2025 World Mountain & Trail Running Championships – Team USA Selection Criteria Announced

November 1, 2024

Races and resumes to determine the 48-member squad

/ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – Team USA will compete in the third World Mountain and Trail Running Championships (WMTRC) slated for September 24-28, 2025, in Canfranc-Pirineos, Spain. This biennial event is organized by the World Mountain Running Association (WMRA), the International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU) and the International Trail Running Association (ITRA), with support from World Athletics.

Team USA will be selected based on the following criteria which was approved by the USATF Mountain Ultra Trail Running executive committee on October 29, 2024.

Team USA Makeup

USA Track & Field (USATF) plans to field a team of 48 athletes with the following event allocations:

VERTICAL MOUNTAIN – 4 men & 4 women
CLASSIC MOUNTAIN race 4 men & 4 women
40 km TRAIL race – 6 men & 6 women
80 km TRAIL race – 6 men & 6 women
U20 CLASSIC MOUNTAIN race – 4 men & 4 women

How to Qualify

The following sections are split into the various disciplines within the World Mountain & Trail Running Championships. Please read each section for details on the qualification process.

VERTICAL MOUNTAIN Team USA

A Standard * – U.S. winner of the Vertical Mountain race at the 2023 World Mountain & Trail Running Championships. (None).
B Standard ** – Top 4 eligible^^ men and women at the 2025 USATF Vertical Mountain Running Selection Race hosted by the Broken Arrow Ascent (formerly known as Broken Arrow VK) in Palisades Tahoe, CA, on Friday, June 20.

C Standard (Alternates) *** – If automatic selections do not accept, substitute team members will be selected based on running resumes with consideration given to top results at USATF Championships and selection races. Top 10 finishers from the 2025 Broken Arrow Redline Uphill and top 10 finishers from the 2025 USATF Mountain Running Championships will automatically be submitted for Vertical Mountain team consideration. The selection committee will consider athletes’ percentage back from the winning time in any races. Athlete resumes can be submitted via Google Form.

Vertical Mountain Selection Timeline

• Qualifying Race – June 20, 2025
• Team Announced – July 15, 2025

CLASSIC UP/DOWN MOUNTAIN Team USA

A Standard – U.S. winner of the Classic Mountain race at the 2023 World Mountain & Trail Running Championships. (Grayson Murphy)
B Standard – Top 4 eligible men and top 3 eligible women at the 2025 USATF Mountain Running Championships hosted by the Sunapee Scramble in Newbury, New Hampshire on Sunday, June 1.

C Standard (Alternates) – If automatic selections do not accept, substitute team members will be selected based on running resumes with consideration given to top results at USATF Championships and selection races. Top 10 finishers from the 2025 USATF Mountain Running Championships and top 10 finishers from the 2025 Broken Arrow Ascent will automatically be submitted for Classic team consideration. The selection committee will consider athletes’ percentage back from the winning time in any races listed on resumes submitted. Athlete resumes can be submitted via Google Form.

Classic Mountain Selection Timeline

• Qualifying Race – June 1, 2025
• Team Announced – July 15, 2025

SHORT TRAIL Team USA – 44.5km

A Standard – U.S. winner of the Short Trail race at the 2023 World Mountain & Trail Running Championships. (None)
B Standard – Top 3 eligible men/women at the Broken Arrow Skyrace 46K in Palisades Tahoe, California on Saturday, June 21, 2025. If automatic selections do not accept, spots DO NOT roll down to the next finisher.

C Standard – Remaining team members will be selected based on running resumes with consideration given to top results at USATF Championships and selection races. The selection committee will consider athletes’ percentage back from the winning time in any races. Athlete resumes should be submitted via Google Form.

