Registration extended until 25 July
All races start and finish in Grächen.
updated 05.07.21
It’s now just two months until the 2021 Ultra Tour Monte Rosa. We have been continually reviewing the situation due to the covid-19 pandemic, and of course the situation remains fluid. But to be fair to our runners, as well as to our partners and host communities, and to allow proper organisation of the event we have to make a final decision. This is it… our plans for a “Special Edition” of UTMR.
We have two pieces of very good news:
However, after prolonged consultation with the local municipalities and our other partners around the full race route we have decided that it is simply not possible to make the full UTMR route around Monte Rosa in 2021. Many factors have contributed to this decision including but not limited to; disparate regulations in two countries and three regional territories, differing entry requirements in CH and IT, regulations concerning the CH/IT border crossings, a ban on using municipal buildings for events in IT, capacity restrictions on transport. The health and safety of our runners are our priority and we simply cannot safely manage a complicated race like UTMR in all weather conditions under the current restrictions. In addition, the permissions even to hold the event are still not guaranteed.
So for 2021 we have devised a unique “UTMR Special Edition” where all the race routes remain totally within Switzerland. Despite the ongoing uncertainty with the pandemic situation we are confident that with this decision we have the best possible chance of going ahead as planned, and to have an event that offers a great race experience while being safe for all runners, volunteers and host communities. While deeply disappointing to not make the full loop around Monte Rosa we have worked hard on a magnificent alternative that will take in as much of the original route as possible, plus allow an exploration of the beautiful höhenwege of the Matter and Saas valleys. Runners will have awesome views of Monte Rosa, the Matterhorn and a host of other 4000m mountains. These are some of the best trails we’ve run in Switzerland. And that’s saying something!
As you can imagine there is a lot of work to finalise the details of a new route, and we still wait for a few things. As soon as everything is finalised the details will be updated here. But we continue with a 170 km race, a 100 km race and the 4-day Stage Race – all with a Covid Protection Concept in place. We will update this page with links to our Covid Protection concept plus the route details as soon as possible. Registered runners will be sent the “road book” with all details concerning route, checkpoints, start & finish by 18 July.
Your race still starts and finishes in Grächen, so your travel/accommodation plans will not require any change.
Start: 04.00h Thursday 2 September 2021 from Grächen Dorfplatz
Distance: 175 km
Ascent: ~11,000m
You will be supported with ~14 checkpoints, with hot food and resting facilities available at specific locations. We will also provide you with 4 UTMR dropbags which will be transported to dedicated checkpoints, and then returned to Grachen for your collection post-race.
Provisional 170 km infoYour race will now start and finish in Grächen, so you may need to adjust your travel/accommodation plans. For those of you who have booked accommodation in Gressoney or a bus shuttle to Gressoney we will refund you in full and do our best to arrange alternative transport. We will be in touch with you individually. Please email us at contact@ultratourmonterosa.com if you need any advice regarding the change in start location.
Start: 06.30h Friday 3 September 2021 from Grächen Dorfplatz
Distance: 105 km
Ascent: ~6,800m
You will be supported with ~9 checkpoints, with hot food available at specific locations. We will also provide you with a UTMR dropbag which will be transported to the ~56 km checkpoint and then returned to Grachen for your collection post-race.
Your race still starts and finishes in Grächen, so your travel/accommodation plans will not require any change. We still arrange the accommodation during the race; Wednesday 1 September, Thursday 2 September, Friday 3 September. So nothing changes for you. You simply need to arrange your travel & accommodation in Grächen pre-race (Tuesday 31 August) and post-race (Saturday /4 September).
Start: 06.30h Wednesday 1 September 2021 from Grächen Dorfplatz
Total Distance: ~170 km (to be confirmed)
Ascent: 11,000m (to be confirmed)
You will be supported with 2-3 checkpoints each day, as well as a substantial soup / hot meal at the race finish line. Your baggage will also still be transported from stage start to stage finish every day. And any baggage you don’t need for the race can be left safely with us in Grächen.
Switzerland has now lifted many of its entry and quarantine requirements, in particular it now permits entry to fully vaccinated citizens from outside the Schengen area. We have summarised the current requirements here: https://www.ultratourmonterosa.com/2021-covid-19-pandemic/ But please check the official advice for your own situation, in particular the online travelcheck is a very useful tool. Please remember that particular requirements (e.g. quarantine) can change quickly. We advise checking your insurance policy will cover you for any late changes in requirements / conditions due to the Covid-19 pandemic situation.
Please check entry restrictions to CH hereGiven the ongoing pandemic situation we have revised our cancellation policy and we will continue to offer a 50% refund for any reason until 15th August. From 16th August no refund is possible, please make sure you are covered by your travel insurance. All refunds must be requested by email to contact@ultratourmonterosa.com. Please note that we are not able to offer an option to defer to 2022.
Of course we are still required to operate within strict guidelines with special protocols in place. Participation will be limited to those with a Covid certification showing proof of either:
We will notify all registered runners and volunteers of any additional measures in August. We thank you in advance for your understanding and compliance, so that together we can enjoy a race experience that is safe for all runners, volunteers and host communities.
