on Strava, these “fierce” hunt records (KOM) at all costs

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From jogger to ultra-trailer, from Sunday cyclist to Tadej Pogačar, on Stravaeveryone can find something useful in the application.

Among its functions, one is quite popular: the KOMspour King of the Mountainand its feminine counterpart, the QOM, Queen of the Mountain.

Concretely, it involves ranking among other athletes on a more or less long section of road, a segment, designed by the users. It can go from a sprint to climbing a pass, that's the difference.

You get a crown if you are first, a cup with your place, if you are in the Top 10. So far, nothing abnormal, a game, among others.

More some have made it a specialtya true sporting quest. Way to show your performance since the ranking is completely public.

“It’s a game,” laughs Marc, 53, president of a cycling club in Moselle. “It’s a way of training. »

Sometimes I'll do a shorter KOM or a longer one depending on my training.

Some training

It must be said that the cyclist is not a simple cycle tourist either: 13,000 km per year, five outings per week, and a title of French team time trial champion (45-60 year old category). It's pedaling hard! Result ? 300 KOM to his credit.

All the people, only men, that we interviewed, are nevertheless seasoned athletes. Two triathletes, a cyclist and a runner who all have one thing in common: loving to climb the Strava rankings.

In their training and for the pleasure of obtaining a virtual reward, everyone finds an interest in chasing a KOM.

Romain, a triathlete from Quiberon, sees this “as a goal”. ” It is a bit like a coach, virtual. To progress, you also have to train with something better than yourself,” believes this 39-year-old Breton, who plays sport above all to take part in races.

This allows you to go beyond your limits: to say to yourself “I’m going for third in the rankings. Rather than a minute, I'll take 45 seconds.”

Strava encourages people to get a KOM

But training sessions are not the only drivers for achieving KOMs. A little addictive side, linked to the application itself.

“Strava tells you when you are two seconds from the KOM, so you want to do it again,” points out Éric, a 61-year-old Norman, intensive user. “Everything is done to go quickly. »

Simon, a 26-year-old Parisian, confirms. While jogging, the runner frequently receives a notification from Strava telling him that he is in the ranking of a segment.

So at that moment, I know there is a segment, I look at the time of the first, and I say to myself “ok, tomorrow I'm going back and trying to get a KOM”.

A story of competition

Well, there is a side of competition and guilty pleasure in seeking a record, climbing as high as possible in a ranking and why not, winning the Holy Grail.

“It pushes you into a corner, encourages you to start again. I eagerly wait to know if I managed to be in the top ten of a segment,” admits Eric, aware that his use of Strava is perhaps not suitable for everyone.

Romain particularly appreciates, when he arrives in a new destination, discovering new segments to go running.

What's fun is going to beat the professional athletes who don't have the KOM but are in the rankings.

« This is also why I run», agrees Simon. “These kinds of small challenges really resonate with me because I really have a competitive spirit. »

Marc admits it to us while laughing on the phone: “If someone steals a KOM from me, the next time I go out, I’m going to try to get it back.” But the fifty-year-old, whose life is punctuated by cycling, is trying to challenge himself.

“Some KOMs that I took in 2017, I have improved them since,” he rejoices. Evidence of progression.

Listen to your body

Romain, a member of a triathlon club, notes that, even in the KOM, “the level is rising”. Nutrition, equipment, training are in fact more and more advanced, even at an amateur level.

Pushing performance ever further. But the 39-year-old Breton assures us, “even if it allows you to surpass yourself, there are people who are relentless. And me, I'm not going to destroy myself for a KOM
. » The competitive spirit at its limits: the human body.

Questioned by actu.fr on high-intensity efforts that are too repeated, Blaise Dubois, physiotherapist and founder of La Clinique du Coureur, recalls that it is “very traumatic for the body” to go for KOMs.

Running faster and maximizing your performance can cause injuries. Some people get exhausted and tired.

Tendinitis, sprain, fractures are on the program. Romain, who is followed in a club, confirms that he does not do more than two high-intensity outings out of the six weekly sessions.

If going for KOMs is rewarding, even addictive, you must remember to listen to yourself and not push too hard. Otherwise, injury guaranteed.

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