Understanding the Super League (TSSL)

As many of you will know, the Trail Series® Super League (TSSL) is a revitalised format of the original format that kickstarted the short course trail running scene in South Africa back in 2008; and has been designed to bring a fresh, competitive, and inclusive approach to competition. The TSSL races span the year with carefully selected races, providing greater flexibility and opportunities for runners of all ages and abilities - a chance for both competitive runners and casual enthusiasts to thrive – with more often than not the TSSL Champions not being the same as individual race winners.

Key Features of the TSSL

1. Super League in each distance grouping

There is a Super League competition in each of the three distances For example, all the Short races combined create the Short Course Super League – likewise for the Long and XL distances.
Short courses: Ideal for beginners and younger participants (with three Junior categories from 6-17yrs).
Long courses: Typically 10-12 km, suited for more experienced trail runners.
XL routes: Taking careful aim at the 20 km mark, the XL is perfect for those training for longer-distance events.

2. The TSSL scoring System:

Points are allocated on your overall position at the finish line – starting with 400 points for the win, and one less for every place behind. If you don’t race, you get zero points for that race.
Points for each of the four races are added together, and the runner with the most points wins.
Therefore, to be competitive in the TSSL rankings, participants must complete all races within their chosen distance.
In the event of a tie on points, the winner will be determined by cumulative race times across all events.
No discards. Unlike the traditional Trail Series®, where your worst score could be discarded, the TSSL requires consistency across all events to achieve a high ranking. This system encourages & rewards dedication and consistency.

3. Categories & prizes

There are age and gender categories for each collective Super League, provided there are five or more finishers of three or more races.
With the exception of the three Junior categories in the Short course, there are no category prizes per race – only top three men’s and ladies over the line. The category results do however show online per race.
You are automatically placed in your age category based on your date of birth/ID, and is based on your age on the 31 December of the year of competition.
Medals are awarded at every race.

With thanks to FINISH TIME for their support in creating the results engine that calculates the TSSL in the background!