Short Trail Selection Timeline

• Qualifying Performance Window – Races between June 1, 2023 to June 30, 2025
• Athlete Resumes Due – No later than June 30, 2025
• Team Announced – July 15, 2025

LONG TRAIL Team USA – 82km

A Standard – U.S. winner of the Long Trail race at the 2023 World Mountain & Trail Running Championships. (None)

B Standard – Top 2 eligible men and women at the Gorge Waterfalls 100K in Cascade Locks, Oregon on Saturday, April 12, 2025. If automatic selections do not accept, spots DO NOT roll down to the next finisher.

C Standard – Remaining team members will be selected based on running resumes with consideration given to top results at USATF Championships. The selection committee will consider athletes’ percentage back from the winning time in any races. Athlete resumes should be submitted via Google Form.

Long Trail Selection Timeline

• Qualifying Performance Window – Races between June 1, 2023 to June 30, 2025
• Athlete Resumes Due – No later than June 30, 2025
• Team Announced – July 15, 2025

U20 CLASSIC MOUNTAIN Team USA

A Standard – n/a
B Standard – n/a

C Standard – Athletes ages 16-19 (before December 31, 2025) are eligible to submit a resume via this Google Form. U20 men should have a 16:45 or better 5km road or XC time and U20 women should have a time of 19:30 or better. Equivalent times from alternate race distances will be considered. In addition U20 must supply a letter of recommendation from a parent/guardian or coach.

U20 Mountain Selection Timeline

• Athlete Resumes Due – No later than June 30, 2025
• Team Announced – July 15, 2025

Additional Information

^^ All team athletes must be current USATF members, U.S. citizens, eligible to represent the United States at an international championship, and have a passport valid through March 30, 2026. In addition, athletes must pass a background check, complete the online Safe Sport course and adhere to the USATF Athlete Statement of Conditions.

Athletes who earn automatic spots must confirm their acceptance of a team spot no later than July 12, 2025.

If a senior athlete withdraws after the final date for additions (TBD), an athlete on the team for a different distance may be asked about filling the withdrawn position. The selection committee will be consulted on any replacement athlete selections between July 15 and the team arrival in Spain. The team staff will make the decision if withdrawal occurs on site and athlete substitution is still allowed. Athletes are never obligated to fill the replacement positions.

This team receives funding from USA Track & Field and the American Trail Running Association. Team uniforms will be provided by USATF. If an athlete qualifies for the team but cannot make the trip due to injury or any other circumstance, the uniform must be returned to USATF.

Athletes who automatically qualify for multiple events will be allowed to race multiple events at the world championships.

Funding and staff contacts for Team USA

Team members will receive funding from USA Track & Field and the American Trail Running Association with the reimbursement amount TBA. While the exact cost of sending a team to this championship is unknown at the time of this writing, it is the intention of the USATF MUT Council to work toward making this a fully funded team for senior athletes and staff with partial funding for the junior team members.

Questions can be sent to any team staff member listed below.

Paul Kirsch (Team Leader) – pkirsch2@gmail.com
Jason Bryant- runningmtn.goat@yahoo.com
Josh Ferenc- joshuaferenc@gmail.com
Tom Hooper – hooper.thomas@gmail.com
Anita Ortiz- ortiz.anita.m@gmail.com
Carol Passarelli – cpassarelli@gmail.com

Questions about the U20 MOUNTAIN team can be emailed to Josh Ferenc, joshuaferenc@gmail.com. U20 athletes can fill out the online application form.

USATF MUT selection committee members were Paul Kirsch, Eric Blake, Jason Bryant, Nancy Hobbs, Tom Hooper, Max King, Grayson Murphy, Anita Ortiz and Emkay Sullivan. For the U20 MOUNTAIN team, Josh Ferenc, Paul Kirsch, Lauren Gregory, Eric Blake, Nancy Hobbs, Max King, Mark Weeks and Jason Bryant.

* The A standard is for world champions from the previous world championship (Austria).
** The B standard is based on USATF championship and/or U.S. selection race results.
*** The C standard is based on evaluation of athlete resumes by the USATF MUT selection committee.

For additional information, visit this link.

Contact: Nancy Hobbs, American Trail Running Association, nancyhobbs@trailrunner.com