Perfect Welsh skyrunning at the third round of the Series in Eryri.
It was a cloudy start to the day in Eryri, North Wales on Saturday, for the seventh edition of SkyRun Eryri, and the third leg of the 2026 Skyrunner® UK and Ireland Series. Brightening up in the afternoon and with a light breeze, conditions were ideal for fast for racing. And the contestants across all four races delivered just that, with a notable 32-minute course record improvement by men’s winner Ed Brewer in the marquee race, the Snowdon SkyRace.
There were surprises in store in both the men’s and women’s races at the Copper SkyTrail, with a breakout win from Max Walker in his skyrunning debut, and Swiss runner Lindy Etzensperger winning with a near 30-minute margin on the locals. There was plenty of action in the 14 Peaks Ultra also, and contestants described the supposedly entry-level Fairy Trail race as “quite spicy.” Read on for more on how the races played out!
Epic Welsh ridgelines are what make this event so special! © Lloyd Belcher
14 Peaks Ultra®
Under grey skies, the 14 Peaks Ultra was off first, departing at 7:30am from Abergwyngregyn, half an hour later than scheduled due to the transport coach initially visiting the wrong farm collection point! The route would take in the 14 official Welsh peaks over 3,000 feet over the course of its 55 kilometres.
Ten hours and 38 minutes later, Wales’s Alexandra Westley finished top woman. Westley who had knee surgery two years ago, and only resumed running this year, was delighted with the win and said: “I didn’t really have any expectations. I just went with how I felt, and I was feeling good. I’ve made myself proud.” It was a dynamic women’s race, and she recalled: “A woman passed me on the road at the start, and I think she was the only one ahead of me at that point, and I managed to pass her again at the first aid station. And then when I was up on Snowdon on my way back down, I saw Anwen [Darlington] and I knew she wasn’t too far behind me.”
Alexandra Westley on her way to winning the 2026 14 Peaks Ultra © Phillip Boyd
Darlington, also of Wales, took second in a time of 10 hours and 45 minutes, improving on her fourth-place finish from 2024. England’s Michelle Attridge was third in 11:17 and also won the 40-44 age category honours. Czech runner, Zuzana Nemeckova, was the first 50-54 in 16:02.
Women’s podium at the third edition of the 14 Peaks Ultra © Evan Davies
Along predicted lines, Canada’s Jeremy Swainson scored a decisive win in the men’s race, finishing 35 minutes clear of England’s Chris Booth in second. Swainson also recently won the Scafell Sky Ultra, and he’ll surely be targeting a series win in the SkyUltra® Series.
Jeremy Swainson en route to a commanding victory in the 2026 14 Peaks Ultra © Lloyd Belcher
In a closer battle for the remaining podium spots, Chris Booth moved ahead of Mark Booth shortly before Crib Goch to finish second in 8:05. Booth took third in 8:14, and was also first 40-44.
In the remaining age categories, England’s Julien Lhomme was the first 45-49, while England’s Mark Chryssanthou and Ben Shaw took the 50-54 and 55+ titles, respectively.
Snowdon SkyRace®
Next up, the notorious Snowdon SkyRace set off at 8am, on its 38km figure-of-eight route, that would take in Grade 1 scrambles up Tryfan and Crib Goch.
Local runner, Bryony Shircore, came out on top in the women’s race in a time of seven hours 18 minutes, and said, “It was amazing.” She felt conditions were just right, and said, “There was a nice breeze, I think it was perfect.” She credited her local knowledge for her win, saying “second lady [Sanna Vinks] was super strong. She was just behind me, and I think she went wrong once.”
Bryony Shircore climbing to victory in the 2026 Snowdon SkyRace © Lloyd Belcher
Vinks finished 14 minutes off the lead in 7:32. She had travelled from the Netherlands for the race and said it appealed to her because of its technical nature. “I thought it might be a nice challenge.” Coming a flat country, she has to travel for her training and said, “I’ve had three weeks in the Alps, and I try to come over here as much as I can.”
Rounding out the podium was skyrunning legend, England’s Helen Brown, who also won the 50-54 age category in a time of 7:53. Scotland’s Catherine Dolliver took fourth in 8:03, and an age category win for 45-49. England’s Emma Frost was the first 40-44 in 9:00.
In the men’s race, England’s Ed Brewer won for second time, taking 32 minutes off his 2025 course record, to finish in a time of five hours and 19 minutes. Brewer took the lead an hour and a half in and was on his own for much of the race. He said, “The first guy shot up Snowdon really fast, so I was in second for the first hour and a half. So that was quite motivating – to chase him down, but not go out too hard too soon.”
