Nepali runners Homlal Shrestha and Sunsari Rokaya won the Asia Trail Master (ATM) Championship titles on Saturday, October 3, 2026, in Mu Cang Chai, Vietnam. Shrestha became the first Nepali male runner to claim the ATM title.
Homlal Shrestha, 42, completed the 75-kilometre race in 7 hours, 14 minutes, and 17.9 seconds to secure the men’s championship. He is a player for the Tribhuvan Army Club.
Sunsari Rokaya, 24, from Dolpa, won the women’s title, finishing the same distance in 9 hours, 32 minutes, and 25 seconds. She also represents the Tribhuvan Army Club.
Nepali runners secured top positions on the podiums, with Gopal Tamang finishing second in the men’s race, 15 minutes behind Shrestha. Kieu Suelo of the Philippines placed third. In the women’s category, 19-year-old Kalpana Budha, from Jumla, secured second place just seconds behind Rokaya, becoming the youngest athlete to ever reach an ATM podium. Celine Louibire of Hong Kong finished third.
Nepali runners also secured several top-10 finishes across both categories, with Dhir Bahadur Budha and Bishal Rai finishing eighth and tenth respectively in the men’s top 10. In the women’s race, Rajya Laxmi Rawal placed sixth, and Ang Phurba Sherpa finished tenth. Nine Nepali athletes participated in total, including Pancharam Budha, who finished 23rd.
The Asia Trail Master Championship
The fifth edition of the ATM Mu Cang Chai Ultra Trail, which ran from October 1-4, 2026, served as the Season 11 ATM Championship Final. The Asia Trail Master Championship series, established in 2014 by Hong Kong’s Kuai Sports Promotions Limited, features trail running competitions across Asia. Since 2022, the championship title has been decided by a “winner-takes-all” final race among national teams selected from season-long rankings.
While Homlal Shrestha is the first Nepali male to win the ATM Championship title, other Nepali athletes have previously won individual ATM races. Rashila Tamang won an ATM race in Indonesia in 2023, and Priya Rai secured two victories in Hong Kong and Malaysia in 2024. The Mu Cang Chai Ultra Trail has been part of the ATM calendar since 2022, growing in popularity. The Season 10 final was relocated to Hong Kong in February 2026 after the Mu Cang Chai event was cancelled due to Typhoon Bualoi.
Upcoming Events
The Season 12 ATM Championship series is scheduled to commence on October 10, 2026, with the Luang Prabang Ultra Trail in Laos. The final for Season 12 is slated for late September or early October 2027 in Myanmar. Nepal will host upcoming ATM Championship qualifier races, including the Pokhara Ultra on December 5, 2026, and ‘The Manjushree Trail Race’ (100 mile/50 kilometre) on March 12, 2027.
