IAU 100km Championships, Ames, A Coruña, Spain.
Sunday 20th September 2026
The 33rd staging of the IAU World 100km Championships will take place on Sunday 20th September at the small town of Ames, in Coruña province, in the Galicia region of northwest Spain. 100km is still regarded as the flagship ultra road event, which attracts the world’s best. This weekend’s championship races for both the men and the women will be no different.
The IAU championship will also incorporate the World Masters Association (WMRA) championships.
Live streaming link HERE
Live results and race info HERE
The race starts at 8.30 am local Spanish time.
Runners will run a small loop of 4.8 km followed by 19 laps of 5km. The course will include two 100-metre transition sections to make up the full 100km.
According to the International Association of Ultrarunners
“A total of 44 federations have entered 248 athletes, bringing together a strong and diverse field from across the globe. The entry list includes 147 men (59.04%) and 102 women (40.96%), highlighting the depth and breadth of international ultrarunning talent set to compete for world championship honours.
With athletes representing 44 federations, the championships will showcase the continued growth and strength of the 100Km distance at the highest level of international competition.”
Great Britain and Northern Ireland team
Great Britain and Northern Ireland have a team of eleven athletes, six men and five women, at the championships.
The women’s team will be led by Sarah Webster. Sarah is the current IAU World 24-hour champion and world record holder, and was a bronze medallist at the last 100km championships in India in 2024.
Webster currently tops the 2026 women’s 100km rankings after her 7.03.48 performance at Porto Recanati, in Italy, in March.
She will be backed up by Naomi Robinson, the current IAU world 50km champion. After winning the 50km championships in Delhi in March, Robinson went on to place 5th at the prestigious 85 km Comrades Marathon in June.
British 100km champion Katie Young (Fulham RC), along with Nicole Funnell (Springfield Striders) and Jacqueline Wilson (Unattached), the Scottish 100km champion, make up the women’s team.
Funnell and Wilson were the respective silver and bronze medallists at the British 100km championships behind Young in Limerick in March.
The men are led by Alex Milne (Hercules Wimbledon), the current mens IAU World 50km champion. Like Robinson, Milne also ran Comrades in June, finishing a superb 4th place. Milne was the GB and NI top finisher at the last World Championships in Bengaluru, India, in 2024.
Milne is backed up by the 2026 British mens 100km champion, Dave Barrett (Salford). Barrett won the Anglo-Celtic Plate race in March on his 100k debut with an impressive 6:31:04. Barrett is winning his first GB and NI vest, as are Tom Almond (Reigate) and Hugh Tibbs (Cambridge Harriers), 2nd and 4th respectively at the British Championship.
The 2025 British 100km champion, Henry Hart (Belgrave), who set a new Scottish 50km record when competing at the World Championships in Delhi, together with the experienced Joe Turner (Cambridge and Coleridge), make up a strong team.
Together with individual medals, there is always a hard-fought team competition, decided by the cumulative times of the first three runners from each nation.
International runners to watch
The GB and NI team will be in contention for individual and team medals but will face strong competition.
Men to watch
Japan always come to the 100km championship well prepared. They are the defending team champions, and include defending champion Jumpei Yamaguchi, who has a best of 6:06:07. Although not quite showing the same form this year, he will still be one to watch along with Taketoshi Oe who has a PB of 6:10:22, Tatsuya Itagaki, 6:12:16, and Masato Tanaka, 6:16:01.These are the three fastest times of 2026 set at the traditionally fast Lake Saroma course in June.
France look to have a solid mens team with 4 runners who have run below 6 hours 30 minutes in the last 12 months. Jason Pointeau (6:23:41), Steven Gallibert (6:29:38), Justin Dourlens (6:24:41) and Benjamin Polin (6:19:16) are the sub-6-30 men. In addition, Jann Guterman ( 6:34:30), on paper, makes for a formidable team.
Other leading individuals include
Charles Lawrence, USA, who last December set one of the fastest 100km times on record of 6:07:10, and finished 6th at Comrades in June just behind Alex Milne. His credentials also include setting a world 50-mile best of 4:48:21 in 2023.
Lawrence is joined in the USA team by Phil Young, multiple winner of the classic Tunnel Hill 100-mile race, who was second in the US trial at the Mad City 100km in April.
Lithuania include current world 100km and 24-hour record holder Aleksandr Sorokin. He seems to have been struggling to regain the form of a few years ago, but with his impressive CV, he can never be discounted.
