Ida Nilsson and Elov Olsson won Ultravasan 90 2017

The men’s class was decided about eleven kilometres before the finish line. Elov Olsson swept past American Patrick Reagan and never lost the lead. The winning margin was one minute and twelve seconds. What assured your victory today, Elov?
”I ran a hard and controlled race,” the soaking wet, but happy, Ockelbo runner told us.

Elov was in no way sure of his victory after passing Reagan. He looked back several times during the final ten kilometres.
”I didn’t see him and didn’t really know how far behind he was, and my legs hurt all over,” Elov said.

What does a win like this mean to you?
”It’s huge! My biggest so far.”

Reagan was third last year and now seemed to be heading towards victory when Olsson surprised him with a very strong finish.
”Elov really challenged me to keep running hard towards the end. It feels a bit sour to lose the win but I’m happy for Elov’s sake. I’m also glad to have a better placement than last year and a much better time,” Reagan summarized.

”I had a small slump when Elov passed but then I got going again and finished well,” the American continued.

Ida Nilsson was immutable during the second half of the race and ended up winning with a margin of over 20 minutes to Johanna Bygdell, Härnösand. Despite extremely wet conditions, the internationally merited ultra trail runner Ida ran a new track record.
”It was really fun to run together a while. I knew she’d run a very strong trail race in Höga kusten. We talked there for a while,” Ida said.

”I didn’t run so well when it got more technical. I had problems with one leg and couldn’t get that easy step. So it was great to get some company. It sparked something,” Ida continued. ”Then the running got easier as soon as we got to a more runner-friendly surface.”

With twenty kilometres to go, Ida started thinking of the track record.
”That’s when I saw that it was possible.”

With an impressively paced final ten kilometres, Nilsson broke Swiss Jasmin Nunige’s track record by about three minutes. How do you value this win compared to your other triumphs around the world?
“I ran very well when I won Transvulcania Ultramarathon this spring. But this is a big one,” Ida says.

A summary of the development of the race:
It was clear beforehand that there would be a new winner in the Ultravasan 90 men’s class, since the previous winners Jarle Risa and Jonas Buud were not starting. Buud had to throw in the towel as late as this Thursday due to problems with his Achilles tendon.

It was high speed from the start in both the men’s and women’s class. At Mångsbodarna, Andreas McConville held the lead alone, 16 seconds ahead of Elov Olsson. Here McConville was about half a minute faster than Jonas Buud when he broke the track record in 2015.

In the women’s class Ida Nilsson held the lead at Mångsbodarna, 19 seconds ahead of Johanna Bygdell. Soon after, Bygdell caught up with Nilsson and in Risberg the duo ran together but then Sweden’s big trail running star responded. Halfway, in Evertsberg, Ida had created a lead of exactly two minutes to Bygdell.

McConville surprised the men’s class with a lead of nearly a minute and a half to Patrick Reagan at Risberg. In Evertsberg that lead had shrunk. McConville was only 24 seconds ahead when leaving the checkpoint.

After Evertsberg, Reagan set the pace instead, creating a lead of about two minutes to a trio of runners at Oxberg: Elov Olsson, Bartosz Olszewski and Henri Ansio. McConville had lost a lot of ground here and was twelve minutes after.

In Oxberg, with 28 kilometres to go, Ida Nilsson had built up a lead of five and a half minutes to Johanna Bygdell. In third place here was Jo Meek from the UK, barely five minutes after Bygdell.

In Hökberg, with 19 kilometres to go, Elov Olsson had gained a few seconds and passed one minute and 43 seconds behind Patrick Reagan. Henri Ansio shadowed Elov, 16 seconds behind.

Elov kept gaining on Reagan. About 11.5 kilometres before the finish he passed the American in a flash. In Eldris, with 9 kilometres to go, Elov’s lead was 33 seconds. Ansio was here 1.38 after.

Ida Nilsson kept expanding her lead to Bygdell and in Hökberg it was almost ten minutes. When Ida reached Eldris it had grown to fifteen minutes.

(If Ida Nilsson had been running in the men’s class she would have come in eighth place.) For results, see below.

Ultravasan 45
Ultravasan 45 had new winners in both the men’s and women’s class: Erik Anfält, Örebro AIK, and Joasia Zakrzewski, the UK.

Anfält set a new track record with his time of 2.40.28. More than a minute faster than IFK Mora runner Roman Ryapolov’s record from last year. A very strong achievement considering the wet surface.
”I have had this race in the back of my head for a year now. I came second last year. All my focus has been towards this race today. My legs were with me so I pushed from the start and it felt good. I thought the others would keep up but they did not.”

”I only had a minute at 25 kilometres so I felt chased the whole time.”

How do you value this victory?
”I feel like this is the race of a lifetime. Not competitively but I was strong today,” Erik Anfält said.

The women’s class turned into a battle between last year’s winner Lisa Ring, IK Nocout, and British Joasia Zakrzewski. But Zakrzewski was strongest and won with a margin of 57 seconds.
”I was maybe tenth after a kilometre. Then I ran at my own pace and enjoyed the nice surroundings. When there were two kilometres left I had caught up with Ring,” Joasia says.

