Sam In Cham with Samantha Ryder
Catherine Poletti on UTMB brand expansion, and what the future holds for trail running, one of the worlds fastest growing sports.
Catherine Poletti is the President and Co-Founder of the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc – one of the most important and indeed iconic events in the ultra-running calendar. From music to psychology to IT, Catherine dabbled in all sorts before landing firmly on the start line in Chamonix.
Just over 700 people ran in the first official UTMB event back in 2003 – this year, 32 thousand people applied for a chance to race – just 10,000 were successful. “Now we make more frustrated people than happy people, and it’s not our goal”, she says. With the launch of the new UTMB World Series…Catherine says the next stage of the journey will be one they can share with as many people as possible.
In this week’s podcast, Catherine talks about the history of the UTMB, where it all began – and, as the trail-running community grows, she tells me, so too must the number of races to give everyone the opportunity to experience that euphoria of crossing a finish line.
Follow Catherine Poletti @utmbmontblanc on Instagram or visit utmbmontblanc.com
For more on the amazing athletes and sports enthusiasts featured on the podcast, head to Instagram @samincham_thepodcast and Facebook.
Catherine Poletti is the President and Co-Founder of the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc – one of the most important and indeed iconic events in the ultra-running calendar. From music to psychology to IT, Catherine dabbled in all sorts before landing firmly on the start line in Chamonix.
Just over 700 people ran in the first official UTMB event back in 2003 – this year, 32 thousand people applied for a chance to race – just 10,000 were successful. “Now we make more frustrated people than happy people, and it’s not our goal”, she says. With the launch of the new UTMB World Series…Catherine says the next stage of the journey will be one they can share with as many people as possible.
In this week’s podcast, Catherine talks about the history of the UTMB, where it all began – and, as the trail-running community grows, she tells me, so too must the number of races to give everyone the opportunity to experience that euphoria of crossing a finish line.
Follow Catherine Poletti @utmbmontblanc on Instagram or visit utmbmontblanc.com
For more on the amazing athletes and sports enthusiasts featured on the podcast, head to Instagram @samincham_thepodcast and Facebook.