Seventy-one runners will be competing in the 2021 KPMG Tortola Torture FU Covid edition. Twenty men and eleven women are running as individuals and there are five 2-person and ten 3-person teams.
Predictions are difficult this year. But a woman looks likely to take the overall prize.
Allison Janusziewicz from St Croix took the womens division in 2019 with a time of 06:08:54.10 but Jules Potgieter and Johanna Murphy battled it out for second and third place. Jules crossed the line only a minute ahead of Johnna with a time of 06:17:50.6. Allison is not competing this year, but both Jules and Johanna are. A feisty rematch is expected.
TJ Hindes from St John won the 2019 event with a time of 04:54:33.8. He is not defending his title this year, and the mens division is tough to call. None of last year’s top eight finishers are racing this year. So, by default, ninth place finisher and Tortola Torture veteran, Michael Kilhoury, is favourite. His time last year of 6:42:24.70 could give him the mens win, but endurance newcomer Justin Smit could give him a run for his money if he can maintain his training times for the complete course.
Paul Mellor and JJ Ricketts look set to dominate the 2-person teams, while the 3-person team win is wide open.
The current Covid protocols have slimmed the international field but Blas J Vega has come from Puerto Rico to attend.
Avery Collins from Colorado set a new record in the 2018 KPMG Tortola Torture. With a time of 4 hours, 35 minutes and 47 seconds, Avery took a handsome 9 minutes and 18 seconds off Eric Senseman’s 2016 record-setting time (04:45:05).
The 2021 event is the second in the KPMG Tortola Torture FU series. The first was the FU Irma edition in 2018. Event organisers hope there will not be a third event in the series.
The KPMG Tortola Torture is a 33.74 mile (54km) ultramarathon that circumnavigates Tortola with only 22% on the flat, the rest is on hot and humid hills with 12,000 feet of elevation change. The steepest gradient is 33.33%.
THE KPMG Tortola Torture continues its ban of disposable bottles on the race course this year. By using reusable 5-gallon jugs and coolers, organisers eliminated the use of over 1,200 half litre bottles of water.
The KPMG Tortola Torture is open to individuals, two-person, and three-person relay teams.
Title sponsor KPMG provides audit, tax and advisory services together with industry insight to help organizations negotiate risks and perform in the dynamic and challenging environments in which they do business.
Mourant, platinum sponsor, is a leading offshore law firm, advising on the laws of the BVI, the Cayman Islands, Guernsey and Jersey.
Road Town Wholesale is the official food and beverage supplier. Kanberra Gel is the official sanitizing and freshness sponsor.
THE START LIST
Name | Team name | Category | Gender | Bib | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alton Bertie | Alton | Individual | Male | 1 | |
Toni Bonzon | Toni | Individual | Male | 2 | |
Tilly Bruce | Tilly | Individual | Female | 3 | |
Shane Donovan | Shane | Individual | Male | 4 | |
Dennis Versoza | Dennis | Individual | Male | 5 | |
John Galleymore | John | Individual | Male | 6 | |
Aaron Gardner | Aaron | Individual | Male | 7 | |
Andrew Gilliland | Andrew | Individual | Male | 8 | |
Anton Goldstein | Anton | Individual | Male | 9 | |
Katie Gott | Katie | Individual | Female | 10 | |
Dustin Harrison | Dustin | Individual | Male | 11 | |
Tracy Jackson | Tracy | Individual | Female | 12 | |
Rosmond Johnson | Rosmond | Individual | Female | 13 | |
Murray Laing | Murray | Individual | Male | 14 | |
Philippe Leroy | Philippe | Individual | Male | 15 | |
Daniel Mitchell | Daniel | Individual | Male | 16 | |
Johanna Murphy | Johanna | Individual | Female | 17 | |
Juliane Potgeiter | Juliane | Individual | Female | 18 | |
Owen Prew | Owen | Individual | Male | 19 | |
Natasha Ruscheinski | Natasha | Individual | Female | 21 | |
Justin Smit | Justin | Individual | Male | 22 | |
Caroline Sorrentino | Caroline | Individual | Female | 23 | |
Sam Thompson | Sam | Individual | Male | 24 | |
Howard Tucker | Howard | Individual | Male | 25 | |
Sarah Tucker | Sarah | Individual | Female | 26 | |
Jane Tyrrell | Jane | Individual | Female | 27 | |
Blas J Vega | Blas J | Individual | Male | 28 | |
Victoria Waterfield | Victoria | Individual | Female | 29 | |
Ray Wearmouth | Ray | Individual | Male | 30 | |
Mike Killhoury | Mike | Individual | Male | 31 | |
Matt Freeman | Matt | Individual | Male | 32 | |
Juliano Speedsters | Matthew Juliano | Ryan Juliano | Two Man Team | Male | 33 |
Paul and JJ | Paul Mellor | Jermaine "JJ" Ricketts | Two Man Team | Male | 34 |
Nelson | Phil Nelson | Matthew Nelson | Two Man Team | Male | 35 |
We Hills | Julie Schneider | Karrina Stead | Two Man Team | Female | 36 |
Jo and Aurelie | Johanna Murphy | Aurelie Legangneux | Two Man Team | Female | 37 |
Brave | Elizabeth Buratti - Annie Peliwan | Claudine Bourdon | Three Man Team | Female | 38 |
Chafing the Dream | Christian Fay - Lizanne Havenga | Chris Farmer | Three Man Team | Female/Male | 39 |
Forest Stumps | Phil Nelson - Dale Parcon | Christo Van Der Merwe | Three Man Team | Male | 40 |
Intrepid | Vicki Francis - Sara-Jane Knock | Kate Carey | Three Man Team | Female | 41 |
Maybees | Derek Rawlings - Maria Mays | Debbie Bell | Three Man Team | Female/Male | 42 |
SAG | Anna Kinkead - Gabriel Obrogon | Sergio Dantas | Three Man Team | Female/Male | 43 |
Team CAK | Claudius Rymer - Adiran Dale | Kay Reddy | Three Man Team | Female/Male | 44 |
Team Valiant | Emma Anstock - Sarah Graham | Richie Paul | Three Man Team | Female | 45 |
The Running-Kruger Effect | Greg O'Keefe-Davis - Natalie Bundy | Dave Matthews | Three Man Team | Female/Male | 46 |
Tortola Tortoises | Chris Pease - Sarah Carroll | Hanna Perkins | Three Man Team | Female/Male | 47 |