Over-forties skyrunners from around the world are ready to go sky-high for this weekend’s Masters Skyrunning World Championships at the Pierra Mentà Eté events in Arêches, Savoie, France, on 3-4 July 2026.
Adrenalin is rising for the challenge of racing alongside skyrunners in the same age group at this fourth edition of the championships where both the VERTICAL and the SKY disciplines will be disputed.
The VERTICAL will take place on 3 July 2026 with the launch of the new Pierra Menta Verticale – specially designed to satisfy lovers of the “short and steep” with 870m vertical climb over 3.8 km delivering stretches with a 50-70% incline.
The following day, on 4 July, the Skyrun du Grand Mont will host the SKY discipline with a course 23 km long with 2,300m vertical climb reaching 2,680m altitude, starting and finishing in Arêches, Savoie.
The Pierra Menta is a legendary ski-mountaineering race dating back 40 years. Ten years ago, the summer edition was launched in the same format with athletes racing in pairs. Last year, the Skyrun du Grand Mont was introduced for single athletes – an immediate success that paved the way for hosting the 2026 Masters Skyrunning World Championships.
Race records at the Skyrun du Grand Mont were set in the inaugural edition last year by French athletes Romain Buissart in 3h45’30” and Mélanie Rousset in 4h26’01” setting a benchmark for the over-forties to test their skyrunning skills.
Four age categories – over 40, over 45, over 50, and over 55 will be awarded 48 medals across the VERTICAL and the SKY disciplines, while the country ranking will be calculated after the final event at the SKYULTRA in October.
Large teams from Portugal (33), Great Britain (25), and Japan (22), together with previous world medallists guarantee a strong battle. Launched in 2023, the Masters Skyrunning World Championships have been held in Italy, Portugal and Bulgaria. In 2025, 23 countries participated with 17 nations taking home medals. Portugal topped the country ranking, followed by Japan and Bulgaria.
The 25 countries participating are: Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Colombia, Croatia, Czechia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mongolia, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, United Kingdom, USA, Venezuela, (plus AIN athletes).
Following on from the VERTICAL and SKY disciplines at the Pierra Menta Été, the Masters Skyrunning World Championships will head for Portugal on October 3 2026 for the SKYULTRA at the Pisão Extreme in São Pedro do Sul, site of the 2021 European Skyrunning Championships.
Another championship is just around the corner where skyrunning masters will give it their all — not only a battle for medals, but the pleasure of sharing this unique discipline and the camaraderie that comes from competing with same-age rivals.
Full details
Website
More info and members’ entries
CC As in all CC races, all the athletes will be ranked in the ISF Ranking
Ranking – All athletes participating in the three events are included in the ISF Ranking
