Dacia UTMB Mont-Blanc 2023: Amplifying an Iconic Race

The most prestigious trail running event in the calendar, Dacia UTMB Mont-Blanc (Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc) attracts runners from all over the world. Every year, more than 10,000 trail runners descend on Chamonix, France, to take part in one eight trail races, of which UTMB is the headline. 50,000 spectators cheer for the runners around the massif.

In 2023, the UTMB team wanted to increase reach and engagement around the event within the active people audience, and used their clubs on Strava to help them do that.

In the lead up to the events, organisers engaged their growing community by sharing the Strava routes of all the courses, key segments, race day information, and news around the races themselves. In addition, they leveraged the power of a community that includes headline runners like Yngvild Kaspersen or Jim Walmsley, sharing their activities and recapping their performances in the races.

The event also came to life on Strava through Premier Partners of the UTMB World Series like HOKA that engaged the community through a celebratory segment challenge on the the last 500m of the course throughout the week, unlocking a physical badge for all the finishers.

UTMB also leveraged their relationship with Strava to celebrate the event on the platform. As part of Strava's celebration of Dacia UTMB Mont-Blanc week, 3D course flyovers were shared on Strava and across social media, the Strava team created an 'Athletes to Follow' carousel on the Strava feed for outdoors enthusiasts on Strava, and the inspiring journey of the event was shared on the Strava Stories website.

The results speak for themselves. The UTMB club grew 35% year on year, with more than 135k kudos given on UTMB club posts.

Why did UTMB choose Strava?

As the main social platform in trail running, the fans and press everywhere tune into UTMB on Strava. It gives them a different perspective than other social platforms as they're able to follow and understand better the training journey of their favourite athletes, and celebrate their amazing efforts in the mountains in a very unique way.