From an idea in 2019 to physical events and a growing community – this is the story of URC.
2019 – The idea is born
NURC (National Ultimate Running Championship) begins as an idea. The goal: to create a concept that compares endurance athletes from different sports on one shared arena.
2020 – Virtual launch via Strava
The pandemic prevents physical events. The concept is tested virtually with Strava segments in Norwegian cities. The response is strong and the concept gains media coverage.
2021 – URC with live results
The «N» is dropped and an expanded team is in place. URC Virtual 2021 runs with live results and arenas in 12 cities. Participants range from recreational runners to world-famous athletes, including Kilian Jornet, who sets up his own segments and promotes URC on his own initiative.
2022 – «vURCouts» and new members
We start running «vURCouts» – shared training sessions where the stages are completed together – and the number of registered runners across our social channels grows past 300 enthusiasts. We also launch our own merch (t-shirts and hoodies), because you should look like a champion already during the warm-up.
2023–2024 – The in-between years
Like most exclusive championships, URC takes a couple of quiet years between the big events. The time is used to refine the concept so it fits both the elite and the everyday runner as well as possible.
2025 – First physical event
URC is held live for the first time, in Vanvikan on 4 May 2025 – a major step from virtual to physical competition.
2026 – URC Lite and the Invitational
URC Lite launches and runs as «vURCouts» with live results. An Invitational in Trondheim is being planned, where the best from the virtual competition are invited alongside well-known athletes to compete for the title Løpernes Mester (the Runners Champion).
Media appearances in 2020 (in Norwegian)
