the closing stages - nearly half of the route's 1,000 metres of elevation gain comes in the final kilometre alone. The terrain grows steep enough that competitors are forced to use their hands for parts of the last section.

After the drama of Sierre-Zinal, the Mountain Running World Cup returns this weekend with a different kind of test. Vertical Nasego and Trofeo Nasego bring a double-header to northern Italy, drawing many of this season's leading contenders alongside some of the sport's most decorated names - and a seven-nation team competition that adds a further edge to proceedings.

Zinal, Switzerland, 8^th August 2026

For more than half a century, runners from around the world have travelled to Sierre, Switzerland, to take on the 31-kilometre journey to Zinal, beneath the backdrop of the Alps’ 4,000-metre peaks. Now in its 53rd edition, Sierre-Zinal once again brought together the world’s best mountain runners, all chasing one of the most coveted titles in the sport, and it delivered one of the most interesting races we have seen in several years.

With former winners such as Philemon Ombogo Kiriago, Caroline Jepkoech Kimutai (both KEN), Maude Mathys (SUI) and Sophia Laukli (USA), on the start line, as well as a large number of exciting runners who broke into the top 10 here last year, both the men’s and women’s fields had huge depth and unpredictability. Serving as both a Golden Trails and WMRA World Cup race, the level of competition was incredibly high.

This weekend the 2026 Mountain Running World Cup rolls into Switzerland for one of the highlights of the mountain running calendar – Sierre -Zinal. First held in 1974, Sierre-Zinal is recognised as the oldest race of its kind in Europe.

Sierre-Zinal is the World Cup’s next long mountain race and it is stage 11 of this year’s competition. Known as ‘la course des cinq 4,000s’ or ‘the race of the five 4,000-metre peaks’, its iconic 31-kilometre course climbs 2,200 metres from Sierre before descending 1,100 metres into Zinal.

Sierre-Zinal has been part of the WMRA World Cup since 2019, and since then has provided the backdrop for some of the most competitive World Cup stages ever witnessed. Now celebrating its 53rd edition, the legendary Swiss race remains unique as the only mountain-running event in Europe bringing together two of the sport’s biggest international circuits: the WMRA World Cup and the Golden Trail World Series.

The current records belong to Kilian Jornet (ESP), who ran 2:25:34 in 2024, and Maude Mathys (SUI), who recorded 2:49:20 in 2019. Prior to Jornet finally beating the men’s record in 2024, it was held by Jonathan Wyatt (NZL) for 16 years. Wyatt is now WMRA World Cup Manager, strengthening the link between the WMRA and Sierre-Zinal still further.