Left, Odin Brennan crosses the finish line first in the UTA11 men's race and, right, Lulu Green takes the tape in the UTA11 women's race at the 2026 HOKA Ultra-Trail Australia by UTMB on Thursday, May 14, 2026. Pictures Tim Bardsley-Smith
Blue Mountains teenagers Lulu Green and Odin Brennan have claimed the first titles on day one of the 2026 Ultra-Trail Australia as they battled their way to victory in the UTA11 (11km).
Sixteen-year-old Lulu Green, from Wentworth Falls, took the tape in the women's race in 1:15:27, nearly two minutes clear of Regina Johansen in second. Ruth Eagles rounded out the podium in 1:17:52.
Green tracked the front of the race for five kilometres before making her move to the front - and never looked back.
"I'm stoked with how I did. Very happy," said Green. "My race plan was to go out hard and just keep it going the whole way, it was really tough though."
Wentworth Falls teenager Lulu Green takes the tape in the UTA11 women's race at the 2026 HOKA Ultra-Trail Australia by UTMB on Thursday, May 14, 2026. Picture Tim Bardsley-Smith
Green returned to the UTA11 for the second time after finishing fourth in 2025 and was delighted to take the win this time around.
"It feels so good to win this one, I'll hopefully move to the 22km next year and give that a go," she said. "My plan was to do the 11km until I won the women's race, and now that I have, I'll move to the 22km."
In the men's race, it was another 16-year-old, Odin Brennan of Katoomba, who secured the win. Brennan stopped the clock at 58:10, with Alton Freeman second in 59:53 and William Corlett third in 1:01:39.
Katoomba teenager Odin Brennan crosses the finish line first at the UTA11 men's race at the 2026 HOKA Ultra-Trail Australia by UTMB on Thursday, May 14, 2026. Picture Tim Bardsley-Smith
"I'm feeling over the moon. I trained so hard for this and did it, it's so good," said Brennan. "I'm from Katoomba, over the other side, so this is my backyard, I train here all the time.
"The plan was to try stick the start, but I ended up going so quick that I thought I was going to blow up. Ethan overtook me and led the way and I was just trying to stick with him, and then down the stairs into Leura forest I knew I had to get in front of him because it's single trail, so I just went one hundred percent down those stairs and then just pushed all the way to the finish," he said.
Will Corlett finishes third in the 2026 UTA11. Picture Tim Bardsley-Smith
Runners from across Australia and around the world took to the trails on Thursday afternoon for the UTA11, with runners continuing to cross the finish line throughout the afternoon into the evening.
Racing continues in the Blue Mountains on Friday, with the UTAMiler seeing 450 runners take on the 100-mile course from 5:00am, with UTA22 beginning from 6:40am.
Results
UTA11 results - Women
- Lulu Green 01:15:27
- Regina Johansen 01:17:13
- Ruth Eagles 01:17:52
- Eliza Smith 01:21:17
- Isla Gosby 01:25:19
UTA11 results - Men
- Odin Brennan 00:58:10
- Alton Freeman 00:59:53
- William Corlett 01:01:39
- Lachlan Jones 01:03:01
- Adam Amiot 01:03:56
Blue Mountains Gazette
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