RESULTS – August 19, 2017
Ultravasan 90 Men
1 Olsson, Elov (SWE) M21 Ockelbo SK – 06:07:37
2 Reagan, Patrick (USA) M21 Hoka One One – 06:08:48
3 Ansio, Henri (FIN) M21 Salomon-Suunto Racing T… – 06:11:00
4 Olszewski, Bartosz (POL) M21  – 06:22:45
5 Fagerlund, Fritjof (SWE) M40 LK Roslagen – 06:29:25
6 Erala, Ranno (EST) M40 Tele2 – 06:33:23
7 Senseman, Eric (USA) M21 SCOTT RUNNING – 06:38:23
8 Nilsson, Daniel (SWE) M40 FK Studenterna – 07:09:23
9 McConville, Andreas (SWE) M35 FK Studenterna – 07:18:34
10 Sätter, Fredrik (SWE) M45 Mattmar SK – 07:20:33

Ultravasan 90 Women
1 Nilsson, Ida (SWE) W35 Högby IF – 06:51:26
2 Bygdell, Johanna (SWE) W35  – 07:11:56
3 Meek, Jo (GBR) W40 SCOTT RUNNING – 07:26:42
4 Södermark, Frida (SWE) W35 Tjalve IF – 07:50:59
5 Trunschke, Judith (GER) W21 Team Nordic trail – 08:08:50
6 Talts, Eve (EST) W40  – 08:10:34
7 Ramstedt, Jenny (SWE) W40 Envol Coaching – 08:18:11
8 Lindanger, Anja Kristin (NOR) W40 GTI Friidrett – 08:18:53
9 Rosenqvist, Kerstin (SWE) W40 Västerås LK – 08:24:28
10 Sällström, Elin (SWE) W21 ICA Team Ultra – 08:30:20

Achievement medals in Ultravasan 90 are awarded to runners who complete the race in medal time. The medal time for men is 9.5 hours. The medal time for women is 11 hours.

Ultravasan 45 Men
1 Anfält, Erik (SWE) M40 Örebro AIK – 02:40:28
2 Lantz, Joacim (SWE) M21 Ockelbo SK – 02:43:45
3 Lantz, Johan (SWE) M21 Ockelbo SK – 02:47:23
4 Ryapolov, Roman (RUS) M35 IFK Mora OK – 02:47:53
5 Eriksson, Fredrik (SWE) M40 IK Akele – 2:49:12
6 Living, Markus (SWE) M21  – 02:55:40
7 Krieg, Emanuel (GER) M21  – 02:58:08
8 Sjögren, Niclas (SWE) M45 Runacademy IF – 02:58:55
9 Lundberg, Jesper (SWE) M21 ASICS FrontRunner / Ä… – 03:02:07
10 Pickelner, Thomas (SWE) M21 ASICS FrontRunner – 03:09:53

Ultravasan 45 Women
1 Zakrzewski, Joasia (GBR) W40  – 03:06:12
2 Ring, Lisa (SWE) W21 Ik Nocout.se – 03:07:09
3 Gyurko, Fanni (HUN) W21 IFK Mora – 03:09:00
4 Nilsson, Johanna (SWE) W35 Morjärv SK – 03:14:28
5 Lindstedt, Emilia (SWE) W21 Falun Borlänge SK/Tea… – 03:14:43
6 Sundberg, Sophia (SWE) W21 Aktivitus Sports Club – 03:23:02
7 Byhlinder, Sofia (SWE) W21 Runnersway IF – 03:30:32
8 Smith, Yvonne (NOR) W35 GTI Friidrett – 03:31:55
9 Ziegler, Ingrid (SWE) W40 Örebro AIK – 03:33:46
10  Hellsten, Liselotte (SWE) W21 Hemlingby LK -03:36:40

See all results

FACTS/Ultravasan Winner 2014 – 2017
Ultravasan 90, men
2014 Jonas Buud, IFK Mora FK (SWE), 6.02.03
2015 Jonas Buud, IFK Mora FK (SWE), 5.45.08 (Record time)
2016 Jarle Risa, Undheim IL (NOR), 6.11.49
2017 Elov Olsson, Ockelbo SK (SWE), 06.07.37

Ultravasan 90, women
2014 Holly Rush, Team Bath AC (GBR), 7.09.04
2015 Jasmin Nunige, Schweiz (SUI), 7.02.35
2016 Jasmin Nunige, Track Club Davos (SUI), 6.54.32
2017 Ida Nilsson, Högby IF (SWE), 6.51.26 (Record time)

Ultravasan 45, men
2014 Roman Ryapolov, IFK Mora FK (RUS), 2.49.47
2015 Fritjof Fagerlund, Rånäs 4H (SWE), 2.45.30
2016 Roman Ryapolov, IFK Mora OK (RUS), 2.41.47
2017 Erik Anfält, Örebro AIK (SWE), 2.40.28 (Record time)

Ultravasan 45, women
2014 Gloria Vinstedt, Sverige (SWE), 3.28.13
2015 Caroline Dubois, Frankrike (FRA), 3.13.22
2016 Lisa Ring, IK Nocout.se (SWE), 3.04.18 (Record time)
2017 Joasia Zakrzewski, (GBR), 3.06.12

See all the finishes during the day:

Footnote: Ultra is the name of races longer than the marathon distance of 42,195 metres.