Iker Karrera

About

Iker Karrera Aranburu is a Basque-Spanish trail and mountain ultrarunner born September 18, 1974, in Amezketa, Gipuzkoa, who grew up at the foot of Mount Txindoki and built one of the most decorated ultra-mountain careers in European trail running. A Rural Development Technician by profession, he began as a long-distance road runner before moving to alpinism and then elite trail racing as a Salomon-sponsored athlete. His signature achievement came in 2013 when he won the Tor des Géants — the legendary 330km Alpine crossing — setting a stage record at the Cuney refuge en route. He also won the Lavaredo Ultra Trail by UTMB in 2012, finished runner-up at UTMB Mont-Blanc in 2011, set the Nolan 14 record in Colorado (47 hours 40 minutes, six hours faster than the previous mark), completed the Chamonix-Zermatt crossing in a record 21:20 in 2012, and won the Gran Raid des Pyrénées and the Eiger Ultra Trail. Karrera has since announced his retirement from competition, reflecting on a career that gave him "the greatest glories a trail runner can experience."

Notable Wins

• — Tor des Géants 2013
• — Lavaredo Ultra Trail by UTMB 2012
• — UTMB 2nd place 2011
• — Nolan 14 FKT (47:40)
• — Chamonix-Zermatt record 21:20 (2012)
• — Gran Raid des Pyrénées
• — Eiger Ultra Trail

Race History