Sierre-Zinal - Elevation Profile, Aid Stations and Cutoffs
- Sierre, Switzerland
- 31 km
- 2,200 m D+
- 4 aid stations
Map, checkpoints and cutoffs Map · checkpoints · forecast opens Jul 29 Race-day forecast is live
Race-day conditions
Weather, daylight and your arrival time at all 6 checkpoints, set to the 10:30 start.
- Start
- 10:30
- Daylight at the start
- 06:18-20:53
- Aid stations
- 4
Course profile
Sierre, Switzerland Zinal, Switzerland · point-to-point
- Distance
- 31 km Finishes 1,100 m higher than it starts
- Elevation
- +2,200 m -1,100 m About 71 m of climb per km
- Highest point
- 2,416 m Between Hôtel Weisshorn and Nava
Next edition Sat 7 Aug 2027 · 10:30
- Start
- Winner ~2h26 2h26 after the start
- Median finisher 2026 median 4h22 after the start
- Cutoff 7h after the start
Sierre-Zinal is a 31 km ultra-trail with around 2,200 m of elevation gain, starting in Sierre, Switzerland. The overall cutoff is 7 hours. The highest point on the course is Between Hôtel Weisshorn and Nava at 2,416 m. That is 71 m of climbing per kilometre.
The biggest climb between checkpoints gains around 1,528 m from Start - Sierre (km 0) to Chandolin (km 11.82). The steepest sustained section on the elevation profile averages about 27% over roughly 2.5 km around km 4. Crew access is allowed at Chandolin (11.82 km) and Tignousa (15.5 km).
Data is approximate and courses change between editions - always verify against the official race guide.
Plan against the cutoffs
Enter a goal finish time and see estimated arrivals vs checkpoint cutoffs.
Estimate your finish
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Course math
Four numbers worked out from this course's distance, elevation and checkpoints.
TrailMath effort-km
59 effort-km
About 5 h for a mid-pack finisher (index 500). Not a pacing guarantee.
Distance + gain ÷ 100 + loss ÷ 200, beside ITRA's gain-only km-effort. Model TM1.0.
How TrailMath works →UTMB Index category
50K
53 km-effort (distance + gain ÷ 100). Calculated from the course figures, not an official classification.
Estimate your UTMB Index →Biggest climb section
+1,528 m
Sierre → Chandolin · km 0–11.8
The largest gain between two checkpoints, not one continuous climb.
Biggest descent section
−589 m
Barneuza → Zinal (Finish) · km 26.3–31
The largest loss between two checkpoints. ITRA's km-effort ignores descent; TrailMath counts it: 59 km-effort.
Open in GPX Explorer →Share this race
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Sierre-Zinal · 2026
Finish times, 2026 edition
1,784 runners started. 1,637 came back. Half of them took longer than 4:22:05. That left the median finisher 2:37:55 inside the 7h cutoff.
Median finish
4:22:05
Half of the 1,637 finishers were still out there at this point.
2:37:55 in hand before the 7h cutoff
Average 4:19:34, 0:02:31 quicker than the median: a fast front pulls it down.
The start line
91.8%
1,637 of 1,784 starters made it; 147 did not.
Men and women
Two medians on the same scale. The bars run from the start to the cutoff, so the gap between them is the gap in time.
Men
4:20:53
median finish; average 4:17:48
1,368 finishers, 84% of the field
Women
4:31:10
median finish; average 4:28:36
269 finishers, 16% of the field
0:10:17 separates the two medians, across 1,368 men and 269 women.
Finish time by age group
Every track runs from the start to the 7h cutoff, so the empty part of a bar is the time that group's median finisher still had. Men and women are drawn on the same scale.
| Age | Median finish | Median against the cutoff | Finishers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elites | 4:10:05 | 936 | |
| Vétérans I | 4:29:38 | 267 | |
| Vétérans II | 4:45:44 | 133 | |
| Vétérans III | 5:02:32 | 32 |
| Age | Median finish | Median against the cutoff | Finishers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elites | 4:18:01 | 207 | |
| Femmes I | 4:57:16 | 46 | |
| Femmes II | 4:51:10 | 16 - small sample, read with care |
Full bar: 20 finishers or more. Tick alone: fewer than 20, too few for a median to say much. The shaded row is the biggest group.
Where the finishers came from
36% of the finishers came from Switzerland alone.
