Mountain Marathon

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• Big early climb with 1.1km gain. Hold your pace, save your legs for later.
• 819m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Steep 28% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Final 636m descent. Save your legs to go all out on it.
• Control your HR on the first climb, save your quads on the descents until 32.3km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 39.0km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• Start · 0.0km–1.6km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 1.6km–12.8km · Climb of 1139m. Ease in: hold back more than feels necessary. The race is still ahead. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace.
• Work · 12.8km–26.6km · 5.1km of runnable trail, high point 2458m, descent of 376m averaging 13%. Plus 1 more climb. This is where the race is built: steady, solid effort. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. This descent is hard on the legs: short steps, stay in control, poles if you have them. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.
• Fade · 26.6km–39.0km · Descent of 819m averaging 14%, climb of 570m. Your energy fades, and that's normal: hold a steady effort and stop counting the miles. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. This descent is hard on the legs: short steps, stay in control, poles if you have them. Hike the steepest pitches. Your heart rate drifts down on its own: don't chase your early-race numbers, go by feel.
• Home · 39.0km–46.0km · Descent of 636m averaging 9%. No heroics: settle back into your own effort and hold it to the line. Very long descent: first half under control, then even, let go only near the end.

Course

The course climbs 2400m+. With 57m/km of climbing, this is a true mountain course with sustained climbs and descents. By gradient, 42% of the distance is uphill, 42% downhill and 16% flat. The longest climb runs 12.8km at an average 8.9% grade (1139m of vertical). The longest descent runs 7.0km at an average 9.0% grade (636m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 23.3% over 0.2km. The steepest descent drops at 37.2% over 0.2km. Surface: 64% trail, 18% smooth, 9% technical, and 9% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 66.8 FlatKM.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 7.5km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 32 of 100), with 33% of the load in the first half: 2 descents deserve a plan and a couple of downhill sessions before race day.

• Control your HR on the first climb, save your quads on the descents until 32.3km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 39.0km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• #2 · 17.9–20.9 km · 376 m D−, -12.7% · 25.2 km ahead → control
• #1 · 26.6–32.3 km · 819 m D−, -14.5% · 13.8 km ahead → control
• 39.0–46.0 km · 636 m D−, -9.0% · 0.0 km ahead → even, first half under control, let go at the end

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 17°C to 23°C, with around 16°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 38%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 6% of days around this date.

Results

166 finishers completed the 2026 edition. Men's winner: Lomidze, Giorgi (Individual Neutral Athletes) in 4:19:10. Women's winner: Baysal, Serpil (Individual Neutral Athletes) in 6:16:15.