Pascal Rueger of Switzerland, who ran a fast 6:18:27 earlier this year, could also be one to watch
Sweden’s Elov Ollson, a 6:30 man with a previous top-10 Comrades finish, and Petr Hosna (Czechia), who ran 6:27:14 when winning his National Championship in March, could also be in contention.
Women to watch
Like the men, Japan and France are always well prepared.
Japan are led by Miho Nakata, 4th at the last IAU 100km championships in 2024, and 3rd at the 2024 World 24-hour Championships behind Sarah Webster.
Akiko Mariuchi, with a PB of 7:22:22, Mikiko Oto (7:28:47) and Ako Tagikahira. (7:42;46) make a strong quartet.
France are led by Camille Chagneau, who ran 7:19:50 when winning the French Championships at the Steenwerk 100k in May. She is backed up by the twin sisters Selina and Mallory Leroy, who both ran 7:28:05 in the same race.
The USA women’s team look solid and includes Sarah Morrison, who has the second-best time of 2026 with 7:17:01 when winning the US championships in April, and Alison Mercer, who was 2nd to Morrison in that race with 7:30:53
They also include Courtney Olsen, 3rd place finisher at Comrades in 2024 and 7th in 2026. Olsen ran a stunning 6:59:55 at the Tunnell Hill 100km last December to head the 2025 world rankings. Laura Cortez, winner of the Jackpot 50 miler, completes their team.
Individuals to watch
Two Croatian women could challenge the individual podium. Nicolina Sustic-Stankovich and Mirjana Simec-Bilic. Sustic was the IAU world 100km champion in 2018, in a time of 7:20:24. She has shown a return to form this year, winning the undulating Passatore 100km in Italy in 7:28:25. Simec-Bilic was second in the 2025 world 100km rankings with 7:13:30.
They possibly lack the strength in depth to challenge the team podium.
Other individuals to watch
Finland’s Noora Honkala, former Spartathlon winner, who ran 7:27:02 behind Sarah Webster in Italy in February.
Ireland’s Catriona Jennings, the bronze medallist from the 2022 IAU World 100 km, where she ran 7:07:16, will always be in the mix. A multiple top-ten Comrades finisher, she ran a stunning 12:37:04 100-mile last December at Tunnel Hill.
Poland’s Dominika Stelmach, who has a best 100km of 7:04:36 from 2020, and on more recent form, was 6th at the IAU 50km championship in March.
The Spanish duo of Gemma Arenas Alcaazar (7:20:57) and Maria Romero (7:23:21) could also figure as
As always, others will come out of the woodwork who have a breakthrough performance. That is the nature of championship running.
HOW FAST CAN THEY RUN?
The last few years have seen a consistent lowering of 100km times across the board for men and women. Sarah Webster has come very close to 7 hours on three occasions, while Courtney Olsen became only the second woman to dip under 7 hours last Autumn, with her 6:59:55 at Tunnel Hill.
The men have been knocking at the door of a sub-6-hour performance too. Aleksander Sorokin, Charlie Lawrence, and a string of Japanese have come close to show it is possible.
The course is good, and the competition is there. Current weather predictions are reasonable, with sunshine, a high in the mid twenties Centigrade, and a slight breeze.
It remains to be seen whether anyone is brave enough to try for a sub-7-hour women’s performance and a sub-6-hour men’s time this weekend, or whether, in a championship situation, the top runners see how the race unfolds, while targeting a podium finish.
NOTE: Sibusiso Kubheka was credited with a time of 5:59:20 at the Adidas organised Chasing 100 event in August 2025. The time was never considered for ratification as there seemed to be a few technical issues with the organisation, and prototype shoes not yet approved by World Athletics were used.
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Adrian Tarit Stott.
The author is a former GB 24-hour ultra international with over 100 ultra race completions. He has also been involved in organising ultra-distance races for over 30 years. He is very actively involved in several areas of the sport, and is currently a member of the British Athletics Ultra Running Advisory Group (URAG) and UKA’s Mountain and Trail Advisory Group, along with being a member of the Scottish Athletics Hill and Trail Running Commission. He also contributes to the selection and team management for both Scottish and GB ultra teams. A freelance writer in his spare time, he contributes articles and reports to several websites and magazines, including Athletics Weekly and Irunfar.
