The International Skyrunning Federation is pleased to announce the addition of the VERTICAL and SKYULTRA disciplines to the 2026 Masters Skyrunning World Championships, following the recent announcement of the SKY discipline.

The VERTICAL will take place on July 3, 2026, at the same venue as the SKY, on July 4, 2026, part of the ASICS Pierra Menta Été events in Arêches, Savoie, France.  The specially designed course of the new Pierra Menta Verticale will satisfy lovers of the “short and steep” with 850m vertical climb over 3.8 km delivering stretches with a 50-70% incline.

Skyrunning is for everyone. The Masters Skyrunning World Championships are dedicated to those over 40 – and more – who want to keep competing at top level in the sport they love. The third edition will be hosted this coming weekend on October 3-5, 2025, in Bulgaria, featuring, for the first time, all three skyrunning disciplines – VERTICAL, SKY and SKYULTRA.

The Championships are open with seventy-five medals and world titles at stake.

Balkaniada, the host venue situated in Karlovo at the foot of the Balkans, is ready to welcome official teams from 23 countries.

There are four age categories for every discipline: over 40, over 45, over 50, and over 55.

A new first for Bulgaria. After holding many successful international events including Skyrunner® World Series races, eight Skyrunner® National Series races this year, the Grand Finale of the VK OPEN Championships on October 19, it is the first time a World Championship will be held. It will also be the first Masters to hold all three skyrunning disciplines.

The third edition of the Masters Skyrunning World Championships will be hosted in Bulgaria, October 3-5, 2025, featuring, for the first time, all three skyrunning disciplines – SKY, SKYULTRA and VERTICAL. The host venue is Balkaniada in Karlovo, situated in the centre of the country at the foot of the Balkans. Seventy-five medals and world titles are at stake. The championships are open, split into four age categories: over 40, over 45, over 50, and over 55.

The first Masters Skyrunning World Championships for over-forties athletes took place today at the Royal Ultra SkyMarathon in the Gran Paradiso National Park, Piedmont, Italy. Official teams from 17 countries participated, where Brazil, Portugal and Czech Republic came out on top. The selected venue was pure skyrunning. Tough, technical and immensely spectacular overlooked by 3,000m peaks, the 55 km course with a gruelling 4,141m vertical climb crosses seven summits.

It’s time for skyrunners aged forty or more to get a medal and a world champion title. The first ever Masters Skyrunning World Championships have been created just for this and will kick off this weekend, Sunday, July 30, 2023, at the ninth edition of the Royal Ultra SkyMarathon in Ceresole Reale, Piedmont, Italy. Amid turquoise lakes and towering peaks, the course is set in the ex-Royal hunting grounds of the Gran Paradiso National Park near Turin. The punishing course is 55 km long with 4,141m vertical climb over seven summits, touching on moraine and snow fields to an altitude of 3,002m.