2025 Western States Endurance Run - Race Preview
Happy Statesmas!
This year celebrates the 52nd running of the Western States Endurance Run, which kicks off on Saturday June 28, 2025 at 5:00am. Runners will start in Olympic Valley and immediately climb up to Emigrant Pass, before descending onto historic trails on a net downhill towards a finish in Auburn 100.2 miles later. This year’s race will crown a new women’s champion in a field that is exceptionally deep and talented, as defending 2024 champion Katie Schide is not participating in this year’s edition. In the men’s race, well see the return of two previous champions in Kilian Jornet (2011) and Adam Peterman (2022), along with a lengthy list of world-class challengers lining up to contest for the win. With the depth of talent in this year’s race, and fairly moderate temperatures by Western States standards (expectation is for a high of 87 at Foresthill by midday and 90 on the track around the expected time for the men’s first finisher) we also expect both the men’s and women’s course records (Jim Walmsley, 14:09:28 from 2019 and Courtney Dauwalter, 15:29:33 from 2023) to be challenged.
Live stream will be hosted on the Western States 100 YouTube Channel here.
Below, we take a brief look at some of the top competitors in this year’s race (in alphabetical order):
Women’s Field
Shea Aquilano (Colorado) – Selected through this year’s race lottery, and at only 24 years of age, Shea has amassed a broad selection of impressive race results. Most recently, Shea set the course record with a win at the Gorge Waterfalls 100k, which secured her spot (for the second time in her career) on the USA Track and Field (USATF) Long Trail Team for the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships, which will compete in Spain later this year.
Riley Brady (Colorado) – With a record-breaking performance at the Black Canyon Ultras 100k earlier this year, Riley became only the second athlete (apart from Jim Walmsley) to have won two Golden Ticket races in the same Western States qualifying period. They recorded the second fastest time in Javelina Jundred 100 Mile race history last fall and recently broke a stout course record at the Quad Rock 50.
Eszter Csillag (Hungary, living in Hong Kong) – Eszter returns for her third straight Western States, where she has finished in third place in the previous two years. She has had top 5 finishes at the Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB) Mont Blanc and Courmayeur-Champex-Chamonix (CCC) 100k races previously, as well as at the Long Trail race at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships.
Tara Dower (Colorado) – This is Tara’s first appearance at Western States, which she earned with a Golden Ticket from a second-place finish (also the second fastest result all-time) at the Black Canyon Ultras 100k this February. Tara is the current record holder of the supported Appalachian Trail Fastest Known Time, and most recently won the Lake Sonoma 50 Mile.
Emily Hawgood (Zimbabwe, living in California) – Having recently won the Canyons Endurance Runs by UTMB 100k, Emily will be starting her fifth consecutive Western States this year. With four back-to-back top ten results here, Emily has progressively improved with each subsequent race, culminating in a 16:48 finish last year, the seventh fastest result in race history. Emily is also impressively a three-time top ten finisher at the UTMB Mont Blanc.
Marianne Hogan (Canada) – A podium finisher at Western States in 2022, Marianne earned a return spot to this year’s race with a Golden Ticket-earning second place finish at the Canyons Endurance Runs by UTMB 100k, her second career Golden Ticket. Marianne is also two-time UTMB podium finisher, including the fifth fastest time in race history last year.
Heather Jackson (Oregon) – Returning after a seventh-place finish in her second career start at Western States last year, Heather started her season with a sub-10-hour finish at the Black Canyon Ultras 100k in February. A competitive gravel racer as well, Heather recently won the 350-mile Gravel Unbound XL race in Kansas.
Ida Nilsson (Sweden) – Lining up for her third consecutive Western States, Ida knocked off nearly 50 minutes of her previous best time in last year’s race. Ida has a long history of ultradistance racing, including two victories at the Ultravasan 90k in her home country of Sweden, and is a three-time champion of the Transvulcania 73k.
Fiona Pascall (United Kingdom) – The younger sister of 2021 Western States champion Beth Pascall, Fiona earned a Golden Ticket with a convincing win at the Ultra Trail Chianti Castles by UTMB 120k. Fiona has had an impressive stretch of results in her brief ultra running career, which includes wins at the Julian Alps Trail Run by UTMB 170k and mozart 100 by UTMB 105k.
Fuzhao Xiang (China) – A second place finisher in the 2024, Fuzhao ran the third fastest time in Western States history, which included the second fastest ever split from Foresthill to the Finish Line in Auburn. Fuzhao is also a four-time UTMB finisher, which includes two top ten finishes in recent years.
Additional Names to watch: Hannah Allgood, Rosanna Buchauer, Erin Clark, Cailtin Fielder, Abby Hall, Keely Henninger, Martyna Młynarczyk, Hau-Ha Thi.
