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Katie Schide and Elhousine Elazzaoui win 2024 Trail Runner of the Year

Schide, the UTMB champion, and Elazzaoui, winner of the Golden Trail World Series, took well-deserved top honours

Katie Schide Photo by: UTMB

American ultrarunner Katie Schide and Morocco’s Elhousine Elazzaoui have been crowned Freetrail’s 2024 Trail Runners of the Year, a well-deserved recognition for both their dominant performances and unmatched consistency throughout the year. Both runners topped podiums and smashed course records as they delivered a season to remember. If you missed the action in 2024, it’s time to catch up—these two athletes aren’t slowing down any time soon.

Schide’s dominance and double victory

Schide’s 2024 season was not only dominant—it was also historic. The American ultrarunner, who lives and trains in the French village of Saint-Dalmas-le-Selvage, has been a consistent force in trail running for years. However, 2024 was the year she firmly established herself as one of the best in the sport.

Schide kicked off her season by winning the Vertical Kilometre El Gigante event (5.5 km and 1,130m of elevation gain) at Transgrancanaria in the Canary Islands, and followed that with a victory at Canyons Endurance Runs 100K (in Auburn, Calif.), where she led from start to finish in an impressive 9:10:10. In July, she delivered one of the most impressive performances in Western States Endurance Run history, finishing in 15:46:57—the second-fastest women’s time ever. Schide capped her year at UTMB, smashing the course record in the 100-mile distance in 22:09:31.

Elazzaoui: short-distance king

On the opposite end of the trail-running spectrum, Elazzaoui demonstrated his mastery in short-distance trail racing. The Moroccan standout dominated the nine-race Golden Trail World Series, capturing the overall victory and setting multiple course records along the way. Among his achievements, Elazzaoui notched four major wins, including a triumphant finish at the World Final, and earned second place at the notoriously tough Zegama-Aizkorri trail marathon in Spain and the Four Sisters Mountain Trail 26K in China.

He also shattered course records at the Mammoth Trail Fest’s 26K event in California and the iconic Marathon du Mont-Blanc in Chamonix, France. Elazzaoui’s performances dazzle from start to finish, and he’s known for leaving it all out on the trail. “Dreams come true when you have passion,” he shared on Instagram after his award was announced. “A goal and a smile.”

Check out all of the athletes in Freetrail’s top 10 Trail Runner of the Year awards here.

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