Race director Lizzy Hawker says, “for comparison, I think it’s harder than the TDS, albeit shorter. For all but about 5 or 6 km it's all single track and mountain trail.” This thought is supported by the 28 hours cut-off and expected winning time of at least 15 hours.

Competitors will be focusing on the three big passes with continuous, arduous climbs of 1400m, 1600m and1400m respectively. The biggest climb, to Passo Turlo, meaning ‘small door’, is an ancient path used since the thirteenth century, paved with stone by prisoners of war in the 1920s. Monte Moro pass was already known in Roman times as important trading route between north and south.

And more recently smuggling of cigarettes and booze on mules.

At the summit, the Golden Madonna stands with her back to Switzerland, almost warning you not to go on saying “stay in Italy, dear runner, the food is better!” Indeed the descent is technical bare rock, which can make for a memorable experience in the dark. It’s not quite the usual civilised welcome into Switzerland, but a reminder, as if it was needed, that Switzerland is definitely mountain country.

The Ultra Tour Monte Rosa also includes a 170 km race as an ultra and in four stages, so 100 km competitors will be sharing the trail, overtaking tired 170km runners, and in turn being overtaken by super fresh 4-stage racers. All share a well deserved celebration of their efforts in Grächen on Saturday 8th at the close of the race.

Does the world need another 100 km race? “Possibly not,” says Hawker, “but there’s a lot of interest in this distance, and, if you are going to make a race, you may as well make one that packs a punch.”

Registrations for all races are open now at www.ultratourmonterosa.com .

Contact Lizzy Hawker at [email protected] or WhatsApp: +977 980-3158709 for more information.

The Ultra Tour Monte Rosa is partnered with On and Smartwool

About On

On is a young Swiss sports company based in Zurich (Switzerland), Portland in Oregon (US), Yokohama (Japan) and Melbourne (Australia) with one simple mission: make running fun. A team of sports scientists, world-class athletes and designers spearheads this mantra.

On running shoes are winning technology and design distinctions all over the world - most recently the ISPO Gold Award 2018/2019 for the best performance running shoe. World Champions and elite athletes win constantly in On.

On’s ingenious CloudTec sole is patented worldwide. Eight years after market launch,

On is available in more than 4,000 specialist running stores in over 50 countries.

About Smartwool

Based in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, Smartwool is a 24-year-old apparel brand whose products are inspired by living and playing in the mountains. All Smartwool® products come with a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and are created to get the most out of the inherent benefits of Merino wool. For information on the full range of Smartwool® products or to find a dealer near you, please log onto www.smartwool.com . Smartwool, a division of VF Outdoor, LLC, is a brand of VF Corporation. For event and company updates, visit us on

Facebook www.facebook.com/smartwool and Twitter www.twitter.com/Smartwool .

Grächen, Switzerland. Jan 25, 2017