Starting in Radda in Chianti, Italy, at 4 a.m. Saturday, March 22, the 2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k provided the setting for fast racing in both the women’s and men’s races, with deep fields on both sides gathering lots of attention from the ultrarunning community.
As the second-to-last 2025 Western States 100 Golden Ticket race, top athletes were looking to secure their place in the California event, with two spots being awarded to the top two finishers in each category. Ultimately, Jim Walmsley of the U.S. and Fiona Pascall of the U.K. came away with the victories in 9:59:48 and 12:34:59, respectively.
The start of the 2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k in Radda in Chianti, Italy, on March 22. Photo: Chianti Ultra Trail/Lorenzo Orlandi
In the men’s race, the meeting of Spain’s Kilian Jornet, Walmsley, and France’s Vincent Bouillard sure drew the ultrarunning world’s attention. While the first two are perhaps the most well-known names in men’s ultrarunning, the latter was a relative unknown before storming to victory at the 2024 UTMB. Walmsley already has entrance to the 2025 Western States 100 from his 2024 win, but Jornet and Bouillard were definitely at this race in search of their own Golden Tickets.
In the women’s race, defending champion Azara García of Spain was back. American Abby Hall, who finished fifth and outside of the Western States 100 Golden Tickets at the 2025 Black Canyon 100k last month, was in Italy to try again for a ticket. Also lining up was Fiona Pascall from the U.K., who was coming off of wins at the 2024 Wildstrubel by UTMB 72k and the 2024 Mozart by UTMB 100k.
The 120-kilometer (75 miles) race, with more than 5,200 meters (17,000 feet) of climbing, takes a picturesque route through the vineyard-covered hills of Chianti, a region known for its wine, located south of Florence. The course was backloaded with elevation change, climbing the smaller Monteluco near the middle of the route and Villa San Michele as the final climb, the latter the course’s high point. The loop’s profile looks like a serrated blade with incessant climbs and descents that carry on until the final climb back to Radda in Chianti. This course had no “it’s all downhill to the finish” moment.
Rain overnight and in the early hours of the race, along with the footsteps of thousands of runners across all of the event’s races, made the course muddy, with some of it quite sticky and other parts incredibly slick. In fact, the final climb to the finish was so slippery that the camera e-bikes following the top runners couldn’t make it up to stay in contact with them. The conditions made for interesting racing throughout, with some runners comparing it to cross-country conditions in the U.K.
Read on to see how the two races unfolded.
2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k Women’s Race
The front end of the women’s race provided some of the most exciting head-to-head racing of the day. Early on, a group containing the U.K.’s Fiona Pascall, Johanna Antila of Finland, Azara García of Spain, and the U.S.’s Abby Hall formed, running through the first checkpoint at Arillo Terrabianca, 12 kilometers in, together with an hour elapsed. The four were still within two minutes of each other at the top of Poggio San Polo, 24k into the race and just over two hours elapsed.
At the top of the climb up to Monteluco at 51k, the major climb of the front half of the race, the four were still within two minutes of each other. Behind them, Aroa Sío (Spain) chased about 25 minutes down on the lead group. Alessandra Boifava (Italy) was another nine minutes back in fifth.
Fiona Pascall, 2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k champion. Photo: Chianti Ultra Trail/Marzia Benigna
The gaps started to open on the descent to Cantalici, 58k in, but stayed relatively small. Antila led the charge, coming into the checkpoint with 5:32 on the clock. She was followed by Pascall three minutes back and García another minute in arrears. Hall was a further four minutes back.
Over the next climb, Pascall clawed her way back to the leader, and the two reached the Gaiole in Chianti checkpoint at 74k in together with 7:07 elapsed. García maintained contact, though, only five minutes back, while the gap to Hall grew to 17 minutes. Pascall continued to apply the pressure as the course once again turned upward, reaching Villa Vistarenni, 87k in, with 8:31 on the clock, now four minutes ahead of Antila and 13 minutes up on García. Hall stayed in fourth, 13 minutes more back. Meanwhile, Stephanie Howe (U.S.) moved ahead of both Sío and Boifava, both of whom would ultimately finish in the women’s top 10, and was within striking distance of her fellow countrywoman.
Johanna Antila on her way to taking second at the 2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k. Photo: Chianti Ultra Trail/Marzia Benigna
Pascall reached the high point of the course, Villa San Michele at 108k, in 11:04:58, sitting in 11th overall. Antila continued to chase, close enough at 10 minutes back that anything could happen in the final 12k of the race, if something went sideways for Pascall. Another 16 minutes back was García, who was followed by Hall another 20 minutes back, now seemingly out of contention for her second attempt in 2025 at earning the coveted Golden Ticket.
