San Jose, Calif. – Top endurance athletes in the obstacle racing world tackled the gritty course on Mount Diablo for the Spartan San Jose U.S. National Series race weekend, March 23-25. The event featured a range of competitive heats and saw athletes battle for more than $15,000 in cash and prizes as well as the right to compete in the 2018 Spartan North American Championship on August 25 in West Virginia and the 2018 World Championship in North Lake Tahoe September 29.

The race weekend included some of the nation’s top athletes as well as weekend warriors and new racers taking on Spartan’s signature events, including the “Super” (8-10 mile, 24–29 obstacle), “Sprint” (3-5 mile, 20-23 obstacles), and Kids Races. The course featured miles of technical terrain, steep elevation and signature Spartan obstacles designed to push competitors to their limits.

Rea Kolbl earned the top prize on the women’s side with a 01:27:03 course pace. Joining Woods on the men’s podium was Ryan Kent in second and Robert Killian in third. Faye Stenning and Myriam Guillot-Boisset rounded out the women’s top three, earning second and third respectively. Finishing at the top of the field in these qualifiers, Woods and Kolbl earned the right to compete in the 2018 Spartan North American Championship and World Championship.

The weekend featured additional competitions for wide range of abilities, including the three-mile Elite Spartan Sprint which saw Angel Quintero of Mexico City, Mexico take home the men’s title and Rea Kolbl take home the women’s title. The weekend also features a “Hurricane Heat,” a unique endurance event, traversing on and off the Spartan race course. In total, the San Jose National Championship stop saw more than 15,000 participants put their strength and endurance to the test to tackle the unforgiving terrain.

The U.S. National Series leads to the 2018 Spartan World Championship, the pinnacle event of the obstacle racing season featuring a field of elite athletes from more than 50 countries around the world battling it out over a 12+ mile (20+ kilometer) “Beast” race. To qualify for the world championship heat, competitors must finish top 10 in a Spartan National Series event or a Regional Championship anywhere in the world during the 2018 qualifying season.

After San Jose, the series returns to Snohomish, WA April 14, before heading to new championship venues in Southern California’s Big Bear Lake May 19; Chicago, IL June 23; and the finale in Eden, UTJuly 28.

MEN’S & WOMEN’S ELITE: HERE

MEN’S ELITE		WOMEN’S ELITE
1. Ryan Woods	01:14:27	1. Rea Kolbl	01:27:03
2. Ryan Kent	01:16:57	2. Faye Stenning	01:28:04
3. Robert Killian	01:17:47	3. Myriam Guillot-Boisset	01:32:49
4. Angel Quintero	01:18:20	4. Alyssa Hawley	01:36:04
5. Aaron Newell	01:19:37	5. Leigh Anne Wasteney	01:36:56

Getting ready to tackle a Spartan race? Download The Spartan 2018 Training Plan as your blueprint. #noexcuses