After 10 races across seven countries, the 2024 Mountain Running World Cup wraps up with a pair of finals on back-to-back days in Italy. Up first, the Kilometro Verticale Lagùnc ran on Saturday, October 12, where the U.K.’s Scout Adkin (pre-race interview) and Italy’s Andrea Elia emerged as uphill champions.
The World Mountain Running Championships happen every other year. The event was contested last year in Austria and will happen again in 2025 in Spain. Absent a world championships event in 2024, the Mountain Running World Cup Finals take on greater importance this year. The World Mountain Running Association administers both.
A true vertical kilometer (VK), the uphill race gained 1,000 meters over 3.3 kilometers in distance. With a history dating back to 1986, it is the oldest VK race in the world. The course took runners from Chiavenna to Lagùnc, Italy, and was run in a time-trial format with runners sprinting from the start every 15 seconds. It was a cool morning with some rain and mist, making for fine conditions, if a little bit slippery on some sections of the course.
Finally, this VK served as the 2024 Italian VK National Championships, which brought some additional competition.
Many of the runners will double back on Sunday, October 13, to run the Val Bregaglia Trail race to conclude the series.
Thanks to the World Mountain Running Association for supporting iRunFar’s 2024 Mountain Running World Cup Finals coverage.
The 2024 Kilometro Verticale Lagùnc finish line, located above the town of Chiavenna, in northern Italy. It was the first certified VK course, established in 1986. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
2024 Mountain Running World Cup Finals VK Women’s Race
In all, the women’s field’s start was spread over 46 minutes and the top women started at the back of the field. World cup series leader Joyce Muthoni Njeru (Kenya) went third to last, and was followed from the start line by the U.K.’s Scout Adkin (pre-race interview) and Kenya’s Philaries Kisang Jeruto (pre-race interview). Adkin and Kisang, Muthoni Njeru’s chief rivals in the series, were ranked second and third in the world cup before the race.
Scout Adkin ran away with the win at the 2024 Kilometro Verticale Lagùnc, as part of the Mountain Running World Cup Finals. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
Further up in the start order, nearly 30 minutes before Muthoni Njeru started, Paola Stampanoni (Switzerland) was greatly outrunning her start position and passed more women than anyone else on her race to the top. In September, Stampanoni was second at the Skyrunning World Championships Vertical race.
Switzerland’s Paola Stampanoni working hard on her way to third place at the Mountain Running World Cup Finals Vertical Kilometer. Photo: iRunFar/Sarah Brady
The time-trial format makes finish ranks uncertain to spectators at the top, but both Adkin and Jeruto Kisang ran down favorite Muthoni Njeru and hit the high point finish comfortably ahead of the series leader.
Adkin won the race in 37:57, ahead of Jeruto Kisang’s 38:35. Adkin had a commanding 38-second lead when the finish times flashed. It was Adkin’s third world cup win of the year, on top of a strong second-place finish at Sierre-Zinal this year.
Philaries Jeruto Kisang works her way toward second place at the 2024 Kilometro Verticale Lagùnc in the Mountain Running World Cup Finals. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
Always on the podium, Jeruto Kisang had to settle for just that, another podium finish. Her runner-up spot matched last year’s silver medal at the 2023 World Mountain Running Championships Uphill race.
Stamponini’s surprise early-in-the-race 39:13 split held up as third best.
Series leader and 2024 star across both the Mountain Running World Cup and the Golden Trail World Series, Muthoni Njeru was just fifth on the day in 39:55. That was however enough for her to hold onto her world cup series lead heading into the next day final race.
Kenya’s Joyce Muthoni Njeru finished fifth at the 2024 Mountain Running World Cup Finals Vertical Kilometer, retaining the top position in the world cup. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
The top U.S. finisher was 11th-place Rachel Tomajczyk in 41:55.
