Effectively, effectively, effectively, right here’s taking a look at you, 2025 Transvulcania Ultramarathon, and glad fifteenth anniversary!
This weekend, the island of La Palma in Spain’s Canary Islands, situated off the coast of Morocco, will collect a number of thousand path runners from world wide to compete in one of many occasion’s six races, together with its ultramarathon. The 73-kilometer (45.4 miles) extremely begins on the Atlantic Ocean, climbs to the highest of a series of volcanoes, reaches the island’s excessive level of two,420 meters (7,940 toes), and descends again to the ocean once more. Earlier than it’s over, although, there’s one final grunt of a climb as much as the end line within the metropolis of Los Llanos at about 340 meters (1,120 toes) altitude.
Alongside the best way, the route affords 4,350 meters (14,270 toes) of climbing. Distinctive to this course are its basic runability and lesser diploma of technicality than some European mountain ultras. That’s, the kilometers move shortly for a lot elevation achieve, and the course data present it. The data are 6:52:39 for the lads, a time standing from 2015 by Luis Alberto Hernando, and eight:02:49 for the ladies, set by Ruth Croft simply final 12 months.
Climate is at all times an element, with humidity just about assured together with some warmth. It’s widespread to see sea-level temperatures round 30 levels Celsius (85 Fahrenheit) on race day.
We count on to see Dmitry Mityaev, who has twice completed second at this occasion, American David Sinclair who’s coming off a historic course report on the JFK 50 Mile final fall, and Italy’s Andreas Reiterer, who races with a dependability that’s unusual within the oh-so-volatile ultramarathon racing scene, and others all vying for the lads’s win.
The race takes place on Saturday, Could 10, beginning at 6 a.m. Western European Summer season Time, which is Friday, Could 9 at 11 p.m. U.S. Mountain Daylight Time.
After a six-year hiatus at this occasion, which has included two race cancellations as a consequence of a world pandemic and a volcanic eruption, iRunFar is again on La Palma and masking the race. Keep tuned!
Make sure you additionally try our in-depth 2025 Transvulcania Ultramarathon ladies’s preview.
The beginning of the 2019 Transvulcania Ultramarathon. Photograph: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
Contenders for the Males’s Win
Dmitry Mityaev
Dmitry Mityaev, who races neutrally, has been omnipresent within the worldwide extremely scene for over half a decade, together with at this race. Mityaev has a triplet of second locations at this occasion amongst his 4 finishes, together with final 12 months. He does run a bit of hot-cold, so it’s doubtless we’ll see him sticking a podium end or not making it to the end line. Circumstances in level, within the final 12 months since taking second at this race, Mityaev has received the 2024 Mont Blanc 90k and the 2025 Extremely Pirineu 100k, however has dropped from each the 2024 UTMB and 2024 Extremely-Path Cape City 100k. Let’s see how this goes!
American David Sinclair has been a standout runner for a number of years, however his ascendancy in 2024 took his profession one other step ahead. To have a look at his high 2024 races, he began the 12 months with two wins at extra vert-y programs, the Damaged Arrow Skyrace 46k and Speedgoat 50k. Then he completely shook issues up with a historic, 10-minute course report on the longstanding JFK 50 Mile, operating 5:08 on the tremendous runnable course. On a course like Transvulcania’s, which includes quite a lot of vert over fairly runnable terrain, Sinclair’s skillset ought to serve him effectively.
Andreas Reiterer
So far as we are able to inform, Italian Andreas Reiterer has been to Transvulcania as soon as, in 2023, the place he took third, quarter-hour again from the winner. That stated, Reiterer has all of the path credentials pointing to a capability to win this occasion. He’s a prolific racer, and taking a look at his high outcomes over the previous couple of years reveals a pair of podiums on the 2022 and 2023 Path World Championships Lengthy Path, sixth place on the 2023 Les Templiers 80k, and a win on the 2024 Eiger Extremely Path 101k. Let’s see how he fares on this 12 months’s try at Transvulcania.
Slovakia’s Peter Fraňo seems to have completed Transvulcania as soon as, however that was again in 2018 when he was much less developed as a runner. Within the years since, Fraňo has been eighth and third on the 2022 and 2023 Path World Championships Lengthy Path, respectively. He’s additionally received three high CCC finishes, together with fifth, seventh, and second on the 2022, 2023, and 2024 editions, respectively. Will probably be actually attention-grabbing to see what he can do as a extra totally developed ultrarunner at Transvulcania.
Pablo Villa
Spain’s Pablo Villa is perhaps an outdoor shot on the win at this occasion, however one of the best half about ultramarathons is simply how usually the sudden occurs. Villa’s been to Transvulcania a few instances earlier than, racing within the high 10 of the extremely circa 2014 and 2015, and final 12 months taking sixth on the occasion’s marathon distance race. Villa in all probability has essentially the most strong racing resume of the highest males right here, together with operating on not less than 4 Group Spains on the Path World Championships, in addition to successful Transgrancanaria a pair instances and podiuming different instances. Again in 2023, he took second on the 2023 Infinite Trails 60k behind winner Dmitry Mityaev.
