2024 Snowdon SkyRace® Report
The dust is finally settling on SkyRun Eryri®! What started as heavy rain overnight, finished with celebratory pizza, beer and tunes in the warm sunshine – a race atmosphere to remember! If you’re still feeling a little dazed or are wondering what went down, hold-tight for a deep-dive into Saturday’s SkyRace action.
The UK National Championships is GO!
The 5th edition of the Snowdon SkyRace® was a BIG one! Not only was it the third race in the Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series but it was also the inaugural Skyrunning UK National Championships race (info HERE). And so, at 08:00 on Saturday morning, drizzly weather did little to dampen high spirits of the 145 runners, blasting through the start line’s red smoke to head straight up the highest peak in Wales!
Skyrunning author John Proctor enjoys Crib Goch, which features in the closing stage of the race’s route. ©Tanya Raab.
Ifan Oldfield set a blistering pace from the start, with Mark Darbyshire close behind. The pair pushed to the summit of Yr Wyddfa/Snowdon in around 48 minutes, before Darbyshire slowly started to break away. What followed over the next few hours was a dot-watcher’s dream, as the front of the men’s field jostled for position!
Mark Darbyshire flies down the Watkin Path early on in the race. ©Tanya Raab.
At the first support point at Llyn Llydaw, Alex Hill, Ifan Oldfield and Craig Lowe came through just seconds apart. Over the Glyderau however, Oldfield began to pull ahead of his challengers, holding on to second place as the race turned south. But just before the Pen-y-Gwrd support station, Darbyshire took a nasty fall and Oldfield suddenly found himself up front. With Darbyshire now out of the running, a battle for second place ensued. Alex Hill gained ground up and over Crib Goch, only to discover he still had the legs for a fast descent to take the lead to the finish!
Welshman Ifan Oldfield en route to second place. ©Tanya Raab.
As Hill crossed the line in first place, Lowe had Oldfield in his sights, chasing him down the Snowdon Ranger Path to the finish. The pair crossed the line in quick succession, with Oldfield just pipping Lowe to the post. A dramatic race with an equally dramatic finish saw our inaugural Skyrunning UK National Champion crowned in double-quick time.
Alex Hill breaks the tape at Snowdon SkyRace; the inaugural Skyrunning UK National Championships. ©Hollie Harmsworth.
Outside of the podium, Juhana Kirk was first in the male Masters 40-44 (6th position overall), with Colin Brearly first 45-49, David Parkin first 50-54 and Jay Winter, winner of the 55+ class. Welsh junior, Ioan Jones was first U23 home.
Beautiful wooden finisher’s medals (and beer!) awaited runners this year. ©Evan Davies.
The women’s race played out very differently, with Victoria Thompson taking the lead from the start. Thompson ran a strong race, holding first place throughout and reaching the finish in just 6h30, with a lead of nearly an hour (9th position overall).
Victoria Thompson dances over Crib Goch en route to victory. ©Tanya Raab.
Behind her, Debbie Morgan was in second place early on, with Karolina Woloszczyk chasing hard in third a few minutes behind. But by the time these front runners reached the Ogwen Valley aid station, Spinks had nudged into third position and continued to reel in the competition.
The highly experienced Spinks battles on to second place. ©Tanya Raab.
Going into Crib Goch, Spinks was now 1 minute behind Morgan but a strong push over the ridge saw her move into second place for the final downhill of the day. Morgan claimed the final spot on the champion’s podium, with Woloszczyk in fourth.
Debbie Morgan on the knife edge arete of Crib Goch. ©Tanya Raab.
In second place, Nicky Spinks won the 55-59 age cat in an impressive time of 7h 22, with Tasha Sexton winning 50-54 cat and Alice Mclean winning 45-49. The winner of 40-44 was Hannah Buckingham (8th position) and Jenny Kate Coatsworth was first U23 across the line.
Hill & Thompson both claimed the first UK National Champion’s vests. ©Hollie Harmsworth.
Full provisional results can now be found online HERE.
In this UK National Championship race, the top 3 men and women received a SkyMasters qualification and a cash prize of £500/£250/£125 for the podium top spots. Both Hill and Thompson also received a coveted National Champion vest for their winning performances.
The top 20 M/F finishers will also receive +50% bonus points towards their National Series ranking, where a huge £1,000 is up for grabs for 1st M/F overall. More info HERE.
Series ranking charts will be added to the Skyrunning UK website later this week.
Join the tribe and become a SKYRUNNER in Eryri next June! ©Tanya Raab.
This year was the fifth edition of Snowdon SkyRace®, which was proudly part of the Skyrunner® World Series in 2021. Following this year’s incredible edition, we predict a sell out edition for next year! Entries are already open for SkyRun Eryri® 2025, so get your name down soon by entering HERE today!
Next up in the 2024 Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series and SkyUltra®/U23 sub-series’ are the following races from Lake District Sky Trails (LDST) on 20th/21st July in Patterdale, NE Lakes:
The Rab Helvellyn Sky Ultra: 57km & 3,700m+ and the second race of the new SkyUltra® Series. Entry HERE.
The St. Sunday Mountain Race: 29km & 2,050m+ and the second race of the new U23 Series. Entry HERE.
The Rab Pinnacle Ridge Extreme: 28km & 2,700m+ and as the name suggest, the most technical race in the series by far, featuring Grade 3 scrambling! Vetted entry HERE.
Entry closing date to all these races have been extended to 7th July (and 4th July for PRE), so it’s not too late to be part of the new Skyrunner® National Series! Enter HERE today.
Find out your ranking in the Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series later this week.
