When Jim Walmsley showed up on the UTMB starting list earlier this month after dropping out of Western States due to a knee injury, the trail running world started gearing up for the possibility of another record – however, a last-minute change shows the ultra runner legend has now moved over to the OCC roster.
The Arizona runner, who still holds the course record for the 100-mile distance, which he laid down in 2023, will now compete in the 55k (34-mile) distance at the UTMB finals on August 28.
The characteristically reclusive runner hasn't commented on the change publicly, so it could all have been down to a clerical error, but most likely he's still being plagued by the same knee issue that saw him take a step back from the California race in June.
The OCC stands for Orsières-Champex-Chamonix and takes the world's best middle-distance runners up 11,236ft (3,425m) in elevation gain. Though Walmsley is highly regarded at the 100-mile distance, with course records at UTMB and WSER, he's proved himself to be lightning quick at the 50k distance too, with footage earlier this year showing him charging across desert terrain in the Mesquite Canyon 50k to another course record.
Unsurprisingly, he'll also be in elite company at the OCC, with Sweden's Petter Engdhal and Germany's Hannes Namberger in the mix, as well as his fellow countrymen Ryan Becker, Adam Peterman, and Michelino Sunseri. Last year's winner, Eli Hemming, and second-placed Francesco Puppi have moved up to the 100k CCC race this year.
Besides that big change, the roster for the 100-mile men's race looks largely unchanged, with this year's Hardrock 100 winner Ludo Pommeret still in the mix along with third-placed Germain Grangier, four-time UTMB winner Francois D’Haene, and Jeff Mogavero, who took fourth at this year's Western States.
Seeking redemption will be the UK's Tom Evans who's been unable to complete the race since taking third in 2022 but delivered an impressive victory at this year's Arc of Attrition, Rod Farvard, who DNFd at this year's Western States (but took second place last year behind Walmsley) and Hayden Hawks who also pulled out of this year's WSER due to injury, but placed third in the race last year.
Women's starters
The women's starting list has also seen some changes, with Marianne Hogan sidelined by an injury and Ida Nilsson revealing she's not yet fully recovered from WSER. The good news, however, is that Courtney Dauwalter is still planning on showing up in a bid to reclaim her crown from Katie Schide. She'll be running against the likes of Abby Hall, who's fresh off a Western States 100 win, while New Zealand's Ruth Croft is back for another stab, having taken second place last year behind Schide.
Even without Walmsley's earth-shattering speeds, it's all shaping up to be a brilliant end to the UTMB World Series, and once again, we'll be reporting live from the race to bring you all the news as soon as it happens.
How to watch the UTMB finals
The UTMB finals take place over August 25 - 31 with the 100-mile finale starting on Friday, August 29. Once again, we'll be reporting live from the finish line in Chamonix, and you can follow all the action live at live.utmb.world in seven languages – French, English, Spanish, Chinese, German, Italian and Thai – with equal coverage of men's and women's race leaders.
