Western States 2026 Recap: CTS Athletes Jennifer Lichter and Riley Brady Finish 1-2

Nine CTS Athletes finish in Top 10 across Men’s and Women’s races

(Colorado Springs, CO – June 29, 2026) – Jennifer Lichter (USA) and Riley Brady (USA) finished first and second, respectively, at the 2026 Western States Endurance Run on June 27-28. Lichter set a new course record in 15:28:06 in her debut 100-mile running race, beating Courtney Duwaulter’s previous Western States course record of 15:29:33. Brady finished in 15:42:14, cutting nearly 5 hours off their previous best time on the famous course from Olympic Valley to Auburn, California. In the Men’s race, CTS Coaches worked with five of the top ten finishers: Ryan Montgomery (M3), Adam Peterman (M6), Jeff Mogavero (M7), Canyon Woodward (M8), and Will Murray (M9).

Quick Highlights:

• Jennifer Lichter won WSER in her first-ever 100-mile race and set a new course record.
• Riley Brady’s 15:42:14 finish was the third fastest ever.
• Ryan Montgomery’s third place finish was the third fastest Male Finish Time ever.
• CTS Athletes represented 50% of the Male Top 10 and 40% of the Female Top 10.
• Nine CTS Athletes working with four different CTS Coaches finished in the Top 10 across Men’s and Women’s races.
• CTS Athletes hold 5 of the Top 10 Fastest Female Finish Times

CTS Athlete Results Illustrate Breadth of Coaching Expertise

The strength of CTS Ultrarunning comes from recruiting, educating, and mentoring top coaches. As evidence of this, the nine athletes who finished top 10 across the male and female fields worked with four different coaches. CTS Ultrarunning Pro Coach John Fitzgerald had the best record, working with Lichter (F1), Peterman (M6), Mogavero (M7), and Murray (M9). Riley Brady (F2) works with CTS Ultrarunning Senior Coach Adam Ferdinandson. Montgomery (M3), Fuhzao Xiang (F7) and Woodward (M8) work with CTS Ultrarunning Head Coach Jason Koop. Hannah Allgood (F10) works with CTS Ultrarunning Pro Coach Cliff Pittman.

CTS Coaching Development Director, Cliff Pittman, commented, “As a company, we are fortunate to work with amazing athletes. Our coaches are heavily invested in their athletes’ goals and preparing those athletes to achieve their goals. The results speak for themselves: CTS athletes made up 50% of the Men’s Top 10 and 40% of the Women’s. As the CTS Coaching Development Director, I think I’m most proud of the fact that four different coaches guided CTS Athletes to Top 10 finishes, and that CTS coached 7% of the entire elite field.”

Jason Koop, CTS Ultrarunning Head Coach, highlighted the progression of CTS Athlete results at Western States. “CTS has always been about creating systems that develop repeatable success. I was fortunate to coach a podium sweep in the women’s field in 2024 with Katie Schide, Fuzhou Xiang, and Eszter Csillag. We followed that up by creating High Performance Teams around elite runners, and in 2025 Abby Hall and Fuhzao went 1-2 and we had more CTS Athletes in the top 10 in the Men’s and Women’s races. In 2026, the important thing for me is that the system we built helped four CTS Coaches achieve even greater results for our athletes.”

Comments from CTS Coaches

About their athletes’ performances, CTS Coaches had the following comments:

After coaching Jennifer Lichter to the win and course record, John Fitzgerald commented, “A win and three top-10 finishes was a dream result, but not beyond our expectations going into States. With the athletes’ level of commitment, success was never in doubt. They trusted the work they’d put in. Everyone ran with courage and self-belief and raced their own races all day. The plan for everyone was to run steady and controlled early, then be ready to push when it mattered. That’s what attitude and execution look like in 100-mile races.”

Coach Adam Ferdinandson on Riley Brady’s performance: “Riley shows up to their training each day with an impressive level of detail and intention. It’s no accident they had such a great day. Second place in the third fastest time in history is a testament to Riley’s work ethic, fortitude, and ability to execute when it really counts.”

Coach Cliff Pittman on Hannah Allgood’s performance: “Hannah worked through some challenges this year and put her mental resilience on full display. She fought her way into the fastest Top 10 in WSER history by passing someone with a little over a mile to the finish. Her training and mental toughness led to nearly a 50-minute PR on the WSER course.”

CTS Athletes Hold Five Out Of Ten Best Female WSER Performances Ever

As of 2026, CTS Athletes Jennifer Lichter, Riley Brady, Katie Schide, and Fuzhao Xiang hold five of the top 10 fastest finishes at Western States. Ryan Montgomery’s 13:53:55 finish in 2026 is the third fastest Male Western States finish time on record.

Great Efforts By CTS Athletes Throughout The Field

Twenty-one of the 25 CTS Athletes who started the 2026 Western States Endurance Run reached the finish line before the 30-hour cutoff to record an official finishing time. CTS Athlete finishers, their placings, and coaches are listed below.

CTS Leads The Way With Professional Race Support

CTS mobilized 19 coaches and staff to provide professional-level race support for 25 athletes competing in the 2026 Western States Endurance Run. With athletes spread throughout the field, this meant staffing multiple aid stations simultaneously and shifting coaches so they could interface with their elite athletes at multiple points along the course.