Some races you enter for the bling. Ultra-Trail Kosciuszko by UTMB you enter for the mountains — and to find out what you're really made of. Held each November in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, UTK is Australia's premier alpine ultramarathon and one of just two UTMB World Series events in the country, sending runners across the roof of Australia on some of the most rugged, beautiful and unforgiving trails in the land.
This is high-country running at its finest. The courses roam through Kosciuszko National Park and the Snowy Mountains — alpine meadows, granite-strewn ridgelines, river valleys and eucalypt forest — with all races finishing at Friday Flat in the resort village of Thredbo. The scenery is staggering, but so is the terrain: sustained climbs, big descents and serious elevation gain are the order of the day, and the alpine weather can throw anything at you.
The 2026 event runs from Thursday 26 to Saturday 28 November, with four distances to choose from:
The Kosci30 and Kosci50 are held on Thursday 26 November, with the Kosci100 and KosciMiler starting on Friday 27 November and running through to the Saturday.
As a UTMB World Series event, finishing at UTK earns you UTMB Running Stones — the qualification currency for the UTMB World Series Finals at Mont-Blanc. The courses are UTMB-indexed, so your result counts towards the global trail-running rankings, and the event draws a serious international field alongside Australia's best.
Entries are in hot demand: holders of a valid UTMB Index get 48-hour priority access when entries open (from March 2026), and places go quickly. Register via the official UTK site. Thredbo is roughly two and a half hours' drive from Canberra and around five and a half from Sydney; nearby Jindabyne offers additional accommodation, though Thredbo village itself puts you right at the finish line. Book early — race weekend fills the mountains.
Respect the alpine environment: pack the mandatory gear, prepare for four seasons in a day, and train your climbing legs hard. This is a course that rewards patience, sure footing and mountain craft — go out conservatively and let the high country come to you.
