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| Anaiheim, CA
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The Big A turned into a Spartan battleground, three-plus miles of stadium stairs and 20 obstacles, atlas carries, climbing walls, sandbags up stairs and a spear throw among them, taking racers through every corner of Angels' home turf.
Grit showed up everywhere. One racer finished despite a broken finger picked up mid-race, refusing to let it end her day. Teams of women pushed each other through the stairs, some shaving minutes off last year's time, others crossing their very first Spartan finish line, proof that this course rewards persistence as much as speed.
Skeptics turned into believers too, one lifelong holdout finally gave Angel Stadium a shot after her friends pushed her out of her comfort zone, and walked away already planning her next one.
Stairs conquered, personal bests broken, comfort zones shattered.
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| Zell am See-Kaprun, Austria
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Zell am See-Kaprun closed out the 2026 Germany-Austria National Series beneath the Austrian Alps. The 50K Ultra alone brought over 60 obstacles and 3,000 metres of elevation, proving once again why this venue ranks among Spartan's toughest and most beautiful.
Christian Kraus claimed the overall Elite Men's title, backing it up with a Beast win in 3:03:44, while Olivia Leitmeir secured the overall Elite Women's crown. In the Ultra, Luca Pescollderungg and Alzbeta Kubascikova topped their fields.
Two stories stood above the results. Stefanie Habeler completed a full-circle journey, launching her Spartan career at Zell am See-Kaprun and returning to win the biggest race of her life on the same mountain. And the weekend marked the retirement of Marco Hofstätter, closing the book on a career that helped shape Spartan racing across Austria.
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| Fort Lauderdale, FL
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Broward County Convention Center hosted the final US qualifying event for the 2026 DEKA FIT World Championship, racers leaving everything on the floor for one last shot at a spot on the world stage.
Marcus Moreira topped the men's Elite podium in 33:20, ahead of Benjamin Amsallem and Chris McEnery, while Ciara Loga led the women's field in 39:46, followed by Renae Sweeney and Kendra Warren.
Two stories stood above the results. Firefighter Christina Munro completed the full DEKA FIT in complete bunker gear, honouring the 343 firefighters lost on 9/11. A day later, Andres Rosario took on a six-lap DEKA Ultra wearing a ruck, one lap for each branch of the US military.
Records chased, history honoured.
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| Toronto, CA
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Gopher Dunes brought its motocross pedigree to Tough Mudder, towering sand dunes, steep technical hills and wide-open flats turning into a punishing 15K course for 5,000 Mudders. Loose sandy climbs, sharp descents and wooded fringe trails kept things unpredictable from start to finish, with up to 30 obstacles packed in along the way.
Teams carried the day. Crews crossed the line sore, proud and stronger for every obstacle tackled together, a reminder that Tough Mudder has never really been about the running. It's about showing up for each other, mile after muddy mile.
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| Derbyshire, UK
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Derby Arena hosted DEKA FIT East Midlands for the second year running, delivering the UK's biggest weekend of MILE, FIT, Ruck and Youth racing, including the largest DEKA Ruck wave ever held in the country. Friday brought schools from across the UK to the Youth wave, plus the UK's first arena MILE, alongside East Midlands standing as the final UK qualifier for the 2026 DEKA World Championship in both MILE and FIT.
Records tumbled all weekend. David Parkin set a new UK Elite Male DEKA FIT record in 31:26.7, ahead of Ethan Smith and Bodger Rees. In Teams, Rees and Smith went even faster, 25:37 was enough to break the UK record and land second on the Global Leaderboard. Kate Collenette topped the women's field in 36:58.4, while Daisy Evans and Jakub Riedel set a new UK Co-Ed Teams record at 28:43.
None of it happens without the people behind it, 72 volunteers kept the weekend running, alongside partners including Cancer Research UK, GymGear and Yomp.
Full send, Derby.
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