Quebec Mega Path (QMT) is gearing up for an exhilarating thirteenth version, and this yr’s lineup of elite athletes is stacked. With greater than 40 top-tier runners—together with worldwide contenders and a few of Canada’s strongest path athletes—the competitors is about to be fiercer than ever. From July 3 to six, all eyes might be on Mont Ste-Anne, Que., because the race unfolds throughout a number of distances, with excessive stakes: ending the QMT-135 earns runners a coveted ticket into the Western States 100 lottery.
This yr’s QMT has 3,000 athletes registered throughout eight occasions, as soon as once more testifying to its repute as one of many hardest and most scenic ultras in North America.
QMT-135: A difficult debut occasion
The 135 km race is making its debut this yr, boasting a frightening 6,000 metres of elevation acquire and taking a spot within the World Path Majors sequence. Meaning high athletes gained’t simply be gunning for glory—they’ll even be chasing factors within the international rankings.
The lads’s discipline options Portugal’s Nelson Santos, recent off a fourth-place end at Madeira Island Extremely-Path (MIUT), and France’s Sébastien Camus, a veteran with a seventh-place UTMB end on his resume. Native abilities Mathieu Saliou and Jeetesh Rao Lukea, each primarily based in Québec, will tackle the problem alongside homegrown contenders David Jeker and Jacob Baril-Arnasson.
On the ladies’s facet, Ontario’s Amanda Nelson, who holds a number of nationwide ultra-distance information, will line up towards a tricky Quebec contingent, together with Geneviève Asselin-Demers, Mylène Sansoucy and Elisabeth Cauchon. Large threats will come from overseas: France’s Maryline Nakache (who completed second on the Diagonale des Fous on Reunion Island) and Australia’s Kellie Angel Emmerson (a top-five finisher at UTMB) are each within the combine.
QMT 80 and QMT 50 to function Canadian Path Operating Championships
Including to the high-stakes ambiance, the QMT-80 and QMT-50 races will function the lengthy and quick distances, respectively, on the Canadian Path Operating Championships. Runners might be in an all-out battle for nationwide titles and podium spots—and a share of the newly launched $12,500 prize pool.