October 28, 2026
It’s a question that splits the trail community down the middle.
Olympic inclusion brings funding, legitimacy, and a global stage. It also brings governing bodies, selection politics, standardization, and the kind of institutional pressure that can fundamentally reshape a sport’s culture and identity.
Trail running has thrived precisely because it sits outside that world. The question is whether that’s a feature or a limitation.
This panel brings together four voices with genuinely different vantage points.
Natacha Manchado represents World Athletics, the governing body actively navigating what a trail and mountain running presence on the Olympic stage could look like.
Corrine Malcolm brings the perspective of the Professional Trail Runners Association and the brands invested in the sport’s growth.
Francesco Puppi speaks as an elite athlete who competes at the highest level and has a stake in what professionalization means for the people who run for a living.
And Anna Gibson — elite trail runner and Skimo Olympian — is perhaps the most rare voice in the room: someone who has already lived on both sides of this question.
No consensus guaranteed.
Vigorous disagreement likely.
Come ready to think.
Available to view October 21 on Freetrail on YouTube and The Freetrail Podcast on Spotify
This session was recorded at the 2026 TrailCon event, which drew several thousand attendees for three days filled with thought-provoking sessions, brand activations and a Vendor Village with more than 85+ exhibiting brands.
TrailCon 2026 Sessions, in partnership with Freetrail, releases the second in a series of five sessions recorded live at the 2026 event, with more to come!
