Thomas, Dematteis and the Demetz siblings shine at Puglia by UTMB 2026

Three days of trail between Matera, the Terra delle Gravine and the Ionian Sea: the second Puglia by UTMB drew nearly 3,000 runners from 68 countries across five race formats.

Five races, three days of competition and athletes from 68 countries: the second edition of Puglia Terra delle Gravine by UTMB wrapped up on Sunday in Castellaneta Marina. From October 23 to 25, nearly 3,000 runners covered trails linking Matera, the gorges of the Ionian hinterland and the Apulian coast.

From the 100M, which started Friday night in Matera, the city of the Sassi, to the 20K, launched Sunday morning from Ginosa, the various distances crowned Belgian, Italian, Spanish, Kenyan, French and British winners, a sign of how international the event has become.

On the longest distance (the 100M, 140 km with 3,500 m of elevation gain), Belgium's Nicolas Thomas won ahead of Frenchman Alex Molin Pradel, while Italy's Enrica Dematteis took the women's race.

The women's podium had an unusual look: twins Enrica and Luisa Dematteis finished first and third respectively. The course took in rocky trails, gorges, country lanes and technical sections before a finish by the sea in Castellaneta Marina.

100M podiums

Men

1) Nicolas Thomas (Belgium): 12:15:45

2) Alex Molin Pradel (France): 13:58:00

3) Loïc Lemaître (Belgium): 14:02:04

Women

1) Enrica Dematteis (Italy): 15:49:20

2) Miriam Myhren Bouchleh (Norway): 17:02:49

3) Luisa Dematteis (Italy): 17:38:31

On the 100K (85 km, 2,000 m of elevation gain), Spaniards Claudio Díaz Castán and Claudia Tremps delivered a Spanish double. Frenchman Brieuc Huck slotted into second among the men. The route crossed the Gravina di Laterza, one of the region's most imposing canyons, then carried on through the hinterland to the finish in Castellaneta Marina.

100K podiums – Le Maioliche di Laterza

Men

1) Claudio Díaz Castán (Spain): 7:28:30

2) Brieuc Huck (France): 7:50:56

3) Seppe Odeyn (Belgium): 7:52:53

Women

1) Claudia Tremps (Spain): 8:24:53

2) Barbora Závodník (Czech Republic): 8:38:25

3) Justyna Kocoń (Poland): 8:56:16

Finally, the 50K (50 km, 1,000 m of elevation gain) went to Kenya's Sammy Rotich Chelangat ahead of Switzerland's Roberto Delorenzi, and to France's Anaïs Guillot ahead of local star Elisa Desco. The race wound through gorges and Apulian backcountry: caves, remains of troglodyte dwellings, olive groves, Mediterranean scrub and stretches tied to the ancient Appian Way, before finishing on the Ionian coast.

50K podiums

Men

1) Sammy Rotich Chelangat (Kenya): 3:37:27

2) Roberto Delorenzi (Switzerland): 3:39:42

3) Ben Rothery (Great Britain): 3:41:11

Women

1) Anaïs Guillot (France): 4:15:00

2) Elisa Desco (Italy): 4:17:23

3) Roberta Jacquin (Italy): 4:25:35

Two athletes stood out over the weekend: Italian siblings Samuel and Sofia Demetz both won the 10K Costa Verde Trail on Saturday. On Sunday, Samuel added the 20K (35 km, 350 m of elevation gain) ahead of Frenchman Guenael Oliviero, while Sofia took third among the women. That makes three wins and four podiums in two days for the pair!

20K podiums – Ginosa Rivolta Trail (35 km)

Men

1) Samuel Demetz (Italy): 2:14:04

2) Guenael Oliviero (France): 2:23:11

3) Jacopo Turra (Italy): 2:23:21

Women

1) Jemima Farley (Great Britain): 2:30:16

2) Camilla Rizzardi (Italy): 2:38:26

3) Sofia Demetz (Italy): 3:01:43

All 2026 results