Kilian Jornet races to record-breaking win in the French Alps

by Stephen Granger

Fourteen years after winning Ultra-trail Mont Blanc for the first time, Kilian Jornet recorded his fourth win, enhancing his reputation as the ‘greatest of all time’ with a record-breaking victory in the 171km circumnavigation of Mont Blanc over the weekend (Saturday 27 August).

And four years after a bee-sting forced Jornet, who now competes in the colours of his new sportswear team Nnormal, to abandon the race, the 34-year old Catalan successfully combatted the sting of American Jim Walmsley, crossing the finish line in Chamonix in 19 hrs 49 min 30 sec – thirty minutes inside his compatriot Pau Capell’s 2019 previous record for the current ‘extended’ course and 22 minutes faster than French ultra-distance star Francois D’Haene’s time for the original shorter version.

Salomon’s French-Canadian Mathieu Blanchard, who placed fourth at last year’s Ultra-trail Cape Town 100km, ran the race of his life to finish second to Jornet, just 5 min 20 sec in arrears, also well inside the previous course record.

The race was billed as a clash of the titans between Jornet, veteran of almost two decades of trail competition, and three UTMB wins, and Walmsley (Hoka), who although just two years Jornet’s junior, is relatively new to the discipline and without a win at Chamonix.

Determined to set that record right, Walmsley moved to the French Alps in May with his wife Jess Brazeau, top twenty-five finisher in Thursday’s OCC 55km, in order to train specifically for the UTMB. The 2021 Ultra-trail Cape Town winner, Walmsley, broke clear of Jornet shortly before the halfway mark in Courmeyer in Italy.

Walmsley held a 14-minute advantage over Jornet at the exquisite turquoise Champex Lac, 126km into the race and just over a marathon left to go, looking for all the world a winner, but then he slowed dramatically and was just six minutes ahead five kilometres further on and had surrendered his lead by the time the athletes reached La Giete 138km into the race.

There would be no return as Walmsley limped through the free-grazing cows on the long ascent up Alpage de Bovine and just 8 km on Walmsley was 25 minutes behind Jornet and Blanchard, who were running together at the head of the race.

It was Montreal-based Blanchard who proved Jornet’s most serious rival and the two were still together leaving the aid station at Vallorcine, just 18km from the finish. But Jornet, who had suffered COVID symptoms in the week prior to the race, summoned his strength for the last time to break from Blanchard on the final ascent to La Tete Aux Vents and hold on down the final descent to Chamonix.

English athlete, Tom Evans (adidas TERREX), ran with American Zach Miller (North Face) in third and fourth positions for much of the race, before he went on his own in the final quarter. Overtaking Walmsley on the climb to La Tete Aux Vents, Evans athlete finished strongly to claim third in 20:34:25, with Walmsley taking fourth ahead of Miller.

American Katie Schide , currently resident in France, proved unstoppable in the women’s contest, racing to a memorable victory over Salomon’s Marianne Hogan of Canada. The North Face athlete has won ultra-distance races around the planet, but her win at UTMB was by far the biggest of her career. Schide crossed the line in 23 hrs 15 min 12 sec to win by a yawning margin of 1 hr 16 min, her time 45 minutes outside Courtney Dauwalter’s record-breaking win last year.

Schide began the race at express pace, soon putting distance between herself and her rivals, and arriving at the half-way point at Courmeyer in Italy 22 minutes ahead of Hogan and over an hour ahead of third-placed Audrey Tanguy of France. But the strong-running Hogan began to close the gap and took the lead shortly after cresting the Grand Col Ferret 102km into the race.

Struggling with her nutrition, Schide found help in a cheese sandwich and grew stronger on the climb to La Giete, as Hogan paid for her strong surge. Schide re-took the lead 138km into the race and was never again headed as she finished strongly in triumph.

Africans had mixed fortunes in the festival of UTMB races during the week, with adidas TERREX athlete Toni McCann’s excellent 5^th place in the OCC 55km on Thursday and Meg Mackenzie’s (North Face) 8^th place in the CCC 100km on Friday the stand-outs.  Both athletes ran conservatively, moving up from outside the top ten to finish strongly.

McCann recorded the fastest split on the day for women on the final 6km run-in to the finish at Chamonix to make up one position to claim 5^th, improving substantially on last year’s 14^th. Although American Erin Clark (Hoka) robbed Mackenzie of 7^th place, overtaking her with just 200m to run, Mackenzie had an impressive race, improving both her position and time from last year’s run.                                          

Eritrean Petru Mamu continued to show good form following his 4^th in the 31km Sierre-Zinal, leading the OCC field through halfway, shortly past the town of Trient, before he started to experience difficulties and fell out of contention. Spanish athlete Manuel Merillas (Scarpa) swept past to open a lead he held to the finish. Spanish athlete Sheila Aviles of adidas TERREX ran a fearless race to win the OCC title ahead of her compatriot, Nuria Gil (Salomon).