Ultimately, Fiona Pascall crossed the finish line in 12:34:59 in first place, earning her invite to Western States 100. She then had to cross the finish line a second time because the finish line tape wasn’t in place for her when she first arrived. Notably, Pascall’s older sister, Beth Pascall, won the 2021 Western States 100, and it seems like the younger Pascall is following in her footsteps, indicating at the finish that she planned to accept her Golden Ticket.
Behind, a visibly struggling Johanna Antila pushed on in deteriorating weather, the cloud turning to fog and the rain increasing. Still, her gap was big enough to hold onto second place with a time of 12:53:22, and she also earned her Golden Ticket.
Azara García, who was seemingly barely holding on in the final kilometers of the race, secured third place in 13:12:31.
2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k Women’s Results
- Fiona Pascall (U.K.) – 12:34:59
- Johanna Antila (Finland) – 12:53:22
- Azara García (Spain) – 13:12:31
- Abby Hall (U.S.) – 13:31:25
- Stephanie Howe (U.S.) – 13:34:56
The 2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k women’s podium (l-to-r): 2. Johanna Antila, 1. Fiona Pascall, and 3. Azara García. Photo: Chianti Ultra Trail/Alessandro Moretti
2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k Men’s Race
As expected, the men’s race was a showdown between the U.S.’s Jim Walmsley, Spain’s Kilian Jornet, and France’s Vincent Bouillard. The lead trio took little time to establish a gap on the rest of the field, reaching the Poggio San Polo at 23.8 kilometers together in 1:44 elapsed. Already, they had about a gap of five minutes on Luke Grenfell-Shaw (U.K.) and Andreas Reiterer (Italy), who was a further minute behind in fifth.
From left to right, Kilian Jornet, Vincent Bouillard, and Jim Walmsley run in the dark and rain early on in the 2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k. Photo: Chianti Ultra Trail/Alessandro Moretti
By the top of Monteluco, 51k into the race and the high point of the first half, Walmsley opened a gap of five minutes to Jornet and Bouillard, who continued to run together. Grenfell-Shaw and Reiterer stayed in fourth and fifth, now over 20 minutes off the lead.
Over the following descent and subsequent endless climbs, Walmsley ran on his own through the wide dirt roads crisscrossing the vineyards, seemingly enjoying the cloudy skies and continuing to open the gap on the rest of the field. He would say after the race that he didn’t intentionally make any moves, rather he simply found that his rhythm was faster.
By Villa Vistarenni at 87k and the start of the proper climbing of the second half of the race, Walmsley had a 30-minute lead on Jornet and Bouillard, who continued to eat up the distance by running together. Behind them, Aubin Ferrari (France) made a major move into fourth, now 55 minutes behind the leader. Lambert Santelli (France) continued to hover in the top five, a further five minutes behind Ferrari. Early pace pushers Grenfell-Shaw and Reiterer had both dropped back from contention, and eventually from the race.
Jim Walmsley reached the course highpoint, Villa San Michele, at 108k, solo with 8:42 elapsed on the race clock and cruised back to Radda for a victory in 9:59:48. He looked nothing if not fresh, though he did say that the race was incredibly difficult, especially with the muddy course conditions.
Jim Walmsley, 2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k champion. Photo: Chianti Ultra Trail/Alessandro Moretti
Behind him, Jornet and Bouillard duked it out, with Jornet stronger on the climbs but Bouillard faster on the descents. The pair said after the race that they must have had hundreds of back-and-forths. It was clear early on that Jornet was nursing some discomfort in his left leg as well.
Ultimately, when the course turned uphill for the final time, Kilian Jornet attacked to pull away and finish second in 10:27:27. The livestream commentators said he had a 3 p.m. taxi to catch to get to the airport to get home to his new baby, born just last week, so he knew he had to finish as soon as possible, and his crew said that his half-hour margin meant that he wasn’t getting a shower before travel.
Vincent Bouillard finished in third in 10:27:57, a cheeky smile on his face and with hugs for Walmsley, Jornet, and his support crew. With a spot at the Western States 100 already waiting for Walmsley, Jornet and Bouillard both eagerly indicated they planned to accept their Golden Tickets.
2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k Men’s Results
- Jim Walmsley (U.S.) – 9:59:48
- Kilian Jornet (Spain) – 10:27:27
- Vincent Bouillard (France) – 10:27:57
- Aubin Ferrari (France) – 11:16:11
- Lambert Santelli (France) – 11:36:57
The 2025 Chianti Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k men’s podium (l-to-r): 3. Vincent Bouillard, 1. Jim Walmsley, and 2. Kilian Jornet. Photo: Chianti Ultra Trail/Alessandro Moretti
