Kenya’s Philemon Kiriago made it three victories at Sierre-Zinal on Saturday, while Romania’s Mădălina Florea claimed her first win at the iconic Swiss mountain race.
But for British trail running, the standout story was Morven Goodrum’s superb third-place finish, with fellow Briton Jacob Adkin also producing an outstanding performance to finish fourth in the men’s race.
The 53rd edition of Sierre-Zinal once again attracted one of the deepest fields in mountain running. The 31km point-to-point course through the Valais Alps features around 2,200m of ascent and 1,100m of descent, reaching approximately 2,400m before a fast final descent into Zinal. The race forms part of both the Golden Trail World Series and Mountain Running World Cup.
Goodrum takes an impressive third
Morven Goodrum produced one of the best results of her career on her Sierre-Zinal debut, finishing third in 2:57:15.
The British athlete was at the sharp end from the very beginning. She reached the Ponchette checkpoint at the head of the women’s field in 57:36, with another Briton, Kirsty Skye Dickson, just 24 seconds behind.
Goodrum continued to lead through much of the race. At the halfway point she had moved back into first, and she was still leading at the Hôtel Weisshorn, close to the highest point of the course.
It was only on the long, fast descent that Florea managed to break clear. The Romanian eventually opened a 40-second advantage, while Kenya’s Caroline Kimutai produced a late surge to overtake Goodrum and take second.
Florea won in 2:55:46, Kimutai was second in 2:56:31, and Goodrum completed the podium in 2:57:15 – just 1 minute 29 seconds behind the winner.
The result is particularly impressive given the quality of the field. Goodrum was the 2026 European Off-Road Running Championships uphill champion, and her Sierre-Zinal performance confirms her position among the leading British mountain runners.
It was also a strong day for British women more broadly. Kirsty Skye Dickson finished 14th, having spent the early stages of the race right at the front alongside Goodrum.
Adkin leads the British challenge
The men’s race produced another excellent British performance, with Jacob Adkin finishing fourth in 2:30:49.
Adkin was not simply hanging on to the leading group. The European Off-Road Running Championships uphill champion set the early pace, reaching Ponchette first in 49:46 and still leading through Chandolin.
He remained in contention deep into the race before Kenya’s Philemon Kiriago and Patrick Kipngeno eventually moved ahead on the climb towards Tignousa.
Adkin reached the Hôtel Weisshorn in fourth and held that position through the long descent, eventually crossing the line just over four minutes behind the winner.
For Britain, having Goodrum third and Adkin fourth in one of the world’s most competitive mountain races represents an excellent result.
Kiriago completes a Kenyan clean sweep
At the front of the men’s race, Philemon Kiriago successfully defended his title, securing his third Sierre-Zinal victory after previous wins in 2023 and 2025.
Kiriago and compatriot Patrick Kipngeno ran together for much of the race, with the lead changing repeatedly during the final stages. Kiriago finally managed to open a gap on the descent and finished in 2:26:24, 32 seconds ahead of Kipngeno.
Michael Selelo Saoli completed an extraordinary Kenyan clean sweep in third in 2:29:36.
All three men represent Run2gether On Trail, making it a particularly dominant performance for the Kenyan team.
Florea claims her first Sierre-Zinal victory
The women’s race was equally closely fought.
Mădălina Florea had previously finished third at Sierre-Zinal in 2024, but this time she took her first victory after a brilliantly judged race.
She spent much of the race in a group containing Goodrum, Nienke Brinkman and Caroline Kimutai before making her decisive move on the final descent.
Kimutai, last year’s winner, fought back strongly in the closing kilometres to take second, while Goodrum held on for a superb third.
Florea’s second consecutive Golden Trail World Series victory, following her win at Pitz Alpine Glacier Trail the previous weekend, further strengthens her position in the series standings.
Jessie Diggins begins her trail-running adventure
Another name attracting plenty of attention was Jessie Diggins, the American Olympic cross-country skiing champion who recently retired from professional skiing after a 16-year career.
Diggins was making another step into trail and mountain running at Sierre-Zinal, following an earlier appearance at California’s Broken Arrow Skyrace.
The 31km Swiss race, with its combination of long climbs, high altitude and fast descent, was a significant test. Diggins finished 37th in 3:24:32.
The result, however, is only the beginning. Diggins has already announced plans to tackle the Superior 100 in Minnesota in September, which will be her first 100-mile race.
Rather than approaching trail running as an attempt to replicate her skiing career, Diggins has spoken about the freedom of being able to choose new challenges and explore a different side of endurance sport. Her move from Olympic skiing to mountain running will be one of the more intriguing stories to follow over the coming months.
Kilian’s absence felt in Zinal
One of the biggest names missing from the start line was Kilian Jornet.
The four-time UTMB champion had originally planned to race Sierre-Zinal as part of his 2026 programme, but withdrew following the knee problem that contributed to his DNF at Western States earlier in the summer.
Jornet’s absence was particularly notable given his history at Sierre-Zinal and his course record of 2:25:35, set in 2019. Kiriago’s winning time of 2:26:24 came within a minute of that mark, underlining just how fast the men’s race was.
For Jornet, attention now turns towards recovery and the possibility of lining up at UTMB later this month.
Another landmark Sierre-Zinal
The 2026 race once again demonstrated why Sierre-Zinal is regarded as one of the world’s great mountain races.
With an exceptionally deep international field, two British athletes finishing fourth and third, a three-way Kenyan sweep in the men’s race, Florea taking her first victory and an Olympic champion beginning her transition into trail running, this year’s edition had plenty of stories beyond the podium.
And with both the Golden Trail World Series and Mountain Running World Cup entering their decisive stages, the results in the Swiss Alps could prove significant well beyond Sierre-Zinal itself.
Header photo courtesy of Sierre-Zinal and Josiane Boulnoix
