He becomes the fifth man to go under the 20-hour mark (excluding shortened editions). Frenchman Vincent Bouillard, 31, won in Chamonix, Saturday August 31 shortly after 2 p.m., the 21e edition of the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) in 19 hours, 54 minutes and 23 seconds. Originally from Annecy, aged 31, an engineer specialising in the development of shoes for the equipment manufacturer Hoka, and relatively unknown in the world of very high-level trail running, he ran a large part of the race alone in the lead for his first participation in the UTMB.
“I have been a spectator at the UTMB since the beginning, when I was a child and young teenager, before providing assistance on the race for close friends, it was a dream for me to already participate in this race”he said after his race. Vincent Bouillard stressed the fact that he “It’s good that sport remains a leisure activity.” “I take advantage of the fact that I don’t have a contract [de sponsort] and total flexibility. I post zero things on Instagram for example and I don’t know, maybe that won’t change and I’ll continue to run for fun”he concluded.
The first pursuers, the Frenchman Baptiste Chassagne and the Ecuadorian Joaquin Lopez were close to the finish in Chamonix to complete the podium.
Vincent Bouillard had previously only run one race called « 100 miles » (about 160 km), the Kodiak Ultra Marathons last October in California, which he won. His record, however, includes victories or good placings in several other shorter races, such as the Gorge Waterfalls (United States) in 2023 (1is) or the MaXi-Race of Lake Annecy in January (5e).
A 176.4 km route including 10 km of positive elevation gain
Several big favourites, including defending champion Jim Walmsley, threw in the towel during the night. The American, who was aiming for a double in his sixth participation in the event, withdrew after about nine hours of racing and 83 kilometres due to a knee injury.
Other serious candidates for the podium in the men’s race did the same, notably the French Mathieu Blanchard, also injured, Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz, Germain Grangier as well as the Briton Tom Evans. In the women’s race, Anne-Lise Rousset also abandoned, victim of a cold early in the night. The American favorite Katie Schide is well ahead of her pursuers, the Canadian Marianne Hogan and the New Zealander Ruth Crof.
Some 2,300 competitors took part in the queen of trail races in Chamonix on Friday. The 176.4-kilometre-long course with nearly 10,000 metres of elevation gain goes around Mont Blanc with several passages in the high mountains, at an altitude of over 2,500 metres. The fastest are expected to return to the starting point in Chamonix from 2 p.m.
