A sea of people attended the start in Porto Moniz and gathered along the first few meters of the course, always encouraging the athletes, in an atmosphere that makes the MIUT a unique experience and a world-class race. At the start line and during the beginning of the 115 km race, the good weather helped the athletes.

One of the race's trademark images is the light from the athletes' lanterns, which illuminate Madeira's trails throughout the night. On the descent to Ribeira da Janela there is also a moment when the runners practically line up, forming zigzag lines of light, which offers unique images.

Ben Dhiman ahead at the first checkpoint

At the first checkpoint in Fanal, 14.5 km into the race, Ben Dhiman (ASICS) was in the lead with a time of 01:37:18 hours. He was followed by French Arthur Joyeux Bouillon and North American Jeff Mogavero, both athletes from On Running. The first Portuguese to pass through Fanal was Luís Fernandes (Ludens Clube de Machico) from Madeira, 1:28 minutes behind the leader, followed by Miguel Arsénio (SportHG).

In the women's race, French Anne-Lise Rousset (SCOTT) was first through Fanal after 01:52:37 hours. French Fiona Porte (La Sportiva) is second (01:53:08) and Italian Martina Valmassoi is third (01:54:15).

The 115 km MIUT race is attended by some of the world's elite athletes. Over the next few hours, the athletes will pass through nine other checkpoints: Chão da Ribeira, Estanquinhos, Encumeada, Curral das Freiras, Casa do Pico Ruivo, Pico do Areeiro, Chão da Lagoa, Portela and Porto da Cruz. The finish line will be in Machico.

In the 2023 edition, French athletes won the main race. In the men's race, Lambert Santelli (RC FURIANI) completed the 115 km in 14:01:26 hours. In the women's race, the first to cross the finish line was Manon Bohard (HOKA) in 15:48:58.

This year's edition has a record number of entries: 3,481 in total. 2,300 are foreign athletes. A total of 58 nationalities are represented. France, with 1,192 athletes, is the most represented country, followed by Portugal (1,003). The MIUT is one of the founding events of the World Trail Majors, the new world trail running circuit.

The event, organized by the Clube de Montanha do Funchal, is made up of races over five distances: 115 km, 85, 60, 42 and 16. The first four start this Saturday, April 27, while the shortest distance is scheduled for Sunday, 28, when the awards ceremony will also take place in Machico.

Entries per race in 2024: MIUT'115 km (1,051 athletes), MIUT'85 km (526 athletes), MIUT'60 km (547 athletes), MIUT'42 km (834 athletes) and MIUT'16 km (523 athletes).

The 85 km race starts this Saturday at 7 am in São Vicente. From 9 a.m., the athletes registered for the 60 km race will start the route in Boaventura. From 12 noon, the 42 km race will start in Monte, Funchal. On Sunday, April 28, the shortest distance, 16 km, will start in Porto da Cruz at 8 am.