Our champion women from this year’s Snowdon SkyRace © Evan Davies
Once he took the lead and had a comfortable gap, Brewer’s focus turned to the course record. He said, “I had my last year’s splits on my arm. I was hoping to be a bit under, but then to be half an hour under – it was pretty cool to see that improvement in a year.” Brewer will be racing the Seven Sisters Skyline next in September and said: “I’m excited for that one. It looks like it’s going to be quite competitive so I’m looking forward to racing some very fast guys.”
Ed Brewer after his win in the 2026 Snowdon SkyRace © Evan Davies
Some 50 minutes back, England’s Sam Mayglothling took second, winning the 40-44 category. Back in 2024, he also took second at the 14 Peaks Ultra, and he has raced prolifically in the area.
Welsh native Tom Scrivens completed the strung-out podium in 6:37. Colin Brearley was top man in the 45-49 category in 7:07, taking eighth overall. Wales’s Jon Williams took the 50-54 honours in 7:18, and the first 55+ was David Baglee of England in a time of 8:34.
Copper SkyTrail
This year was the fifth running of the Copper SkyTrail. Initially billed as an introduction to skyrunning to accompany the Snowdon SkyRace, this challenging 27km race has become a strong contest in its own right. This year it served as the second race in our U23 Series.
Breakout star in the men’s race was winner Max Walker, who finished in a time of 3:17. Coming from a road running background, this was his first taste of skyrunning, and he led from the top of the first climb and was seemingly untouchable for the rest of the day. He said, “I had a really good day out, really happy with my race. I kept the uphills kind of tempo, and then on the downs kept it nice and easy. Didn’t want to have any disasters. So, it was a pretty good day out, no major issues, so I’m happy.” Converted to the mountains, Walker is now gearing up to the race Mountain Running World Cup event, Trofeo Nasego, in Italy in September.
Max Walker wins the 2026 Copper SkyTrail © Evan Davies
South African James Miller took second in 3:28, in his first race of the year having recently come back from injury. He said, “It was a pretty good day out… Uphills were tough, and it was quite technical for my first race out, I took it easy for the first two thirds and then put the hammer down for the last third.”
Ireland’s Enda Cloake took third in 3:30 and was also happy enough with his day, saying: “Yeah I’m happy with how it went. I was hoping to get round safe, fuel well, hydrate well and save a bit for the end. Controlled effort and I think I raced as smart as I could have.” Cloake will also be taking on the Seven Sisters Skyline and the Mourne Skyline in order to contest the Overall Series.
The first under 23 in the race, which was part of the U23 Series, was England’s William Holyoak in a time of 4:18, taking twelfth overall.
In the women’s race, Switzerland’s Lindy Etzensperger scored an upset to take gold, wining by a margin equivalent to a minute per kilometre, in 3:58. Relatively new to mountain running, Etzensperger has a background in elite level skiing.
Switzerland’s Lindy Etzensperger on the opening climb up Snowdon’s Ranger Path © Evan Davies
Taking second in 4:25, and winning the U23 category was England’s Lucy Milling. Milling won last month’s St. Sunday Sky Race, and looks the favourite for the U23 Series title. Rhiannon Wooldridge took third in 4:35.
Not on the Skyrunning series but deserving of honourable mention, the Fairy Trail was won by England’s Justin Gardner in 1:37 and Ellen McArthur in 1:57. McArthur said of the first climb, “It was definitely deceiving calling it the ‘Fairy Trail’ as there was nothing ‘fairy’ about it, it was pure uphill slog for what felt like forever!”
Well done to all finishers of all four of these epic races, and of course to all the race team and volunteers who made them happen! Provisional results from all races can now be found HERE.
Ellen McArthur, winner of the 2026 Fairy Trail © Evan Davies
Next up the Skyrunner® UK and Ireland Series will turn its attention across the Irish Sea, to the Seven Sister Skyline in Donegal, Ireland. The event features a 30km point-to-point race and a 55km out-and-back traverse of the Derryveagh mountains, culminating in an arduous climb and scree-skating descent off the 751m peak of Errigal.
Will we see you in Ireland next month for the Seven Sisters races?
The event features a combined prize purse of €10,000 for the 55K and 30K races. Coupled with that, it’s this year’s Series Championships event, with +50% bonus series points for all finishers in the full 55km Skyline! As the penultimate event in the series, opportunities are running out to claim series points, so this one is sure to be mighty competitive. Will you be there? Entries are still open HERE and selling fast. See you in Donegal!
