Jiaju Zhao leads the 2026 TOR330 after the opening day, with Katharina Hartmuth running third overall and setting the pace in the women’s race. In the Lake District, James Gibson has ended his attempt at a fast Steve Parr Round because of poor weather.
Header image courtesy: Antonio Codina
Elsewhere, Australian backyard ultra runner Phil Gore is awaiting surgery following his 1,019.3km Project 168 effort, while Tommy Price has completed the Bob Graham Round four years after suffering a cardiac arrest on Blencathra.
Zhao and Hartmuth Lead the TOR330
According to race updates compiled from the opening day, around 1,100 runners started the TOR330 in Courmayeur on Sunday, facing 330km and approximately 24,000m of ascent through the Aosta Valley. The race has a 150-hour cut-off, making sleep management and recovery at the life bases central to finishing. Positions and progress can be followed through the official TORX live tracker.
China’s Jiaju Zhao has established the early lead. He was 11 minutes ahead of Switzerland’s Jonathan Schindler at Valgrisenche, with China’s Xingzhi Bai another five minutes behind. By the first night, Zhao had reached 151.5km and extended his advantage.
Hartmuth was around 139km into the route and running third overall, close to Schindler. The German is leading the women’s race ahead of China’s Huiping Zhang and France’s Claire Bannwarth.
Her position among the leading men follows a series of strong results on long mountain courses. Hartmuth won the TOR330 in 2024, setting the women’s course record of 79:10:40. She also lowered the women’s Bob Graham Round record to 14:11:58 in July.
Lawrence Eccles is the highest-placed British runner in 46th after covering 155km. Anna Troup is the leading British woman in 117th overall.
Richard O’Connor, Toby Smithson, Hannah Rickman, John Maskell, Alex Watrous, Richard Moreland, Paul Finlay, Alex Van Tuyl and Jonathan Burnhams remain in the race. Sabrina Verjee, Kim Collison, Kirsty Reade and James Elson have recorded DNFs.
Poor Weather Ends Gibson’s Steve Parr Attempt
INOV8 athlete James Gibson stopped his attempt to record a fast Steve Parr Round over the weekend after encountering poor weather, according to an update from INOV8.
Gibson had completed 26 of the route’s 61 summits during his first 12 hours. His planned line covered about 177km (110 miles) with 13,716m (45,000ft) of ascent.
The Steve Parr Round links the Lake District summits above 2,500ft (762m).
Harry Firth, who was among Gibson’s pacers, set the current fastest known time of 33 hours 32 minutes in April 2026. His round included wind, rain, slippery ground and ice. Listen to our podcast with him.
The challenge is named after Steve Parr, who completed the first version in 42 hours 56 minutes in 1984. The route starts and finishes at Keswick Moot Hall, although runners can use another start point if they return to the same place.
Gibson has experience of winter mountain rounds. His previous achievements include solo and unsupported winter completions of the Bob Graham, Paddy Buckley and Ramsay rounds. He was also the first runner to complete a winter Steve Parr Round.
Phil Gore Awaits Surgery After 1,019km Run
Phil Gore, who holds the backyard ultra world record, is back in hospital after his Project 168 attempt at Alfred Skeet Reserve in Forrestdale, according to Canadian Running’s report and interview.
Gore completed 152 hourly loops, known as yards, and covered 1,019.3km in a little more than six days. His target had been 168 yards, equivalent to seven days, but the attempt still exceeded his previous best by 33 hours and raised more than A$300,000 for Telethon 7.
Doctors initially diagnosed swelling in his left leg as a haematoma and discharged him from Perth Royal Hospital on 9 September. After seeking a second opinion, Gore went to the emergency department at Fiona Stanley Hospital. Fluid taken from his leg indicated an infected abscess rather than a collection of blood.
Surgery to clean the affected area is planned for Tuesday. His participation in Australia’s Backyard Ultra Satellite Championships, which begin on 17 October, is now unlikely.
“This is the worst I’ve pulled up from any event that I’ve done,” Gore told Canadian Running.
Tommy Price Completes the Bob Graham Round
Tommy Price completed the 42-summit Bob Graham Round in 23 hours 35 minutes on 6 September, according to an account published by the Bob Graham Round. He finished at Keswick Moot Hall with 25 minutes to spare.
The 106km (66-mile) round includes about 8,230m (27,000ft) of climbing. Price’s completion came four years after he suffered a cardiac arrest while recceing its opening leg in winter conditions.
Keswick Mountain Rescue Team found him unresponsive on Hall’s Fell in January 2022, with a body temperature of about 18°C. Rescuers performed CPR for more than two hours before he was flown to Newcastle and treated using an ECMO machine.
Jonny Hulme, one of the rescuers who reached Price that night, accompanied him on the opening leg of his successful round. Dr John Ferris, who travelled with him in the rescue helicopter, was at Moot Hall for the finish.
“Four years ago, these people were helping save my life,” Price said in a Keswick Mountain Rescue Team statement. “Four years later, they were there as I completed the challenge I had been recceing when it all happened.”