2024 Mountain Running World Cup Finals VK Women’s Results
- Scout Adkin (U.K.) – 37:57 (pre-race interview)
- Philaries Jeruto Kisang (Kenya) – 38:34 (pre-race interview)
- Paola Stampanoni (Switzerland) – 39:13
- Susanna Saapunki (Finland, lives in Italy) – 39:44
- Joyce Muthoni Njeru (Kenya) – 39:55
- Lara Hamilton (Australia, lives in the U.S.) – 40:18
- Sara Willhoit (U.K.) – 40:31
- Vivien Bonzi (Italy) – 41:05
- Klara Velepec (Slovenia) – 41:25
- Ilaria Veronese (Italy) – 41:53
Rachael Tomajczyk (left) and Lauren Gregory took 11th and 12th at the 2024 Mountain Running World Cup Finals Vertical Kilometer. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
2024 Mountain Running World Cup Finals VK Men’s Race
The men were second to challenge the mountain. The first man left the start line at 10:01 a.m. and another followed every 15 seconds clear up through 11:43 a.m. As with the women, the top men went last. World cup series leader, Kenya’s Patrick Kipngeno (pre-race interview), started fourth to last. The U.S.’s Joseph Gray (pre-race interview), as with Kipngeno, a former uphill world champion, was seventh to last, and second in the world cup rankings, Kenya’s Philemon Kiriago (pre-race interview), was ninth to last at the start line. As with the women’s race, there was rain and mist alternately throughout, making for wet terrain on the climb.
Italy’s Andrea Elia, the 2024 Kilometro Verticale Lagunc champion, which was part of the Mountain Running World Cup Finals. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
The world cup has been dominated by Kenyan runners this year and the country had six runners in the field. At the finish though, it was the host country that starred. Italy placed four runners inside the top seven.
When the race organizers laid out this start order, somehow they absolutely nailed it.
Just fifth at last week’s 2024 Šmarna Gora race in Slovenia, Andrea Elia (Italy) started the race second to last. Henri Aymonod (Italy), an uphill powerhouse who won last year’s race here, went last from the starting line.
Italy’s Henri Aymonod looks calm on his way to taking second at the 2024 Mountain Running World Cup Finals VK. Photo: iRunFar/Sarah Brady
Those two ran down Kipngeno, all the other Kenyan runners, Gray, and everyone else in front of them. Elia hit the top after 31:08 and Aymonod was only seven seconds behind in 31:15. Italy thus stood atop both the gold- and silver-medal podium positions.
Kipngeno, last year’s World Mountain Running Uphill Champion, was third in 31:50. As with Muthoni Njeru in the women’s race, that did score enough points to still lead the overall series heading into the next day, October 13, final race.
Patrick Kipngeno of Kenya took third at the 2024 Mountain Running World Cup Finals Vertical Kilometer, and retained his lead in the world cup. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
Christian Allen led the U.S. in ninth at 33:09, and Gray was 19th in 34:22.
World Cup series #2, Kiriago, was just 12th in the race in 33:38.
Women’s winner Scout Adkin’s brother, Jacob Adkin (U.K.), was 17th in the men’s race in 34:14.
Christian Allen was the top American at the 2024 Mountain Running World Cup Finals Vertical Kilometer. He took ninth. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
2024 Mountain Running World Cup Finals VK Men’s Results
- Andrea Elia (Italy) – 31:08
- Henri Aymonod (Italy) – 31:15
- Patrick Kipngeno (Kenya) – 31:50 (pre-race interview)
- Tiziano Moia (Italy) – 31:59
- Paul Machoka (Kenya) – 32:16
- Richard Omaya Atuya (Kenya) – 32:28
- Alberto Vender (Italy) – 32:31
- Håkon Skarsholt (Norway) – 32:51
- Christian Allen (U.S.) – 33:09
- Klemen Španring (Slovenia) – 33:09
The 2024 Kilometro Verticale Lagùnc men’s podium (left-to-right): 2. Henri Aymond, 1. Andrea Elia, and 3. Patrick Kipngeno. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
