Natalia Fischer is the new number 1 in the UCI XCM ranking

Natalia Fischer continues to write one of the best seasons of her career. The Málaga runner from Extremadura-Ecopilas has reached number 1 in the UCI XCM world ranking (marathon) after the third event of the HERO UCI Marathon World Cup held in Naturland-Andorra, confirming the extraordinary level of consistency she has shown throughout 2026.

Consistency Leads Natalia Fischer to Top the XCM World Ranking

At 32 years old, Fischer has made consistency her main weapon. So far this season, she has participated in 11 competitions with an almost unbeatable record: nine victories and three second places. These results allow her to lead the world ranking with 1,730 points, ahead of Swiss Anna Weinbeer (1,570) and Dutch Rosa van Doorn (1,486).

Interestingly, the results that have had the most weight in her rise to number one in the world have not been her victories, but the three second places she achieved in the XCM World Cup events held so far. Fischer was second in Costa Blanca, repeated the position in Capoliveri, and this past weekend added another podium in Naturland-Andorra, the three highest-scoring races on the international calendar.

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In the Andorran event, the reigning champion of Spain once again demonstrated her enormous consistency in long-distance racing. On a course of 67 kilometers and more than 2,200 meters of positive elevation gain, divided into three laps of a demanding mountain circuit, Fischer crossed the finish line in second place with a time of 3:35:00. The victory went to Anna Weinbeer (3:34:08), while Italian Claudia Peretti completed the podium with 3:36:08.

Fischer's trajectory in recent years largely explains this leap to the world lead. After two intense seasons balancing XCO and XCM, the Málaga native decided in 2024 to focus exclusively on the marathon discipline, a discipline that perfectly fits her characteristics and in which she has achieved her greatest successes, including her two European championship titles.

Her commitment received a new boost in 2025 with her incorporation into Extremadura-Ecopilas, a project that has continued to grow to become one of the international references in marathon racing. In 2026, moreover, Fischer has oriented much of her calendar towards the new format of the XCM World Cup promoted by HERO, a decision that is yielding immediate results.

The world lead represents a new milestone for a runner who has been among the best specialists on the planet for years but had never before managed to top the UCI ranking in the discipline. It also marks a historic moment for Extremadura-Ecopilas, which for the first time has a runner at the top of the world marathon ranking.

With three World Cup events already held and several important dates still ahead, Fischer now faces the challenge of defending a position she has conquered thanks to a combination of victories, consistency, and constant presence on the podiums of the most important races on the international calendar.