Adventure Racing World Championship 2026 sends 400 racers out from Corte in pursuit of the world title

This morning in Corte, Corsica, 98 mixed teams of four set off in the 2026 Adventure Racing World Championship, facing a wild, authentic course of nearly 500 km and 20,000 m of elevation gain. With no GPS, the racers must reach L’Île-Rousse via trail, packraft, rope sections, mountain biking, canyoning and sea kayaking. Here’s a look at the field and a race like no other.

At 6 a.m. this Thursday, October 1, the 98 teams entered in the 2026 Adventure Racing World Championship set off from Cours Pascal Paoli in Corte. In the first light of day, they left Corte behind and headed into the unknown, following the first clues of a course prepared in complete secrecy. The maps had only been handed out the day before the start.

From the Tavignano to the trails of Bozio

The teams were thrown straight into the action with a first trek of 1.5 km, including a water walk in the bed of the Tavignano and a crossing of the footbridge at its confluence with the Restonica.

They then headed towards the Fussadu trail and the first transition area, TA1, where their mountain bikes were waiting. The schedule called for 42 km across Bozio, the first deep dive into the island’s interior. The Roman road at Santa-Lucia-di-Mercurio, the Sant’Antone chapel, then Piedicorte-di-Gaggio, Pietraserena and Giuncaggio punctuated this section, combining Corsican heritage with demanding terrain.

This opening mountain-bike section set the tone: the trails of Bozio tested both the racers and their equipment. On such rough ground, they already had to balance forward progress with vigilance and bike preservation, while most of the course still lay ahead.

By 3 p.m., almost every team had reached Ernella and the second transition area, TA2. After stowing their bikes and preparing their boats, they set off on a long packraft descent: 30 km down the Tavignano towards Aléria.

With several rapids to negotiate and stretches through narrow gorges, the river opened a new chapter. It was time for navigation and crew coordination. Just a few hours after the start, ARWC 2026 had already established its rhythm: keep moving, adapt and stay together.

A prologue shared with local children, followed by technical checks

The day before, the 98 teams had taken part in a prologue inside the Citadel of Corte. Designed as an immersion in Corsica’s history, language, culture and environment, this first sporting challenge delivered a unique spectacle in the heart of the city.

The teams tackled the city’s heights on a two-kilometre timed course. Created in partnership with the Cité scolaire, the orienteering race brought together sport, music, nature and heritage. But its real point of difference was this: each mixed team of four athletes started alongside two children, who ran with them all the way to the top of the Citadel. It was a shared adventure for champions and young people from Corte, built around passing things on, sharing and genuine connection.

The prologue officially launched the 2026 Adventure Racing World Championship (ARWC), following Tuesday’s equipment and technical skills checks for every racer taking part in this year’s edition.

On Place Tuffelli, the organizing team led by Pascal Bahuaud assessed the competitors’ ability to operate in whitewater and at sea, master rope techniques, and checked their safety equipment and self-sufficiency gear. Before they could take the main start, every team had to prove it was ready for the demands of Corsican terrain.

Ultra-trail specialists take on a 500 km race with 20,000 m of elevation gain

World champions, international ranking leaders, ultra-endurance specialists and Corsican teams will share the same goal: reaching L’Île-Rousse after an expedition covering more than 500 km and 20,000 m of elevation gain. For five to eight days and nights, the mixed teams of four will keep moving without interruption or outside assistance. Trekking, mountain biking, packrafting, sea kayaking, canyoning and rope sections will follow one another on a course kept secret until the day before the start.

Unlike a traditional competition, the ARWC is not about speed but ultra-endurance. Teams will have to navigate without GPS while managing their food, equipment, fatigue and rest periods. A navigation error, mechanical failure, change in the weather or the breakdown of a single teammate can turn the standings upside down. Throughout the race, every team must stay together: the finish line can only be crossed by all four members. It is a rule that puts cohesion and solidarity at the heart of performance.

Among the favourites are 400Team Altore, the reigning world champions, led by experienced ultrarunners Sébastien Raichon and Sandrine Béranger. The French team leads the 2026 Adventure Racing World Series (ARWS), the discipline’s equivalent of a World Cup, contested across several international races during the season and serving as the qualifying route to the World Championship.

The Estonians from Estonian Ace / La Sportiva, who sit just behind them in the 2026 standings, will also line up in Corsica, as will Brazil’s Kailas Fuga, third in the 2026 ARWS. French hopes will also rest with Team FMR, the four-person Expenature.fr Outdoor07 team led by experienced racer Romuald Viale, Courchevel Sport Outdoor, featuring trail runners Magali Mellon and Fleury Roux, and Lozère Sport Nature.

They will face American, Scandinavian, Australian, New Zealand and Spanish teams all battling for the ultimate prize, left vacant by the reigning champions, Sweden’s Swedish Armed Forces Adventure Team.

Full list of teams

The first teams are expected to reach L’Île-Rousse beach from October 6. Finishers will continue to arrive through October 9, giving each team one final emotional moment by the sea.

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