From the city of Innsbruck to the eternal ice of the Stubai Glacier

Last updated on 22.06.2021

The STUBAI ULTRATRAIL returns on 3 July 2021

The 2021 trailrunning season in Austria is ready, steady – go! One of the first events to take place after the long Corona lockdown is the 4th STUBAI ULTRATRAIL starting in the Olympic city of Innsbruck and finishing on the Stubai Glacier. It is quite simply one of the most beautiful and spectacular trailrun events in the Alps.

Four distances, from 8 km to 67 km

Runners taking part in the STUBAI ULTRATRAIL can choose from four courses starting in four different places. The shortest is the STUBAI K8 at 8 kilometres in length, with the longest being the STUBAI ULTRATRAIL K67 totalling 67 kilometres all the way from Innsbruck to the Stubai Glacier – with a punishing 5,356 vertical metres of uphill to be completed along the way. Between the short sprint and the long slog lie two intermediate distances: the STUBAI K20 and the STUBAI K32. The courses are all different when it comes to the distance and amount of climbing to be completed, but they share a spectacular finale up to the finish line next to the Jochdohle Restaurant at 3,173 metres above sea level.

New sections with lots of twists and turns

Several sections have been changed ahead of this year’s event to include even more twisting and turning trails. The section between Neustift and Falbeson in particular offers everything which makes trailrunning such a fantastic sport. Within this one short section, runners completing the K67 or K32 distance will pass three beautiful mountain huts characteristic of the beautiful landscape which accompanies runners from start to finish on the STUBAI ULTRATRAIL. On rolling terrain between 1,600 and 1,800 metres, offering fabulous views of the glacier at the end of the valley, they first reach the Bacherwandalm, then the Falbesoner Nockalm and finally the Bänkenalm.

Almost 600 runners from 23 countries

After so many months of frustration due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the organisers are super-excited to finally get things underway. “It was with a heavy heart that we had to cancel the STUBAI ULTRATRAIL in 2020,” explains Adrian Siller, head of the Stubai Valley tourism board. “But on that very day when the 2020 event should have taken place, we and our partner PlanB launched the registration phase for this year’s STUBAI ULTRATRAIL. Almost 600 runners from 23 countries have signed up to be part of the 2021 race. That’s fantastic.”

Among the favourites on the ULTRATRAIL K 67 are the two Austrians Alexander Lieb from Team Salomon and Christian Stern, who finished in third place in both 2018 and 2019. Stern, who comes from Neustift, is hoping for an even better result in 2021.

The 40-year-old trailrunner, who is a member of the SV Raiba Stubai club, set a new record last year for the fastest time on the Stubai High Trail – an incredible 13 hours and 39 minutes.

Things are also set to be exciting on the K32, particularly in the women’s race. Susi Lell Reichert (third in 2019) and Anita Eckerstorfer (both from Team Salomon) are among the favourites. The men’s race is set to be a duel between Martin Schedler (Team Salomon) and Florian Reichert (Team Arc’teryx).

When it comes to the K20, Simon Rabl is likely to be one of the men to beat. The Tirol native had a breakthrough season in 2019 but was unable to confirm his form in 2020 due to the Corona lockdown. Now the rookie from Team Salomon Austria is hoping to finally show that he is the next big thing on the trailrunning scene. The K8, a sprint from the bottom of the glacier to the finish line, will feature Andreas Hetzenauer (Austria, Team Salomon) who will be hoping to finish at least on the podium.

The STUBAI ULTRATRAIL distances

STUBAI ULTRATRAIL City2Glacier: 67 kilometres; 5,356 vertical metres uphill; 2,796 vertical metres downhill. Start: 24:00 at the centre of Innsbruck (Landestheater).

STUBAI K32: 31.6 kilometres; 3,100 vertical metres uphill; 965 vertical metres downhill. Start: 9:00 in Neustift.

STUBAI K20: 19 kilometres; 2,138 vertical metres uphill; 197 vertical metres downhill. Start: 10:00 in Klaus Äuele near Falbeson.

STUBAI K8: 8 kilometres; 1,446 vertical metres uphill; 0 vertical metres downhill. Start: 12:00 at the bottom of the Stubai Glacier cable cars (Mutterberg).

Registration is still open!

Online registration is still open until 25.06.2021. To sign up please visit www.stubai.at/en/ultratrail/registration/registration It will also be possible to register on the day. For more information please visit www.stubai-ultratrail.com