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The Journey to the HOKA UTMB® Mont-Blanc Start Line for 3 Trailblazing Women
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On Friday, August 30, many of the world’s best trail runners will line up at the start line for the UTMB® (Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc). As part of HOKA’s Made in the Mountains Challenge–which runs in the leadup to the UTMB®, from 26 Aug - 1 Sept–we’re spotlighting three remarkable women who each forged a path of their own to this year’s premier trail event.
Now in its 21st year, the UTMB® race has established itself as one of–if not the–premier trail events on the calendar. A tough, technical course that spans three countries over a distance of 106 miles / 171 km with more than 32,600 feet / 9,963m of elevation gain, simply earning a spot on the start line is almost as challenging as the race itself. With strict entry criteria that mandate qualifying events, every one of the 2,500 athletes who start the race has a guaranteed trail running pedigree.
But not everyone’s journey to the start line is the same. So what does it take to get there?
CHALLENGE: Take on THE HOKA UTMB Mont-Blanc challenge and fly 19.4km in a week to win HOKA prizes
HOKA athletes Judith Wyder, Katharina Hartmuth, and Eszter Csillag each have shown incredible determination in making their way to the start line. These remarkable women balance intense training sessions in the mountains with the responsibilities of motherhood, for Judith and Eszter, and, in Katharina’s case, the work of a scientist. Judith has even overcome a serious medical condition to get where she is today. These three athletes’ stories are a testament to the strength and resilience within us all, and inspire us to get to the start line.
Meet the Athletes
In late 2019, when Swiss trail runner Judith Wyder was pregnant with her second child, she suffered a stroke. “To be able to move again was my objective,” she says. Ever since, she’s shown incredible resilience in building up the strength to compete at trail running’s highest levels, claiming the silver (individual and team) in the Trail Short during the IAU Trail World Championships in 2023.
It’s not easy finding balance between parenting and running, but Judith says sometimes her kids–now three and six years old–run with her, and even come along with her to training two or three times a month. Her advice for other mothers training for a race is to be flexible. “Be prepared to train first thing in the morning or late at night even when you don’t want to.”
She also reminds us to keep perspective when approaching a race. “The first step is about starting to move. Stay happy and healthy. It’s not about proving anything to anyone.” When she approaches the start line, she’s not concerned about who’s lining up next to her. “I’m racing myself to see how I can do.”
Despite her success as an athlete–she has also won several orienteering and ski orienteering championships–she considers herself a mother first. “Being family first is super important to me,” she says. For Judith, parenthood and trail running go hand in hand. “Trail running is always changing–new terrain, adversity, mental challenges. It’s the same as being a mum. I always must be ready.”
German trail runner Katharina Hartmuth earned an impressive second-place finish at last year’s UTMB®. Even more impressive? The challenging course was only her second-ever 100-mile trail race. “I definitely didn’t expect to come in second,” she says.
Running wasn’t Katharina’s first sport–as a child, she gravitated to climbing. “I was very small for my age. All the other girls had long legs and were much faster.” It was her family hiking trips that made her fall in love with the mountains.
Despite her impressive finish at last year’s UTMB®, Katharina still doesn’t consider herself an elite athlete. Perhaps that’s because when she’s not out on the trails, she works as a scientist. “It’s something completely different that also occupies a lot of my time.”
There’s not much time outside of training and work for Katharina–so what keeps her motivated? “The most important thing is that I have fun. Of course there are difficult moments but overall I need to enjoy it. This is what keeps me motivated.”
Katharina’s dedication and passion for the sport is already inspiring other women trail runners. “At UTMB® it’s a fact that there are, as ever, many more men at the start than women,” Katharina says. “But now women come to me and say, ‘Hey, you showed me it’s possible for women to do this.’”
Her advice for other women who want to find their way to the start line? “It’s important that you just go out and free yourself from what other people say or do.”
Hungarian trail runner Eszter Csillag started racing in 2016. But at her first race, she failed to finish. “The DNF was a big lesson for me,” she says. Following that first race, she competed in Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Korea, steadily improving, and then she became pregnant with her first child. “When I got pregnant, I was running up to the 5-month mark because I loved it too much,” she says. At that stage of her pregnancy, she participated in a race and was about to come in third when she was overtaken in the last straight. “I slowed down from third and ended up fifth because I was scared of running downhill. For me this was the moment when I realized what was important to me. I didn’t want to take the risk while pregnant.”
After she became a mother, Eszter had to cope with being away from her children. “I had to mentally train to be away from my kids when I was training for the big races. I had to do 4-6 hours of training a day when my kids were babies, when all you want to do is run back to them.”
In 2021, Eszter never expected to come in fourth when she ran the CCC. “I was taking running very seriously but I never realized I could do this.” The next year, in 2022, she ran the UTMB®–her first 100-mile race–and came in fifth, an incredible feat.
As a mother, family support makes trail running at the highest level possible for Eszter. With the big races ahead, she and her husband get support for their girls from their mothers. “Literally everyone is involved in making the preparation and racing ideal. This family structure is important to me.”
As for barriers for women trail runners, Eszter says, “Women don’t feel safe when they run in nature alone. This might get easier with time but it’s a big barrier for women initially.” Hearing about women’s stories out on the trails, she says, makes the sport more relatable to other women.
Her advice for women with trail running aspirations? “You need to believe in your dreams. They can be difficult to reach but you can make them a reality. Your life doesn’t stop when you become a mother.”
Want to hear more? Go to the HOKA Made in the Mountains website to watch videos with all three HOKA athletes.
Join us as we celebrate the triumphs of these three remarkable women and embrace the spirit of adventure. Let their journeys ignite your own trail-running aspirations and remind you that every trail begins with a single, courageous stride.
HOKA is encouraging women everywhere to lace up, step out, and get to the start line—be it a challenging race or a simple run out the front door.
Feeling inspired to make your way to the start line? Join the HOKA UTMB Mont-Blanc MADE IN THE MOUNTAINS Challenge, which runs from August 26 - September 1.
In Chamonix? You can take on the HOKA UTMB Mont-Blanc LET’S FLY CHAMONIX SEGMENT Challenge, from August 26 - September 1.
