Germany’s Nina Engelhard and Kenya’s Philemon Kiriago have been crowned World Champions in the Classic discipline on the fourth and final day of the 2025 World Mountain and Trail Running Championships, which conclude today in the town of Canfranc, in the Aragonese Pyrenees. Titus Masau and Julia Ehrle took the U20 titles.

The final day of the Canfranc-Pirineos 2025 World Championships once again enjoyed splendid weather, allowing athletes to fully enjoy the trails of the Aragonese Pyrenees. Thousands of spectators lined the course, turning Sunday into a day of sport, celebration, and festivity. Canfranc says farewell to its World Championships having firmly established itself as one of the global temples of trail running. All the runners and fans agreed, celebrating the rare closeness and intimacy of the event, held in a small Pyrenean village with true alpine character.

The race started with three Ugandan runners leading alongside Kenyan Joyce Muthoni. But as the runners entered the forest, Germany’s Nina Engelhard took the lead, looking to open a gap already on the first climb. By the time they passed the Cargates dam, she had a 20-second lead over Uganda’s Rispa Cherop, Kenya’s Ruth Gitonga, and Switzerland’s Oria Liaci.

n the second loop, Nina extended her lead to more than two minutes by the summit. Behind her, Swiss runner Oria moved into second place, while Gitonga and Cherop battled for bronze. Muthoni slipped back and out of medal contention. Not even a fall on the steep downhill could stop Nina, who crossed the finish line at the iconic International Railway Station with impressive strength. The German secured her second gold of these World Championships, after also winning the Uphill race on Thursday. If there is one clear winner in Canfranc, it’s her. She finished with a time of 1:11:00. The fight for the remaining medals was thrilling: Kenya’s Ruth Gitonga claimed silver in 1:12:54, and Switzerland’s Oria Liaci took bronze with 1:13:15.

NINA ENGELHARD STATEMENT: “I did active recovery over the last three days, combining ice, rest, easy runs, and other activities. Even so, I felt cramps in my quads during the descent, but I managed to keep them under control and take the win.”

TEAM RESULTS (WOMEN – CLASSIC): Team scoring in the Classic discipline is based on the positions of the top three finishers from each country.
The team with the lowest total score wins.
Gold: Kenya – 14 points
Silver: USA – 32 points
Bronze: Switzerland – 35 points

Uganda’s Martin Kiprotich took the lead right from the start, opening a gap that by the time they reached the first summit was 14 seconds over Kenya’s Philemon Kiriago, with fellow Ugandan Ken Koros another 10 seconds behind. Close behind were Aziz Chebet, Brayan Rodríguez, and Mason Coppi—all within 30 seconds and still in medal contention. Kiriago closed in on the leader during the descent, narrowing the gap to just 2 seconds. Right behind them were Paul Machoka and Ken Koros.

The second summit witnessed a fierce battle for the lead. Ultimately, Kiriago launched a stunning final descent like a diving peregrine falcon, flying down through the forest and crossing the finish line in Canfranc as the winner with a time of 1:00:38. Silver went to Uganda’s Martin Kiprotich with 1:01:26, and bronze to Kenya’s Paul Machoka in 1:01:31.

PHILEMON KIRIAGO STATEMENT: “I knew I had to launch my attack on the final descent, so I held back, held back—and when I went for it, I gave everything to prevent my rival from keeping up. I’m very happy to win in Canfranc. It’s a dream come true in a place I already knew from before.”

TEAM RESULTS (MEN – CLASSIC):
Gold: Kenya – 9 points
Silver: Uganda – 27 points
Bronze: Italy – 37 points

In the U20 category, Uganda’s young talents dominated the podiums, taking five of the six individual top spots and both team golds. Titus Masau led the African team with a gold medal in the men’s race, while Germany’s Julia Ehrle claimed gold in the women’s. Uganda also secured both silvers—Enos Chebe in the men’s race and Nancy Chapkwurui in the women’s—as well as the two bronzes: Abraham Cherotich and Felister Checkwemoi.

TEAM RESULTS –
U20 Women:
Gold: Uganda – 14 points
Silver: Italy – 35 points
Bronze: Spain – 40 points
U20 Men:
Gold: Uganda – 6 points
Silver: Great Britain – 29 points
Bronze: Switzerland – 34 points