Breaking news….. I have been asked to go out to the Canaries in May in what is going to be a ‘dream’ 10 days. I will be reporting on the Transvulcania Ultra Marathon and then flying to Spain to report on Zegama.

As an introduction, here is the official press release which has been released today, March 20th

THE RACE OF THE CENTURY

Ultra running legends announced. Transvulcania rolls out the red carpet

Transvulcania Ultra Marathon, La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain – May 12, 2012

Never in the history of endurance sport has such a number of world-class runners gathered together at a single event. After weeks of anticipation, the International Skyrunning Federation announces the final line-up of the Transvulcania Ultra Marathon, valid for the Skyrunner® World Series ranking and first of the five Ultra Series races.

The star-studded entry list reads as follows: the three winners of the 2011 TNF Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc®, Spaniards Kilian Jornet, Iker Karrera and Frenchman Sebastien Chaigneau; Americans Mike Wolfe, 2011 TNF Endurance Challenge 50M Championship and 2nd Western States 100; Geoff Roes, 2010 Western States 100 and 2011 Ultra Race of Champions; Anton Krupicka, 2nd 2010 Western States 100; Dakota Jones, 2nd 2011 Hard Rock 100 Endurance Run and 2nd 2011 TNF Endurance Challenge 50M Championship; Rickey Gates, 2011 Canadian Death Race; France’s Erik Clavery, IAU Trail World Champion; Britain’s Andy Symonds, La Course de Templiers 2011.

The mammoth line-up continues with top French runners: François D’Haëne, Thomas Lorblanchet, Thierry Breuil, Yann Curien. Americans Joe Grant and Ian Sharman; Csaba Németh, Hungary; Florent Troillet, Switzerland; Gustavo Reyes, Argentina; Giuliano Cavallo, Italy; Philipp Reiter, Germany.

The glittering women’s field counts 2011 TNF Endurance Challenge 50M Championship winner, Anna Frost from New Zealand; IAU Trail World Champion Maud Gobert from France; Americans Darcy Africa, 2011 Hard-Rock 100; Nikki Kimball, 3rd 2011Western States 100 and 2007 TNF Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc®; Kasia Zajac from Poland, Zugspitz Super Trail 2011.

With such strong competition, the 7h32’13” race record set last year by Spaniard Miguel Heras could take a beating. The question is, by whom?

The strong international team participation includes major industry players:
Adidas, Arc’teryx, Asics, Montrail, New Balance, Pearl Izumi, Platinium Sigvaris, Salomon, The North Face.

The 500 runners face a daunting 8,525m ascent and descent over the 83 km course which starts at sea level on the Atlantic coast and travels along the island’s backbone to the summit of the volcano at 2,423m before descending back to the sea and finishing in the town of Los Llanos.

From sea to sky, the Transvulcania Ultra Marathon perfectly embodies the skyrunning philosophy and unquestionably represents one of the most spectacular of the 20 races on the 2012 Skyrunner® World Series. Given the VIP entry list, it could be nothing less than the race of the century.

Follow news and updates on http://www.skyrunning.com and on Facebook and Twitter. Race website http://www.transvulcania.com

ULTRA SKYMARATHON®SERIES

*SPAIN:TRANSVULCANIA ULTRA MARATHON, LA PALMA – MAY 12
USA: Speedgoat 50K, Snowbird, Utah – July 28
ITALY: Trofeo Kima UltraSkyMarathon®, Valmasino, Sondrio – August 26
SPAIN: Cavalls del Vent, Cadi-Moixeró Natural Park, Pyrenees – September 29
FRANCE: La Course des Templiers, Millau, Grands Causses – October 28

Ultra SkyMarathon®Series champion titles are awarded to competitors with the highest points based on the sum of the three best results.
Ranking points in the final races will be increased by 20%.
Ranking points breakdown: 100-88-78-72-68-66-64-62-60-58-56-54-52-50-48-46-44-42-40.