Four champions have been crowned at the 16th edition of the Tarawera Ultra-Trail by UTMB, with international stars claiming the 50km titles and Kiwis dominating the 21km.

American runner Hayden Hawks, the men’s T50 winner, said, “I’m feeling pretty good. A bit beat, I mean, it was tough out there. It was super-fast, I like to relate it to a 10K runner dropping down to run an 800-metre race, that’s how it felt out there. It was very painful.”

Hawks battled throughout the race alongside Rotorua’s Michael Voss and Britain’s Robbie Simpson before managing to break away in the final stretch.

Finishing in 3:18:46, Hawks secured victory just over a minute ahead of Simpson, with Voss rounding out the podium in 3:23:13.

“I made a few mistakes out there for sure – first race of the year. I lost some nutrition, unfortunately it fell out of my belt. I had to take some risks and see what happens, luckily, everything worked out pretty well,” Hawks said.

South Africa’s Bianca Tarboton delivered a dominant performance in the women’s T50 race, crossing the line in 3:45:55—more than 25 minutes ahead of Australia’s Madison Reynolds. Kiwi Julia Grant completed the podium in 4:13:24.

“I’m feeling good, it feels like a blur still. I’m still soaking it in, but I’m really happy. It was a really good race, and I enjoyed it a lot,” Tarboton said.

Aiming to qualify for the OCC at the 2026 UTMB World Series Finals, Tarboton relished her time in New Zealand.

“I’ve been blown away by this place. I didn’t really have expectations coming here, but it’s definitely exceeded everything I thought it would be. It’s actually very similar to South Africa, so it feels a lot like home, which is really nice,” she said.

Reynolds, delighted with her second-place finish, revealed that it was her first race in two years with vision in both eyes, thanks to a newly made custom contact lens.

The 21km races saw local success, with Mount Maunganui’s Jessie Speedy taking the women’s title in 1:35:21. Fellow Kiwi Phillipa Williams finished second, while Switzerland’s Shelly Schenk claimed third.

British-born Kiwi Joe Steward won the men’s 21km in 1:18:47, with American Benjamin Otis finishing second and last year’s champion, New Zealand’s Michael Sutton, taking third.

The 2025 Tarawera Ultra-Trail by UTMB continues throughout the weekend, with the 102km and Miler distances still underway in Rotorua’s stunning trails.