It’s a full house for LUT2014

 

The 2014 Lesotho Ultra Trail will see a full field of 180 runners toe the start line on Saturday 29th November as runners from all over the world sign up for the second edition of “Africa’s first Ultra SkyMarathon®”.

In only its second year, the Lesotho Ultra Trail, final race on the annual South African Skyrunner Series, has once again managed to attract an array of some of the best local and international trail running athletes in both the women’s and men’s fields.

Race director Andrew Booth comments on recent influx of entry sales and subsequent sell out:

With entries all sold we can now focus completely on the race. They sold in waves, with the majority being snapped up on launching the 2014 race. Other groups of runners, both locally and internationally, then caught wind that there were places available and we experienced several “rushes” before we reached the race cap. It’s amazing to have such great support from the trail running community for LUT, the concept of the race has gained great traction and we aim to nurture this as the race develops

Amongst the top South Africans seeking top spot on the podium will be a group of familiar names including current South African Skyrunner® Series leader Lucky Miya. Others in the men’s field that will be vying for the win will be Iain Don Wauchope, 2013 winner Andrew Hagen, current PUFfeR record holder Ben Brimble, the young-gun from Cape Town Kane Reily and one of the new kids on the block Duncan O’Reagan. In the women’s field, 2013 victor Tracy Zunkel will be returning to defend her title amongst the onslaught that will no doubt come from the likes of young Meg MacKenzie and current South African Skyrunner Series leader Su Don Wauchope.

Bolstering the competition at the sharp end of the field will be an accomplished lineup of international athletes. Returning to Lesotho for the second year running, Canadian Stacie Carrigan, third place in 2013, will be looking to better her result, with additional pressure coming from American Kathleen Egan and Australian-born Welsh runner Sarah Ridgway.

US-based Scott Jaime, regular podium finisher at the infamous Hardrock 100, and current non-stop record holder of the 782km long Colorado Trail, will be making the pilgrimage to the Mountain Kingdom to add fuel to the fire in the men’s race.

Booth continues:

Having top local and international trail racers is an important part of LUT. It generates great interest in the race and provides an opportunity for those interested in doing fast times to race hard against runners from around the world. The back markers also appreciate challenging themselves on the same course as some of the best runners in the world. It’s important to have a balanced field with runners from different places and backgrounds. We’re also very happy to be welcoming some of our elite 2013 runners back for 2014!

For more information, visit the official website www.lesothoultratrail.com of follow LUT2014 on Facebook or Twitter