Brooks is taking their path working workforce to new heights in 2025, including a powerful roster of athletes who’re set to make waves within the path working world. With a deal with each up-and-coming abilities and seasoned professionals, their newest additions characterize a number of the greatest within the sport throughout the globe, from Canada’s Rémi Leroux to the U.S.’s Chris Myers and Spain’s Ricardo Cherta. We now have a more in-depth have a look at these three trailblazers, highlighting what makes them ones to look at as they gear up for the 2025 season.
Rémi Leroux: a ardour for racing and the Brooks workforce tradition
If there’s one factor Leroux loves, it’s racing. The 27-year-old path runner from Waterloo, Que., has examined his legs on nearly each kind of terrain—highway, ultra-distance and vertical kilometres—however has discovered his candy spot in sub-ultra path racing. “I’m an enormous fan of racing!” he says. “One of many benefits of doing shorter races is that the restoration time afterward is sort of quick, which permits me to race ceaselessly.” With a packed schedule that may embody as much as 20 races a yr, Leroux prioritizes key occasions whereas sustaining a constant coaching load—all the time keeping track of the subsequent problem.
Leroux claimed the title of 2024 Canadian Mountain Working Champion, a victory that solidified his place as one of many nation’s prime path runners. Greater than only a private achievement, Leroux says the race additionally represented the rising energy of Canadian mountain working. “It meant quite a bit to me, and it was so nice to see many Canadians from totally different provinces make the journey to Quebec to take part within the championships,” he says. Now, together with his sights set on the Mountain Working World Championships, he’s desperate to see how Canada’s strongest-ever workforce performs on the worldwide stage.
This season, Leroux joins the Brooks workforce, a partnership that seems like the right match. “I’m tremendous grateful to have the chance of partnering with Brooks,” he says. “Their assist will permit me to proceed bettering as an athlete and compete at my highest degree within the largest path races on the planet.” The workforce tradition is one other big draw for Leroux, who says he’s wanting ahead to coaching and racing alongside a number of the greatest athletes within the sport.
Sierre-Zinal is a serious goal on Leroux’s 2025 calendar. After lacking the race final yr as a consequence of sickness, he’s keen for an additional shot at some of the aggressive path races on the planet. “I like racing with high-level competitors, and Sierre-Zinal is likely to be probably the most aggressive path race on the market, so it ought to be a blast,” he says.
Colorado’s Chris Myers: a breakout yr and massive objectives with Brooks
Myers grew up within the excessive desert of southern California, the place a love of exploring the outside finally led him to path working. Now primarily based in Boulder, Colo., he balances a profession as a visible results artist with coaching at an elite degree.
2024 was a breakout yr for Myers, highlighted by a Golden Ticket and a top-10 end at Western States 100. “The most important distinction was committing extra severely to working and shifting to Boulder,” he says. “Being in an elite neighborhood and coaching at elevation made a big impact. And discovering a gaggle of ‘small boys’ like Jon Rea, Justin Grunewald and Finn Jacobson-Schulte pushed me to that subsequent degree.” Adjusting to Colorado meant adapting to winter coaching. “Working on snow and ice is tough, however the summer season trails make up for it,” he says. “And the competitors isn’t any joke—a few of these ‘straightforward’ runs are something however.”
Myers says that tackling Western States as his 100-mile debut was an eye-opener. “I assumed prime 10 could be extra achievable, however ultrarunning is evolving—individuals don’t blow up like they used to. Preventing for tenth place with a dash end was wild.” He says he’s nonetheless determining his superb race distance, however leans towards longer occasions. “Extra technique, extra problem-solving—it fits me.”
Now backed by Brooks, he’s excited for what’s forward. “They assist athletes by way of the highs and lows. Feeling seen as an athlete and as an individual appears to be certainly one of their robust fits, that is new to me and I really feel that it’s going to be an thrilling and fulfilling partnership.”
Spain’s Ricardo Cherta: pushing new limits with Brooks by his aspect
Cherta isn’t any stranger to pushing limits. The Spanish mountain athlete, who calls the Pyrenees dwelling, has made a reputation for himself on the planet of skyrunning, the place pace and technical talent outline success. Now, at 27, he’s setting his sights on a brand new problem: long-distance path races.
“This modification comes from a want for brand spanking new challenges and to push my limits in a distinct kind of racing,” he says. “Though it’s the identical sport, long-distance races are a very totally different sport. I like coaching and spending time within the mountains, and lengthy distances are the easiest way to find new locations and study extra about myself.”
A kind of challenges is UTMB (Extremely-Path du Mont Blanc), the legendary 170-km race that checks even probably the most seasoned ultrarunners. Cherta has been right here earlier than, however this yr, he plans to take a extra calculated method. “UTMB is a extremely complicated race due to the space, the terrain and the whole lot surrounding it. This yr, my plan is to arrange extra particularly all through the season and to study from previous errors. Ultras are all about that—amassing experiences and changing into a greater model of your self.”
His current signing with Brooks marks a serious milestone in his profession. “Being with Brooks is a step ahead in my working profession and an awesome alternative to proceed rising inside a workforce and construction designed for prime efficiency,” Cherta says. “I like the way in which they perceive athletes’ wants, in addition to the fervour and values they stand for.”
Trying forward, Cherta is set to take advantage of this subsequent chapter. “I see myself having fun with the game as a lot as I do now, constructing a protracted and profitable journey with Brooks and competing on the highest degree on the planet’s most essential races.”
Different athletes to affix the Brooks workforce from Europe embody Anthony Felber, Laura Hampel and Guillaume Tiphene. From the U.S., standout runners like Courtney Barnes, Sydney Petersen, Taylor Stack, Barrett Grey and Kristina Randrup will workforce up to make sure the Brooks workforce is primed for an unimaginable 2025.
