the original swimrun races
In 2006 Michael Lemmel and Mats Skott took the crazy idea of running and swimming through the islands to heart and made it into the immense and intense race of today. They knew right away that it was going to work with their extensive experience of pushing it to the limit. They are the founders of Swimrun movement around the world. Understanding the soul of endurance sports and their extensive knowledge of event management has made the ÖTILLÖ experience of today.
Michael and Mats have pioneered the Scandinavian Endurance scene since the early 1990’s where they first competed in Ski- Alpinisme, then created the Swedish cup in Ski- Alpinisme before becoming the first Adventure Racing team in Scandinavia. For 13 years they were part of the best teams in the world and competed in more than 70 races all over.
The ÖTILLÖ team is connected to the original bet through Anders Malm and Utö Värdshus.
ÖTILLÖ is now more than just one race, it has become the pinnacle race of Swimrun and the cherished World Championship in a series of ÖTILLÖ Swimrun races throughout the year.
race distances
experience races
The EXPERIENCE races are short, fun, entry-level swimrun experiences for anyone.
These races are between 5-7 km long. The courses are fun with easy swims and easy runs. The EXPERIENCE races are for those completely new to the sport or those wanting a pleasant experience.
There are no cut-offs in the EXPERIENCE races.
sprint races
The word SPRINT eludes to the distance compared to a WORLD SERIES race, not necessarily to the speed.
These races are between 15-17 km long. They are designed to be fun and challenging in similar terrain as the WORLD SERIES races but with less exposed swims. This is where beginners and top racers meet.
There is usually one cut-off early on in the race.
world series races
These races serve as qualifiers to ÖTILLÖ, THE SWIMRUN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP and also as the ultimate regional swimrun challenge.
The races are long and hard where you can expect to be out anywhere from 5-9 hours.
You need to be prepared for real open-water swims and for some sections of challenging trail-running.
These races have several cut-offs.