Press release
January 29, 2026
The partnership aims to enhance safety and create a safety conscious mindset among the trail running community. For the 2026 season, RECCO reflectors will be part of the mandatory gear list for six races:
“These races push athletes into extraordinary and remote terrain, and this partnership reinforces the importance of searchability and preparedness,” says Fredrik Steinwall, CEO at RECCO. “By combining mandatory RECCO reflectors with safety education, we aim to support organizers, rescue teams, and runners in better managing risk in demanding mountain environments.”
Beyond mandatory equipment requirements, the partnership includes online and on-site safety education initiatives, aimed at increasing awareness among athletes, event organizers, media, and the wider trail running community. Through these activations, RECCO and Skyrunner® World Series seek to promote preparedness, responsibility, and informed decision-making in mountain environments.
“We’re proud to partner with RECCO, a brand that shares our commitment to athlete safety and innovation in the mountains. Their proven rescue technology are a valuable addition to skyrunning, supporting both elite athletes and race organizers in demanding alpine environments, says Etienne Rodriguez, Managing Director “As we look ahead to the 2026 Merrell Skyrunner® World Series circuit, this collaboration strengthens our ongoing efforts to support skyrunning at the highest level while promoting greater awareness of safety in alpine environments.”
The RECCO system is a two part system consisting of a search detector and a reflector. The detector is used by professional rescue teams globally, while the reflector is integrated into apparel, shoes, backpacks, helmets and other equipment, which makes the wearer searchable in case of an emergency. The reflector can also be bought and applied as a stand-alone product to attach to a backpack, helmet or be worn as a belt.
Today, handheld detectors are a standard tool for avalanche rescue globally. The past decade, the system has evolved from a winter system to a year round search system with the addition of a helicopter mounted detector, based on the same technology. This makes it possible to locate missing trail runners, hikers, mountain bikers and mountaineers across all seasons. The RECCO SAR helicopter detector is developed to search large areas, covering a square kilometer in six minutes. Along with helping reduce search times for missing people, the helicopter-based detector can reduce the time and risk exposure for rescue workers during missions.
The RECCO SAR helicopter detector network continues to grow with more and more placements being added. Currently, there are 45 RECCO SAR Helicopter Detectors globally, with 14 located in North America, 28 units deployed across Europe, one in Nepal and two in New Zealand.
