2023-09-02 20:28:46
Jim Walmsley, first American to win the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc, on the finish line, in Chamonix, September 2, 2023. JEFF PACHOUD / AFP
Twenty years that the Americans have been waiting to see one of their compatriots win the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB). An incongruity, almost an affront, when the discipline was born in the United States, about fifty years ago, from the jokes of an eccentric rider, who, for lack of a mount, set off on foot in a race 100 mile (160.9 kilometer) horseback ride…
Jim Walmsley’s victory on Saturday September 2 in Chamonix – followed a few hours later by that of his compatriot Courtney Dauwalter – is the result of self-sacrifice worthy of the prestige of the Chamonix event. The 33-year-old former soldier had been waiting for him since 2017, the year of his first participation in the UTMB, the “world summit of trail running”, which consists of going around the highest alpine massif by long-distance hiking trails, i.e. 171 km for 10,000 meters of elevation gain, via France, Italy and Switzerland.
During this 2017 edition, which many have called the “race of the century”, in particular because of his presence and his staggering times (he is in particular the world record holder for the 50 miles), the native of Phoenix, Arizona, made its ambitions clear. He had led the race for a dozen hours with insolent ease. Then had ended up letting go, betrayed like many others by his stomach – digestive problems are the first cause of abandonment in most ultra-trails.
After letting the Savoyard François D’Haene slip away to his third victory, he settled for a fifth place, far from his hopes. The disappointment was even more bitter the following year since his second participation ended in retirement, a scenario that repeated itself in 2021. And in 2022, the story of 2017 was almost identically repeated, with a fourth place.
“This victory is very emotional”
The men’s prize list of the race remained devoid of any American surname, despite the long list of contenders, which made the experts say that the very brittle profile of the UTMB was not compatible with the qualities and habits acquired in the sierras. California or Colorado. To finally register his name there, Jim Walmsley therefore came to settle in 2022 with arms, luggage and wife in Arêches-Beaufort (Savoie), not far from Mont Blanc, to acquire a more mountainous footing there and benefit from sound advice. of the quadruple winner of the UTMB, his friend and neighbor François D’Haene.
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