Notable DNS: Rachel Drake (Top 10 returner, as of February 28), Leah Yingling (Top 10 returner, as of March 3), EmKay Sullivan (Golden Ticket at Black Canyon 100k), Claire Bannwarth (Lottery, as of May 2), Tara Fraga (Lottery), Lin Chen (Golden Ticket at Black Canyon 100k, as of June 23), Priscilla Forgie (Top 10 returner, as of June 23).
Men’s Field
Vincent Bouillard (France) – Champion of the 2024 UTMB Mont Blanc, Vincent earned a Golden Ticket to this year’s race with a podium finish at the Ultra Trail Chianti Castles by UTMB 120k, just seconds behind fellow competitor in this race, Kilian Jornet.
Rod Farvard (California) – In the 2024 race, Rod was locked in a battle for the ages down Cal Street with eventual champion Jim Walmsley, who pushed Rod to the third fastest finishing time in Western States history (14:24). He showed off his early-season fitness this year, taking down a longstanding Jim Walmsley record at the Nine Trails 35 Miler. This will be Rod’s fifth time starting Western States.
Daniel Jones (New Zealand) – Has earned two consecutive top five finishes at Western States, including a 14:32 finish time in the 2024 race, the seventh fastest in race history. Daniel recently completed a “three-peat” of the Tarawera Ultramarathon by UTMB 102k earlier this year, in a course record time.
Kilian Jornet (Spain, living in Norway) – Returning to the race for his third start and for the first time since his victory in 2011, Jornet recently finished second at the Ultra Trail Chianti Castles by UTMB 120k, earning his Golden Ticket to this year’s race. Kilian has an extraordinary resume that includes multiple wins at each of the UTMB Mont Blanc, Hardrock 100 Endurance Run, Zegama-Aizkorri and Sierre-Zinal.
Hannes Namberger (Germany) – In his racing debut Stateside, Hannes earned his Golden Ticket to this year’s race with a third-place finish at the Canyons Endurance Runs by UTMB 100k this April. A three-time champion of the Lavaredo Ultra Trail by UTMB 120k, Hannes also has three career top 10 finishes at the UTMB Mont Blanc.
Caleb Olson (Utah) – Caleb set the record in 2024 for the fastest finish time for a debutant at Western States, clocking a 14:40 for the course which is also the eight fastest in race history. Earlier this year, Caleb shattered the record at the Transgrancanaria Classic 126k, becoming the first American male to win the island race.
Adam Peterman (Montana) – Champion of the 2022 Western States race, Adam earned a return spot to this year’s race through a Golden Ticket-earning podium finish at the CCC 100k last year. Adam also recently had a record-breaking victory at the Gorge Waterfalls 100k, earning him a spot on the USATF Long Trail Team for the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Spain later this year.
David Roche (Colorado) – Reigning Leadville 100 champion and course record holder, who earned his Golden Ticket at the Javelina Jundred 100 Miler, in the second fastest time in course history. Recently set a new course record at the Quad Rock 50.
Seth Ruhling (Colorado) – Debuting at the 100-mile distance, Seth earned a Golden Ticket to this year’s race with a record-setting win at the Black Canyon 100k this February. Among a long list of accolades, Seth is a two-time champion of the JFK 50 Mile.
Additional Names to Watch: Peter Frano, Dan Green, Adrian Macdonald, Joe McConaughy, Jeff Mogavero, Ryan Montgomery, Chris Myers, Haroldas Subertas, Hans Troyer.
Notable DNS: Hayden Hawks (Top 10 returner, as of May 18), Jim Walmsley (Top 10 returner, as of May 26), Jon Rea (Top 10 returner, as of May 28), Huo-Hua Zhang (Golden Ticket at CCC, as of June 2), Jiasheng Shen (Top 10 returner, as of June 7), Will Murray (Golden Ticket at Black Canyon 100k, as of June 20).
Tell me who I’ve missed and who you’re rooting for in the comments!
Great rundown, thank you. But did you really mean to call Caleb “a debutant” (instead of saying “debut”)? Made me laugh :-). I will be cheering for Kilian among the elites, but mostly I’ll cheer for some midpackers and oldsters. I’m interested to see how Jamil does with his self-described late and minimal training, and how he’ll handle Hardrock two weeks later. I’m following the biggest-ever field of over-70 runners. And I have a personal connection to a few runners whom I’ll track. Western States is about so much more than the front-runners. It’s about being part of a grand, unique, half-century tradition and chasing what likely is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It’s about all the volunteers, crew, and caretakers of its legacy who keep it going. It’s about the trail itself. I’m so grateful I got my shot at it in 2016 and earned a silver buckle. I’m putting in for the lottery again with the hope of doing it one more time in my 60s.
Super psyched to observe the race! Gonna be a burner! Is there a public listing of splits times for course record and predicted course times for this year?