Five champions, one rainforest, and a wall of tropical rain. The 2026 edition of Amazean Jungle Thailand by UTMB wrapped up on Sunday in Betong, with 4,664 runners from 54 countries lining up in the deep south of Thailand for what is becoming Asia's most distinctive trail festival.
This year's race was punished by rain and wind from the very first start. The 100-mile field rolled out of the Betong Mongkollit Tunnel on Friday May 1 under a downpour, climbing toward the famous "Jara Rakanga" two-layer sea-of-mist viewpoint before plunging back into root-tangled jungle and humid singletrack on the Thai-Malaysia border.
Betong 100M: a Chinese sweep in the storm
Only 123 runners answered the gun for the 116 km, 5,400 m+ flagship distance. Conditions thinned the field fast, and at the front Kailas FUGA's Xiao Lin proved once again that he is a different kind of animal in heat and humidity, taking the men's win ahead of Jeff Campbell and Yih Sua.
The women's race was a Chinese affair from start to finish. Liping Wang went front-and-center early, kept her composure through the night sections, and crossed the clock-tower finish line as the women's champion. Milena Dobreva took second and Jiangrong Yuan rounded out the podium.
Betong 100M podium
- Men: 1. Xiao Lin · 2. Jeff Campbell · 3. Yih Sua
- Women: 1. Liping Wang · 2. Milena Dobreva · 3. Jiangrong Yuan
Tunnel 100K: a tactical battle on Saturday
The 91 km, 3,900 m+ Tunnel 100K rolled out on Saturday May 2 with the rain still coming down. Peiquan You handled the steep, slippery descents better than anyone and took the men's title, with Nepal's Man Kumar Roka Magar battling all the way home for second and Japan's Hiroyuki Kawachi third.
On the women's side, Hua Rong Fu pulled clear on the second half for a clean win. The Thai crowd had plenty to cheer about with home favorite Benjamat Sophon in second, and Taiwan's Min Ting Chen completing the podium.
Tunnel 100K podium
- Men: 1. Peiquan You · 2. Man Kumar Roka Magar · 3. Hiroyuki Kawachi
- Women: 1. Hua Rong Fu · 2. Benjamat Sophon · 3. Min Ting Chen
Jungle 50K: Veronika Leng keeps her 2026 streak alive
The 55 km, 2,200 m+ Jungle 50K served up the most internationally loaded podium of the weekend. France's Dorian Houze took the men's race with authority, ahead of China's Huohua Zhang and Tao Luo.
The big story of the day was Veronika Leng. The Slovak runner, fresh off her dramatic shared victory at the Hong Kong 100 in January (where she crossed the line hand in hand with Vietnam's Hậu Hà), confirmed she is one of the form athletes of the 2026 World Trail Majors season by winning the women's Jungle 50K. Vanja Cnops took second, with Dayu Wang third.
Jungle 50K podium
- Men: 1. Dorian Houze · 2. Huohua Zhang · 3. Tao Luo
- Women: 1. Veronika Leng · 2. Vanja Cnops · 3. Dayu Wang
Mist 20K: a French invasion behind a Thai winner
Sunday's 26 km Mist 20K belonged to Thailand on the men's side: Parattakorn Suppalapwattana sent the home crowd into a frenzy at the clock tower with the win, but the next two slots went to a pair of fast French runners, Gregory Oger and Quentin Vieville.
The women's Mist 20K went to Soraya Saait, with Thailand's Rattana Muangklom in second and Brazil's Marilia Maschetto Borges third.
Mist 20K podium
- Men: 1. Parattakorn Suppalapwattana · 2. Gregory Oger · 3. Quentin Vieville
- Women: 1. Soraya Saait · 2. Rattana Muangklom · 3. Marilia Maschetto Borges
Flower 20K: home wins to close the weekend
The shorter, faster 17 km Flower 20K closed the festival. Chinnakrit Soongpankhao delivered another Thai win, with Osama Alif second and Malaysia's Muhammad Hazim Zuhairi Bin Azahari third. The women's race was won by Ombeline Hauwaerts, ahead of Arlene De Abreu and Thailand's Sopha Amnuaiphon.
Flower 20K podium
- Men: 1. Chinnakrit Soongpankhao · 2. Osama Alif · 3. Muhammad Hazim Zuhairi Bin Azahari
- Women: 1. Ombeline Hauwaerts · 2. Arlene De Abreu · 3. Sopha Amnuaiphon
A festival that keeps growing
With 4,664 entries, the 2026 edition was the biggest yet. Thailand contributed 3,257 runners, neighbouring Malaysia 1,013, and the rest were spread across Singapore, China, Hong Kong, France, Indonesia, India, Japan and beyond. Betong's contract with the UTMB World Series now runs through 2027, and the deep-south town has clearly turned its rainforest into one of the most recognisable backdrops in Asian trail running.
The 2027 edition is already being penciled into next season's calendar.