“Analyze and start again”, after a difficult summer, ultra-trail runner Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz ready to do battle

After two withdrawals from major ultra-trail races this summer, Haut-Savoyard Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz has taken a step back from the competition in recent weeks. In his sights, the 2025 season which he wishes to once again devote to long distances.

He experienced the joy of victory, before facing failure and the feeling of abandonment. In 2023, ultra-trailer Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz won two of the most beautiful races in the world: the difficult and demanding Hardrock 100 in the United States, then the Diagonale des Fous on Reunion Island. In 2024, he was therefore expected on the starting lines. But nothing went as planned.

After a third place in the MaxiRace, at home on the shores of Lake Annecy, the Haut-Savoyard positioned himself among the favorites for the UTMB, the toughest event in the ultra-trail around Mont Blanc. Exhausted and without strength, he was forced to retire halfway through the race. Rebelote two months later, last October, on the “Diag”.

“In 2023, I experienced the highest. It was an almost perfect season. This year was a little more complicatedhe tells us on the banks of Saint-Jorioz. Obviously, we dream of remaining at the highest level each time with the best possible performance. But that’s the life of a top athlete. I’ve had some tough years where I had injuries and this year there were none. That’s already a good point. Then, I tried to understand why I missed events and why I was tired. We have to analyze that and start fresh.”

With hindsight and a successful end to the season, Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz explains the reasons for this sporting failure through a happy event: “Clearly, it’s the arrival of a second child in the family cocoon, the consequences of which I had underestimated. It’s a lot of daily management, which is normal for a family. But when, Besides that, we want to do 15 to 20 hours of training per week, that doesn’t leave much time to rest properly and perform well.”

During the UTMB, several big names in the discipline dropped out. The Haute-Savoie trail runner admits: he was not in the best mood and, all the same, decided to play his best. “I could have done these competitions telling myself that I was going to take one or two hours more to secure a finish line. But that didn’t really interest me. I wanted to play with the front of the race . It didn’t happen. It’s like that, it’s not very serious.”he reassures himself.

After the Diagonale des Fous, Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz therefore put the competitions on hold, as well as the sport for two weeks. Since then, he has resumed some training alongside his work as a physiotherapist. A life divided into two, which allows him to find his balance: “I don’t think about sport all day. When I’m at the office, it’s another facet of my professional career. It’s important for afterwards. High-level sport is a part of my life, but I know it won’t last until I’m 60.”

Indoor cycling, jogging on the banks of the lake… Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz is in his off-season, waiting for the first snowflakes. From the start of winter, he will, like many trail runners, take up ski touring: “It’s too complicated for my body to run all year round. It’s not even a desire. We live in the mountains and with the seasons. There is snow and I like to take advantage of it, coming from Alpine skiing. It’s part of my balance.”

After the winter, Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz will return to long distances with as much desire as ever. “I think I’m in my best years for long distance running. Last year confirmed that. I did two 100 miles [l’équivalent de 160 km, NDLR] that I was able to win. These were two of the biggest races in the world. So yes, I am in the period of my career where I will be moving more and more towards these distances. These are the ones that suit me best and I have enough experience today”, he explains, looking for revenge.