Travel Philosophy

Since 2003, our goal has been to bring people together and connect them with nature. Our events worldwide are designed as moments of encounter, open and welcoming to everyone. That’s a very important aspect. The 50 events across 28 countries are meant to allow as many people as possible to run a UTMB race close to home. Among the top 10 trail running nationalities, 9 are covered by at least one event. This includes three very large countries – the USA, China, and Australia – which host 6, 5, and 2 UTMB World Series events respectively, spread across their territories. On average, 91% of participants in UTMB World Series events come from the same continent. We want our events to remain inclusive and open, with international finals. However, this openness must not come at the expense of the environment, which is why we are strengthening our commitments.

Collecting Running Stones is not the main motivation. In 2024, only 35% of runners said they chose an event because it offered Running Stones. Moreover, most participants (91% on average) come from the same continent as the event. Only less than 24% of the runners with Running Stones register for the lottery draw.

Not currently. The travel policy is an incentive and one more step—but not a final one—toward reducing environmental impact. Future adaptations may be considered.

As the final and flagship event, HOKA UTMB Mont-Blanc acts as a laboratory for innovation. We test solutions there. We are working on circuit-wide measures, but the international nature of the series brings many specificities.

We've been working for many years to reduce the impact of the event.

• 2004: Reinforced transport plan to limit the number of cars in the valley. It will be reinforced year after year.
• 2006: Creation of the Environment Commission
• 2017: Signature of the GESI Charter (commitment to responsible sporting events)
• 2018: BYOU initiative (everyone brings their own utensils to reduce waste)
• 2020 : Refreshment stands without plastic bottles
• 2024: Sustainable mobility partnerships with TGV Lyria, Alpy Transfers and Dacia Car Sharing
• 2025: Voluntary carbon contribution

This travel policy is a complementary and necessarily collective step. It is positive for the discipline that all events are mobilizing to reduce their impact. We salute the efforts made by the Marathon over the past few years, which are helping to change the course of trail running. We're proud of our joint efforts to protect our shared environment, in the Chamonix valley and the valleys of the Pays du Mont-Blanc (the 2 Savoies, the Aosta Valley in Italy and the Swiss Valais). We'll all grow from it, and so will our sport.