Ultra runner Jon Albon in pole position with LEKI

Press Release / 27.05.2022

British elite ultra runner Jon Albon has partnered with run & walking poles specialist LEKI to use its poles for the 2022 season.

Alongside his main technical and performance partner The North Face, the poles from LEKI will be a key part of Albon’s race equipment to support his main goal for the year, the CCC at Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB).

The partnership announcement this week will see him train and race over longer distances using LEKI’s trail running poles with their Trail Shark grip system that delivers power transfer and grip.

The choice to start using poles was something that Albon has been deliberating over for the past couple of years, as over the Covid break he decided to build up to the full UTMB (170km) distance in 2023.

‘To make his decision, he invested in his own set of LEKI poles for training and was sold on the benefits. Jon is not only using LEKI poles on the running trails this year, in the winter he will be using the ski glove and pole system as he continues to race Ski Mountaineering (Skimo) events.’

Albon said “With my move into racing over 100km, poles will play an important role in success, distributing fatigue more evenly throughout the entire body, as opposed to primarily in the legs.

“I think LEKI poles have the best weight to stiffness ratio with the shark grip system making the poles comfortable to use hours on end and easier to stow away for the downhills.”

Having won the OCC (55km) at UTMB last year, his focus for 2022 is the CCC (101km) and then the full UTMB course (171km) in 2023.

Michael Brechtelsbauer, LEKI’s International Sales & Marketing Director said “Teaming up with Jon on his way to the CCC is as good as it can get.

“We are stoked to be part of his transition to longer race distances, and it will be exciting to see his talent unfold in this new chapter of his career.”

Although UTMB will be Albon’s main goal for the coming seasons, he is also looking forward to participating in other trail running and OCR events, both in the UK and internationally.

He will commence his race season this weekend at the Greenweez Maxi-Race (38km) and then Marathon Du Mont-Blanc in June 23-26 (42km).