The 2023 Transvulcania Ultramarathon males’s podium (left-to-right): 2. Damien Humbert, 1. Dakota Jones, and three. Andreas Reiterer. Photograph: Transvulcania
Extra Quick Males
Spain’s Manuel Anguita is not any stranger to Transvulcania, with 4 prior finishes. This features a seventh place final 12 months, simply 17 minutes behind the winner in what was a decent males’s race. This was additionally his quickest time by some 20 minutes over all these years of racing. Additionally in 2024, Anguita was fifth on the Mont Blanc 90k and eighth at UTMB. None of us must be stunned if Anguita completed increased within the discipline this 12 months, given the robust racing he’s finished within the interim.
Andreu Simon
Andreu Simón of Spain ought to contend. Within the final couple of years, he’s had a pair of sixth locations on the 2022 and 2024 CCC, the latter of which was behind second place Peter Fraňo. He additionally received Transgrancanaria in 2023 and was third on the 2024 Les Templiers 80k. Earlier this 12 months, he received the tremendous runnable EcoTrail Paris 80k as effectively. Admittedly, he’s one of many high males I’ve not seen race first-hand through the years, so I’m trying ahead to seeing his mixture of expertise within the mountains and leg velocity.
Matt Daniels of the U.S. can be a enjoyable one to observe. An elite runner who has advanced to skilled teaching however stays actual quick himself, his high finishes over the past couple of years have included ninth on the 2023 Canyons 100k and second on the 2024 Chuckanut 50k.
Switzerland’s Ramon Manetsch is a kind of runners who appears due a podium at an internationally aggressive race. He’s to this point landed close to and within the high 10 of a number of of them, together with a twelfth place on the 2022 Path World Championships Lengthy Path, eighth on the 2023 version of the identical race, and seventh on the 2024 CCC. I ponder if this 12 months’s Transvulcania could possibly be his breakout?
Luis Alberto Hernando
Luis Alberto Hernando (Spain) is the males’s course report holder, three-time champion, and simply plain an icon of Spanish mountain ultras. Whereas he’s in all probability previous his days of competing for the rostrum — he completed twelfth at 38 minutes behind the winner at this race final 12 months — he has an excellent likelihood of a top-10 end. Hernando has at all times raced fairly selectively, and his final end appears to be like to be a second place on the Infinite Trails 60k final fall. It appears to be like like he tried to race one of many Spanish spring openers, the Penyagolosa MiM 58k, however dropped.
Just like the iRunFar crew, it’s been since 2019 that Spain’s Jordi Gamito has been to Transvulcania, and that 12 months he took eleventh place. Gamito’s been racing ultras for a very long time, and he’s nonetheless holding his personal simply high quality. To look via his high outcomes over the previous couple of years, he’s a perennial top-10 finisher on the Extremely Pirineu 100k, together with in 2022 and 2023, and he was third on the 2024 Madeira Island Extremely-Path 115k.
After I consider France’s Kevin Vermeulen, I consider excellence in medium-distance path operating, the stuff that’s possibly 4 hours lengthy or shorter. However he’s branched out so far as the 100k distance to this point, proving his skill on the longer distances as effectively. Taking a look at high performances in longer races, he was seventh and eighth, respectively, within the Canyons 100k and Les Templiers 80k final 12 months. And for shorter stuff, he received the 2024 MCC, which is 38k lengthy.
Lambert Santelli
We should always count on to see Lambert Santelli of France making some noise within the males’s race. Up to now, it appears to be like like his high races have been in 2023, when he received the Madeira Island Extremely-Path 115k and was fourth on the Diagonale des Fous. Somewhat over a month in the past, he was fifth on the 2025 Extremely Path Chianti 120k race, however was some 90 minutes behind the winner.
Santos Gabriel Rueda of Argentina is a kind of runners who’s at all times hovering among the many high runners. Whereas he has quicker and slower outcomes, he’s simply plain reliable. Rueda’s high kind through the years has in all probability been his thirteenth place on the 2023 UTMB. One other high outcome was tenth on the 2024 Transgrancanaria.
It’s at all times enjoyable to observe longtime ultrarunner, the U.Ok.’s Harry Jones, compete. Over the previous couple of years, his high outcome was an eleventh place on the 2022 Path World Championships Lengthy Path.
I’m keen to observe France’s Robin Juillaguet race, who appears comparatively new to the extremely scene. In 2022, he completed simply outdoors the highest 10 on the Les Templiers 80k, and in 2023, moved as much as end fifth, inside a second of Andreas Reiterer who took fourth.
Estanislao Rivero appears to be like to be the Canarian with one of the best likelihood for a high end within the males’s race. He’s completed Transgrancanaria not less than seven instances, together with 4 top-10 finishes — in 2025, he was eighth. He’s additionally raced Transvulcania a number of instances, however his final end appears to be like to be in 2018 when he was a special form of runner.
Rounding out the highest 10 eventually 12 months’s Transvulcania was Tobias Geiser of Italy. He additionally completed ninth on the 2023 version, and he received the 2024 Grossglockner Extremely-Path 110k. Will probably be enjoyable to observe him vie for his third top-10 rating.
Maintain your eyes open for Spain’s Borja Fernández, who missed ending within the high 10 of 2024 Transvulcania by underneath 30 seconds. I’m guessing his return means he’s seeking to get inside that revered group this 12 months.
Dmitry Mityaev (entrance) and Tom Evans operating collectively within the 2024 Transvulcania Ultramarathon. Photograph: Transvulcania
Name for Feedback
- Alright, it’s your flip along with your picks for the lads’s podium on the 2025 Transvulcania Ultramarathon. What do you assume?
- Who must be on this preview and who isn’t? See an error or omission? You understand what to do within the feedback part!
