It’s back to Brazil for the South American Championships

The Insanity Mountain Mestre Álvaro VK with fixed ropes, a steep ascent and epic ocean views. ©Ramon Ricardo

Curtains are rising on the Skyrunning South American Championships in Serra, Espirito Santo, Brazil on June 23 and 24, where the three main skyrunning disciplines – VERTICAL, SKY and SKYULTRA will be contested at the Insanity Mountain Mestre Álvaro events.

Skyrunning Continental Championships alternate with World Championships every odd year and, after 2019, the Skyrunning South American Championships land again n Brazil with the participation of teams from Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador and Peru. Continental titles and a total of 21 medals are at stake.

The events kick off with the VERTICAL on Friday, June 23 with the Insanity Mountain Mestre Álvaro VK. The race is 4.8 km long with 1,014m vertical climb reaching the rocky summit of the Mestre Álvaro mountain after traversing forest and steep rock faces with fixed ropes to aid progress.

Saturday, June 24, will be the showdown with both the SKY and SKYULTRA races where athletes will explore the Mestre Álvaro protected area. The SKY features a 35 km course with 3,300m vertical climb while the SKYULTRA is a more challenging 50 km long with 4,394m vertical climb.

Rafael Aquino Leal, President, Skyrunning Brazil, responsible for creating and developing skyrunning in his country. ©iancorless.com

Rafael Aquino Leal, President, Skyrunning Brazil, responsible for creating and developing skyrunning in Brazil and participating in World Championships with strong teams, stated, “Once again it’s a great honour to host the South American Championships in Brazil, but I must say that four years after the first edition, this one will be greater. With the growing consolidation of skyrunning in South America, we’ll have more nations participating this time, more athletes in the national teams, and a complete championship with all three main disciplines.

“The arena for this great event couldn’t be better either – the Insanity Mountain Mestre Álvaro, considered one of the toughest races in the country. I’m very proud that Brazil is strengthening skyrunning. Holding the official championships makes all our South American athletes develop more and more.”

Both races start a sea level summiting at 793m altitude, the gnarly terrain representing the main technical feature. Athletes will face steep climbs over slippery forest tracks opening out onto rocky slabs in the highest parts where the vegetation is absent and the view opens out to the nearby Atlantic Ocean.

Brazilian Cleverson Del Secchi is back for more after his 2019 gold medal. ©Rafael Aquino Leal

Cleverson Del Secchi, Brazilian SKYULTRA gold medallist at the first South American Championships here in 2019, is back for the challenge. “I will be representing Brazil once again in the South American Championships. The SKYULTRA will be a very difficult and technical race – exactly the style I like – and I will do my best for my country,” he commented.

Race organiser Ryan Rangel expressed his excitement about this opportunity. “We’re very happy to bring the South American Championships to Espírito Santo, in particular, Mestre Álvaro, one of the toughest races in Brazil. It’s an honour to host the Championships here and to see the exponential growth in South America. It’s like a dream for us and everybody is working really hard to make it an amazing event with a view to bringing more great skyrunning events to Brazil in the future.”

With no less than four continents hosting the 2023 Skyrunning Continental Championships which stretch across the globe from North & Central America, to South America, Europe and Asia, the season kicked off with the North & Central American Championships in Costa Rica in April.