Start Group Selection

The UTMB World Series has a ranking system for runners – the UTMB Index. If you have completed an UTMB Index registered trail running race in the previous 36 months, you will have earned an UTMB Index Rating, and you may select the option ‘Using UTMB Index ratings’ during online entry. Most major international and Australian races are now UTMB Index races, including all UTMB World Series races.

You can list your UTMB Index Rating during registration. Use your Index Rating and the ‘Start Group Times’ table below to help you choose a suitable start group request.

To check if you have completed a UTMB Index registered race and to check your Index Rating, go to the UTMB runner search page. Type in your name and select your nationality. If a profile comes up for you, you will have an UTMB Index Rating if your last race result was within the past 36 months. Check you only have one profile. If your year of birth or nationality was incorrect or your name was spelt differently in any previous run, you may have more than one UTMB profile. It is important to get multiple profiles / incorrect profiles combined into one that matches your exact name, nationality and year of birth in your UTA entry. To do this, you can sign up for a free My UTMB account and then link your multiple profiles into one account.

As UTMB Index Ratings provide the most reliable, repeatable and simplest method to rank runners, it is the preferred method for start group seeding. Any trail running event can register with UTMB.

Note that it can take 1 to 3 weeks for a race to finalise results, send the results to UTMB and for UTMB to allocate performance index ratings. So if you don’t currently have a UTMB Index Rating but would like to use this option for your seeding, your chosen registered race needs to be possibly 3 weeks prior to the seeding cut-off date.

If you have a race result in any official 42.2km road marathon or 21.1km road half-marathon from the past three years, you may select the option ‘Result in a road marathon or half-marathon’.

Please click 'Read More' below to view the race times required for seeding into each start group.

You can list the name of the race and provide a url directly to your online result certificate or directly to your result on the relevant official event website results page. Refer to the table below to help you choose a suitable start group request.

Please note that trail running results (UTMB Index Ratings) are given a higher statistical importance than marathon or half marathon results and therefore generally translate to a slightly higher start group seeding for a given runner.

GUIDELINE TO ESTIMATE SUITABLE START GROUP

If you are a member of the SQUADRUN training group from January to March of the race year, and you don’t have a suitable other option from the above, you may select the option ‘Member of SQUADRUN training group’. The SQUADRUN coaches will have excellent knowledge of your trail running abilities and speed and will be able to seed you into an appropriate start group.

If you do not wish to enter a seeded start group, select "no seeding" and select one of the "Self-Seeded" start groups. You can also select this option if you have none of the above three options when you enter but are planning on completing one of the other options before March of the event year. Please make sure you log back into your entry by 11.59pm on March 14, 2024 and input your new information.