ZacUp 2022, the Grignone Sky Race

It was about 11:30 a.m. when we reached Rifugio Brioschi located on the northern summit of Grigna, at 2410 meters. Definitely not just any place to introduce ZacUp, the Lecco-based Skyrunning competition. The mountain hut, in fact, is one of the key passages of the route: the panorama is incredibly beautiful and is able to immediately immerse you in the context of the race. The presentation was held in a small clearing that allowed us to see part of the route, a great way to better understand what we are talking about.

The race

ZacUp is a Skyrunning competition born in 2013 thanks to Alberto Zaccagni, president of Team Pasturo. Alberto told us about the origins of the race and its growth, turning into an end-of-season classic in just a few years and attracting world-class champions to it. The race is supported again this year by main technical sponsor Scott, represented in this case by Nicola Gavardi, Communication Manager & Pr of Scott Italia.

About the partnership, Nicola said, “Scott carefully evaluates sponsorship projects: you have to get reliable partners who will organize a race that can be remembered. It is important that the moment a runner finishes the course he or she goes home not so much with a medal and gadgets, but with an experience. That’s part of Scott’s DNA, you can tell by the payoff ‘no shortcuts’; we’ve always got on very well with ZacUp because it best represents our philosophy.”


As always, start and finish will be held in Pasturo (LC) where there is the only paved section of the course. From the village you run uphill crossing paths, meadows, vertical stretches and scree: a wild environment, where the use of chains is essential. Once you reach Rifugio Brioschi, you can enjoy a crazy view, and then swoop down to return to Pasturo. One of the most technical races in Italy, with 27.5km of route and 2650m of elevation gain.

The competition will be held on Sunday, September 18, and registration is open: if you register before August 15, the cost will be €30.00 ( €25.00 for Fisky members), while if you do it between August 16 and September 15, the cost will be €35.00 ( €30 for Fisky members).

There will be a total prize money that amounts to € 6000.00 and prizes will be awarded to the first 15 men and the first 15 women. In addition, for this edition there will be an award of € 150.00 for the first finisher and the first female finisher, in memory of Gabriele Orlandi Arrigoni. Another prize of € 500.00 will be granted to those who will break the record in the men’s and women’s, currently held by Rwandan runner Jean Baptiste Simukeka (2:49:21) and Romanian champion Denisa Dragomir (3:12:50).

Oltre la ZacUp

The conference was also attended by Lombardy Region’s Undersecretary for Major Events Antonio Rossi, through whom we had the opportunity to learn more about the background of the race. There was also some talk about projects related to tourism on the Grigne, increased safety and signaling of the routes, volunteering and mountains.

Behind the ZacUp, in fact, there are many volunteers who work hard every day to keep ancient trails alive and use the power of sport to make people aware of the hidden beauty among the Lecco mountains. Great attention is also paid to respecting the natural environment: in fact, the race adheres to the “Io non getto i miei rifiuti” (“I don’t throw my trash”) project, immediately disqualifying anyone seen littering along the route.

Sport e beneficenza

Also this year Team Pasturo has decided to donate € 1.00 per athlete to the ProRett association; the same procedure will be carried out towards the Cooperativa Sociale Le Grigne of Primaluna, which helps disabled young people and has always been dear to Darietto Busi, a friend of the Team.

If you would like to learn more about the route, see the schedule and register you can visit the ZacUp website here.