Kilian Jornet returns to the Himalayas this 2023

BarcelonaKilian Jornet has made public his plans for this 2023, which basically consist of participating in a single test, the Sierre-Zinal, and returning to the Himalayas in the spring. “This winter we will stay at home and I will go mountaineering in the area. In the spring, we want to go to the Himalayas with the girls. I have many projects, but it will depend on the weather conditions. We will be in a lodge and, if there is good weather on some great peak, we will go there. It will be a mountaineering project,” said the athlete from Ceret.

For now, and according to the calendar published by his NNormal team, the intention is to compete exclusively in the Sierre-Zinal, the annual mountain race that will be held this year on August 12 in Switzerland, and which he has already won in ten occasions Jornet, however, is considering participating in a long-distance race towards the end of the season, although he has not specified more details about the project. Of course, it won’t be in the Ultra Trail of Mont Blanc, a race he won last year.

In the Himalayas, Jornet could attempt the challenge he failed to achieve in 2021: to climb Everest by the west ridge without oxygen and alone. This route, which has only been conquered 16 times since the first ascent, almost 60 years ago, has never been done alone and only once without oxygen, in 1986. This challenge was already in the mind of mountaineer Ueli Steck, who died in 2017 while preparing this new Everest climbing record.

The other calendars

In addition, the calendar of the rest of the runners of the NNormal team has also been known. Emelie Forsberg will play the World Cup trail, the Sierre-Zinal and the OCC (if classified). Dakota Jones will be in the Transvulcania, Western States, the CCC (if he qualifies) and the JFK 50 Miles.

For his part, Tòfol Castanyer will do the Barcelona Marathon, the Camí de Cavalls 180 km, the Mont Blanc Marathon, the Sierre-Zinal and the UTMB TDS. Alejandro Forcades will be in the Zegama, Peyton Thomas in the Sierre-Zinal and the CCC of the UTMB (if classified) and Allie Ostrander in the Sierre-Zinal, among others.