Mestia Ultra 2026 Results: Every Distance, Every Winner, and What the Race Tells You About Svaneti

On 18 July 2026, 711 runners started from Seti Square in the centre of Mestia. 657 of them finished. On 19 July at noon, on the same square, the awards were handed out.

This page has the complete breakdown by distance, the results that stood out, and — because most people reading this are planning a trip rather than a race — a practical section on how the race course maps onto the hikes and viewpoints you can actually reach as a visitor.

Quick answer: who won Mestia Ultra 2026?

Finish rates by distance

Overall finish rate across the event was 92%. Broken down, the picture is very different from one distance to the next.

The 100 km was the filter. Its final cutoff sat at 27 hours, and the last finisher came in at 24:56:01 — under the limit, but not by much.

The 21 km and 6 km races both took day-of registrations, which is why their finisher counts run higher than the published start lists.

Results worth knowing about

The women's 100 km winner was second overall. Firuza Sakhapova finished in 15:44:05. The only person ahead of her on the whole distance was the men's winner; the second-placed man came in nearly an hour later, at 16:35:26.

The women's marathon was won by a runner in the 45–49 age group. Serpil Baysal's 6:16:15 placed her 11th overall in a field of 166. The runner-up, Irina Ovcharenko, also races in 45–49.

A woman finished third overall in the 21 km. Alena Topor's 2:17:23 beat every man in the race except two. Aliaksandra Sakalouskaya took fifth overall.

Three 100 km runners finished within 15 seconds of each other after more than 24 hours on the mountain — including Fraser Hirst, competing in the 60–64 age group, in 24:18:37.

A child under ten completed the 21 km. Saba Janelidze of TrailBlazers finished in 4:23:31.

A father and son finished the 21 km one second apart — Irakli Mamniashvili in 3:36:48, his son Andria in 3:36:49.

Two finishers were over 70, both on the 21 km.

Scattered through the protocol are Svan surnames — Khergiani, Mushkudiani, Gujejiani, Chartolani, Lipartliani, Gvarliani, Kvitsiani. This is not purely a visitors' race.

About the race itself

Mestia Ultra is organised by TrailLab and runs annually in mid-July. All five distances start and finish on Seti Square in central Mestia.

The three longest races are UTMB World Series Qualifiers and carry ITRA certification:

• Mestia 100K — UTMB 100M, ITRA 5
• Mestia 70K Ultra — UTMB 100K, ITRA 4
• Mestia Trail Marathon — UTMB 50K, ITRA 2
• Mestia Trail Race — UTMB 20K, ITRA 1

Long distances start at 06:00, the 21 km and 6 km at 09:00. For the 100 km and 70 km, a technical briefing the evening before is mandatory, and mandatory kit is checked at bib collection.

What the race course tells you about hiking Svaneti

This is the part that matters if you're visiting rather than racing. The aid stations were placed at the landmarks of the region, which makes the race route a fairly reliable map of where the good ground is:

Koruldi Lakes (6 km into the race). Alpine lakes on the ridge above Mestia with a direct view of Ushba. The most popular half-day objective from town. Reachable on foot in roughly 4–5 hours round trip, or by 4x4 to the upper meadows — see our Koruldi Lakes tour.

Heshkili (25 km). High meadows above the Mulakhi valley, quiet and open, with huts. A strong choice if you want scale without crowds.

Zuruldi (29 km). Accessible by cable car from Hatsvali, which makes it the easiest big view in Svaneti — worth knowing if you're travelling with people who don't hike.

Tsvirmi (40 km). A working Svan village with towers, well off the main tourist route.

Ughviri Pass (47 km). The pass between the Mulakhi and Mestiachala valleys, and a natural viewpoint over both.

Tetnuldi (51 and 74 km). The ski area in summer: a high road, wide views, and the base for approaches toward Tetnuldi and Adishi.

Adishi (58 km). One of the most remote inhabited villages in Svaneti, on the classic Mestia–Ushguli trek.

If a route is safe enough to send hundreds of runners across at night in July, it is generally safe enough to walk in daylight — with the usual caveats about weather, which in Svaneti changes fast at altitude.

Getting to Mestia

Mestia sits at the end of a mountain road, and getting there is the part most visitors underestimate. See our full guide to getting to Svaneti for a route-by-route comparison — or go straight to private transfers if you'd rather not spend hours in a shared minibus.

Mestia Ultra 2027

Dates for 2027 have not been announced. The race has consistently run in mid-July, and registration typically opens the previous autumn with tiered pricing — early registration closed at the end of January for the 2026 edition, and prices rose twice before the final cutoff in mid-July.

If you're considering it, the honest advice from a region that watched this race up close: the 21 km is a genuinely enjoyable introduction to Svan terrain and had a 98% finish rate. The 100 km is a serious mountain ultra with a 72% finish rate and cutoffs that bite. Choose accordingly.

Sources

Results and race regulations: official TrailLab protocol for Mestia Ultra 2026 and traillab.ge/mestia, retrieved 19 July 2026. Finish counts calculated from the published protocol, counting ranked finishers per distance and gender.