American ultrarunner Katie Schide and Morocco’s Elhousine Elazzaoui have been topped as Freetrail’s 2024 Path Runners of the Yr, a well-deserved recognition for each their dominant performances and unmatched consistency all year long. Each runners topped podiums and smashed course information as they delivered a season to recollect. For those who missed the motion in 2024, it’s time to catch up—these two athletes aren’t slowing down any time quickly.
Schide’s dominance and double victory
Schide’s 2024 season was not solely dominant—it was additionally historic. The American ultrarunner, who lives and trains within the French village of Saint-Dalmas-le-Selvage, has been a constant pressure in path operating for years. Nevertheless, 2024 was the 12 months she firmly established herself as among the best within the sport.
Schide kicked off her season by profitable the Vertical Kilometer El Gigante occasion (5.5km and 1,130m of elevation acquire) at Transgrancanaria within the Canary Islands, and adopted that with a victory at Canyons Endurance Runs 100K (in Auburn, Calif.), the place she led from begin to end in a formidable 9:10:10. In July, she delivered one of the spectacular performances in Western States Endurance Run historical past, ending in 15:46:57—the second-fastest girls’s time ever. Katie capped her 12 months at UTMB, smashing the course file within the 100-mile distance in 22:09:31.
Elazzaoui: short-distance king
On the other finish of the trail-running spectrum, Elazzaoui demonstrated his mastery in short-distance path racing. The Moroccan standout dominated the nine-race Golden Path World Sequence, capturing the general victory and setting a number of course information alongside the best way. Amongst his achievements, Elazzaoui notched 4 main wins, together with a triumphant end on the World Closing, and earned second place on the notoriously powerful Zegama-Aizkorri path marathon in Spain and the 4 Sisters Mountain Path 26K in China.
He additionally shattered course information on the Mammoth Path Fest’s 26K occasion in California and the long-lasting Marathon du Mont-Blanc in Chamonix, France. Elazzaoui’s performances dazzle from begin to end, and he’s identified for leaving all of it out on the path. “Desires come true when you might have ardour,” he shared on Instagram after his award was introduced. “A purpose and a smile.”
Take a look at all the athletes in Freetrail’s high 10 Path Runner of the Yr awards right here.