Athletes from five continents head for the Monte Rosa SkyMarathon. Snow is the star of the show

Athletes from a record five continents are heading for the Monte Rosa SkyMarathon, Europe’s highest race, which will kick off with three events over the weekend.

The main race – the Monte Rosa SkyMarathon – will take place on Saturday, June 15, 2024 together with the AMA VK2 and, on Sunday, June 16, the Monte Rosa Vertical, transforming the Alpine village of Alagna Valsesia into the beating heart of skyrunning at its purest. It’s summer, but snow is guaranteed.

A strong line-up of some 400 athletes from 27 countries across five continents will take up the extreme challenge of ascending and descending the 4,554m mountain – this year boasting an abundant snow fall from the half-way point upwards. The course is 35 km long to the summit and back with a massive 7,000m total climb.

Last year, the men’s record went to Italians William Boffelli and Tadei Pivk who closed in a jaw-dropping 4h29’20”, slicing ten minutes off the previous record, (also belonging to Boffelli with Franco Collé). To date, Boffelli has won the race four times with four different partners. “I’ll be at the race start for the fifth time and for me, it’s more than a race. It’s THE race. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it,” commented Boffelli. “It’s the first time I’m racing with the same partner. Last year we set the new ascent and round-trip race record but this year, we’ll just be happy to win it! I think with Daniel Antonioli and Lorenzo Rota Martir competing it will be a tough challenge though…let’s see who comes out on top!”

Antonioli stated, “I can’t wait to run my third Monte Rosa SkyMarathon. It will probably be the one with most snow cover and this excites me as I love running with crampons. Lorenzo and I are in a good shape – lately he’s always beating me, so I guess he’ll be pulling me!”

2022 Skyrunning World Champion and current Skyrunner® World Series ranking leader Roberto Delorenzi from Switzerland will be pairing with Italian Edoardo Albrighi. “We’re both training at altitude to be acclimatised, so we believe we can do well, but we’ll not be chasing the top teams,” commented Delorenzi. “Our goal is to give it our best and enjoy this cool race!”

Britain’s Andy Symonds, fourth in 2018 behind the Kilian Jornet-Emelie Forsberg duo, will be back, partnering with Frenchman Gautier Airiau. “I’m so excited about coming back to Monte Rosa. This race is the definition of why I run – for the love of moving at speed in awesome, wild, mountainous environments! What better than to start from a beautiful Italian village and run straight up and down a massive snow-topped mountain!” exclaimed Symonds.

It’s also a warm welcomes back for American Hillary Gerardi with a victory and a second place in the SkyMarathon under her belt. “I can’t wait to head back to Monte Rosa, this time with my Scarpa teammate from Italy, Marina Cugnetto,” said Gerardi. “We are so excited to run together in one of skyrunning’s most iconic races and also to get up in the high mountains. It’s been a snowy start to the season, so with any luck, we’ve got some good glissading lined up for the weekend!”

Italians Giuditta Turini and Martina Valmassoi will represent some of the competition, together with the Spanish-Romanian team Silvia Puigarnau and Ingrid Mutter, and Anastasiia Chertova and Daria Bodnar from Ukraine.

On the same day, June 15, the AMA VK2, a double Vertical Kilometer^®, will also take place. With a 2,000m vertical climb and 9 km long, it represents a severely demanding uphill-only challenge reaching 3,260m altitude, a third of which over snow.

Back for the third time, Italian Marcello Ugazio is aiming to pocket the record. The standing race records were both set in 2021: 1h32’13” by Italy’s Damiano Lenzi, and 1h58’57” by Hillary Gerardi.

Iris Pessey from France, in her fourth participation here, has always placed on every step of the podium. In 2019 she won the race and placed fourth in the SkyMarathon the following day. “I’m so happy to come back to Alagna like every year as I love running on snow. This is an intense period of training and this double VK is perfect to get back in shape. The course and the organizing team really motivate me. Fingers crossed for the weather!”

Snow is clearly the star of the show this year, but it also means an extra challenge. Safety is always a priority for the organisers who this year have made carrying a safety beacon compulsory for Saturday’s two races. A helmet is also compulsory for the SkyMarathon participants. Both race participants must wear micro crampons above the snow line.

Sunday, June 16, sees the turn of the Monte Rosa Vertical introduced last year.  Starting in Alagna, it climbs 1,150m over a 5 km course to summit at Bocchetta delle Pisse. This race is flanked by a non-competitive version for hikers that stops at the cable car station at Pianalunga.

Countries participating in the weekend’s events

Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, Ukraine, Uruguay, USA, Vietnam.

The events are supported by Monterosa 2000, MICO, Guidi, SCARPA, WeRoad, Nortec, La Piemontina, and Institutional Partners: Piedmont Region, Vercelli Province, the Alagna Valsesia and Gressoney la Trinité Councils and Consorzio Turistico Walser Monte Rosa Valsesia.