| Nation | Finishers | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Switzerland CH | 583 35.6% | |
| France FR | 430 26.3% | |
| Belgium BE | 123 7.5% | |
| Italy IT | 107 6.5% | |
| Spain ES | 64 3.9% | |
| United Kingdom GB | 52 3.2% | |
| Germany DE | 48 2.9% | |
| United States US | 28 1.7% | |
| Netherlands NL | 19 1.2% | |
| Kenya KE | 13 0.8% | |
| Romania RO | 11 0.7% | |
| Canada CA | 9 0.5% | |
| Portugal PT | 9 0.5% | |
| Ireland IE | 8 0.5% | |
| Poland PL | 8 0.5% | |
| China CN | 7 0.4% | |
| Australia AU | 6 0.4% | |
| Colombia CO | 6 0.4% | |
| Algeria DZ | 6 0.4% | |
| South Africa ZA | 6 0.4% | |
| Czechia CZ | 5 0.3% | |
| Morocco MA | 5 0.3% | |
| Sweden SE | 5 0.3% | |
| Argentina AR | 4 0.2% | |
| Austria AT | 4 0.2% | |
| Brazil BR | 4 0.2% | |
| Norway NO | 4 0.2% | |
| Russia RU | 4 0.2% | |
| Venezuela VE | 4 0.2% | |
| Chile CL | 3 0.2% | |
| Finland FI | 3 0.2% | |
| Japan JP | 3 0.2% | |
| Peru PE | 3 0.2% | |
| Slovakia SK | 3 0.2% | |
| Afghanistan AF | 2 0.1% | |
| Bulgaria BG | 2 0.1% | |
| Costa Rica CR | 2 0.1% | |
| Denmark DK | 2 0.1% | |
| Croatia HR | 2 0.1% | |
| Hungary HU | 2 0.1% | |
| India IN | 2 0.1% | |
| Luxembourg LU | 2 0.1% | |
| Latvia LV | 2 0.1% | |
| Mexico MX | 2 0.1% | |
| Tunisia TN | 2 0.1% | |
| Türkiye TR | 2 0.1% | |
| Uruguay UY | 2 0.1% | |
| Armenia AM | 1 0.1% | |
| Bosnia & Herzegovina BA | 1 0.1% | |
| Botswana BW | 1 0.1% | |
| Ecuador EC | 1 0.1% | |
| Egypt EG | 1 0.1% | |
| Eritrea ER | 1 0.1% | |
| Guatemala GT | 1 0.1% | |
| New Zealand NZ | 1 0.1% | |
| Serbia RS | 1 0.1% | |
| Slovenia SI | 1 0.1% | |
| French Southern Territories TF | 1 0.1% | |
| U.S. Outlying Islands UM | 1 0.1% | |
| Vietnam VN | 1 0.1% | |
| Zimbabwe ZW | 1 0.1% | |
| 51 other nations 41 other nations 31 other nations 21 other nations 11 other nations 1 other nation | 170 10.4% 94 5.7% 52 3.2% 28 1.7% 11 0.7% 1 0.1% |
Showing 20 of 61 nations. Showing 30 of 61 nations. Showing 40 of 61 nations. Showing 50 of 61 nations. Showing 60 of 61 nations. Showing 61 of 61 nations.
Bar length is against the largest nation. The smallest counts are drawn at a minimum visible width, so their bars are not to scale.
How these numbers were computed
These are times for runners who finished. They exclude everyone who started and did not, so they describe how long finishing took, not how long the race takes. Bands with only a handful of finishers move a lot from one edition to the next.
We plot the median, not the average. A handful of very quick runners drags the average well below the time half the field actually beat, so the median is the honest number to plan against.
Nationality here shows who travels to this race, not who runs it best. That alone is why a host nation tops almost every list.
Computed from the full official results, verified October 7, 2026 - Official results
Ask the course
Ask Sierre-Zinal anything about climbs, pacing, crew or cutoffs.
Answers come from this course's data, your plan and your training.
Which climb should I respect most?
Sierre to Chandolin: +1,528 m over 11.8 km, straight from the gun. Hike the steep sections at an effort you could hold for hours - the race is decided after this climb, not on it.
Where can my crew meet me?
Chandolin, km 11.82 - the first of 2 crew points. The next is Tignousa, km 15.5. Have them bring warm layers: the course tops out at 2,416 m, in August.
Is 4h a realistic finish for me?
4h would put you in the faster half of 2026 finishers - the median was 4:22:05. It means holding 7:45/km overall.
The assistant answers that once it can see your training.
Build your Sierre-Zinal plan and your question is the first thing waiting in the TrailMath Assistant. Your first 5 questions are free, no card.
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Example answer
Your long runs peak at 10 km, so the plan builds to 4-hour long runs. Cutoff buffer at Tignousa: 1h49.
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Aid stations and checkpoints
| Checkpoint | Km | Cumulative gain (m) | Cumulative loss (m) | Cutoff |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start - Sierre Services not published | 0 | 0 | 0 | - |
| Chandolin Crew | 11.82 | 1,528 | 95 | Sat 14:10 |
| Tignousa Crew | 15.5 | 1,796 | 168 | Sat 14:40 |
| Hôtel Weisshorn | 19.9 | 2,042 | 241 | Sat 15:20 |
| Barneuza | 26.31 | 2,175 | 511 | - |
| Zinal (Finish) Crew | 31 | 2,200 | 1,100 | Sat 17:30 |
Data is approximate and courses change between editions - always verify against the official race guide. Source: official race guide, verified October 7, 2026 - Official race website
FAQ
How much elevation gain does Sierre-Zinal have?
Sierre-Zinal has around 2,200 m of cumulative elevation gain and 1,100 m of loss over 31 km.
What is the cutoff time for Sierre-Zinal?
The overall Sierre-Zinal cutoff is 7 hours, with intermediate time barriers at major checkpoints. Winning times are typically around 2 hours.
How long is Sierre-Zinal?
Sierre-Zinal covers approximately 31 km, starting in Sierre, Switzerland.
What is the highest point of Sierre-Zinal?
The highest point of Sierre-Zinal is Between Hôtel Weisshorn and Nava at 2,416 m.
How many aid stations does Sierre-Zinal have and which allow crew?
The checkpoint table lists 4 major aid points between the start and the finish. Crew access is allowed at Chandolin (11.82 km) and Tignousa (15.5 km).
Training for this race?
TrailMath builds periodized trail training plans around your goal race.
One Strava connection reads your last 90 days and estimates your finish on this course. Free, no plan needed.