The World Mountain Running Association (WMRA) is the global governing body of mountain running .
14-455: The Ben Nevis Race is a mountain race that takes place annually, from the foot of Ben Nevis (highest mountain in the British Isles) to the top, then back again. The course is 14 km long and includes around 1,340 metres of ascent. Up to six hundred people may compete in the event. The first timed event on Ben Nevis was in 1895. William Swan, a barber from Fort William, made
28-919: A bi-annual world championships , the event is called the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships and was first held in Chiang Mai, Thailand in 2022. Until 2019 there was a standalone World Mountain Running Championships also known for a time as the World Mountain Running Trophy, the World Long Distance Mountain Running Championships was discontinued in 2019 after the adoption of the new combined event. The World Mountain Running Association runs an annual World Cup competition, which pulls together
42-491: A hat, gloves and a whistle; anyone who has not reached the summit after two hours is turned back. In 2014 only 600 competitors were allowed to take part, with the limit being set for safety reasons. In 2016, competitors were asked to stay off the area known as the Grassy Bank, after Scottish Natural Heritage contacted race organisers with concerns about erosion in that area. Fort William taxi driver Eddie Campbell won
56-579: Is a form of trail running if it is run on unpaved surfaces. Mountain running is a combination of running, jogging , and walking, depending on how steep the trail is. It is recognized by World Athletics and governed by the World Mountain Running Association which has been organising world championships since 1985. The World Mountain Running Association (WMRA) is the global governing body of mountain running. For World Athletics purposes, mountain running takes place on terrain that
70-433: Is mainly off-road , but if there is significant elevation gain on the route, surfaced roads may be used. Courses involve considerable amounts of ascent (for mainly uphill races), or both ascent and descent (for up and down races with the start and finish at similar heights). The average incline is normally between five and twenty percent. Courses are clearly marked and should avoid dangerous sections. The WMRA co-organises
84-418: Is mainly off-road , but if there is significant elevation gain on the route, surfaced roads may be used. Courses involve considerable amounts of ascent (for mainly uphill races), or both ascent and descent (for up and down races with the start and finish at similar heights). The average incline is normally between five and twenty percent. Courses are clearly marked and should avoid dangerous sections. The WMRA
98-524: The Lochiel Arms Hotel in Banavie and was thus longer than the route from Fort William; the winner was 21-year-old Hugh Kennedy, a gamekeeper at Tor Castle, who finished (coincidentally with Swan's original run) in 2 hours 41 minutes. Regular races were organised until 1903, when two events were held; these were the last for 24 years, perhaps due to the closure of the summit observatory
112-886: The best athletes in a series of the biggest and most prominent races in the sport. The Valsir Mountain Running World Cup usually takes place between July and October predominantly in Continental Europe. The series encompasses a variety of races in categories including; Classic (Up & Down), Vertical (Steep Uphill > 20%) and Long Distance Mountain Running with there usually being at least 3 races making up each category. [REDACTED] Media related to Mountain running at Wikimedia Commons World Mountain Running Association For World Athletics purposes, mountain running takes place on terrain that
126-569: The first Saturday in September every year. It starts and finishes at the Claggan Park football ground on the outskirts of Fort William, and is 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) long with 1,340 metres (4,400 ft) of ascent. In 1955, Kathleen Connochie, was the first woman to finish the course. Due to the seriousness of the mountain environment, entry is restricted to those who have completed three category A hill races, and runners must carry waterproofs,
140-459: The first recorded timed ascent up the mountain on or around 27 September of that year, when he ran from the old post office in Fort William to the summit and back in 2 hours 41 minutes. The following years saw several improvements on Swan's record, but the first competitive race was held on 3 June 1898 under Scottish Amateur Athletic Association rules. Ten competitors ran the course, which started at
154-489: The following year. The first was from Achintee , at the foot of the Pony Track, and finished at the summit; It was won in just over an hour by Ewen MacKenzie, the observatory roadman. The second race ran from new Fort William post office, and MacKenzie lowered the record to 2 hours 10 minutes, a record he held for 34 years. The Ben Nevis Race has been run in its current form since 1937. It now takes place on
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#1732855984004168-420: The race for a tenth consecutive year. The winners of the race have been as follows. Mountain running Mountain running is a sports discipline which takes place mainly off-road in mountainous terrain, but if there is significant elevation gain on the route, surfaced roads may be used. In this it differs from fell running ; also its courses are more clearly marked and avoid dangerous sections. It
182-425: The race three times, the first in 1952. The men's course record was set in 1984, when Kenny Stuart of Keswick Athletic Club won the race with a time of 1:25:34. The women's record is 1:43:01, set by Victoria Wilkinson in 2018. As of 2016 there are one hundred people who have completed at least 21 of the races, each of these athletes has been presented with a Connochie Silver Plaque. In 2019, Finlay Wild won
196-702: Was founded in 1984 as the International Committee for Mountain Running and the decision to change the name to the World Mountain Running Association was taken in 1998. In 1985, the organization staged the first annual World Mountain Running Trophy . In 2002, World Athletics (then the IAAF ) officially recognised the World Trophy as an international competition. In 2009, the name was changed to
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