UTMB 2018: Xavier Thevenard wins Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc 2018, while Kilian Jornet is stung by bee and others fall to cold
An unknown Romanian comes second and masters runners take top three for the women, as pre-race favourites burn out, slip or suffer allergic reactions
![The top three men at UTMB. Xavier Thevenard [centre] has won twice before, but Robert Hajnal [left] and Jordi Gamito were outsiders at best. Photo: UTMB](https://cdn.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/styles/1200x800/public/images/methode/2018/09/03/96077d18-af24-11e8-b224-884456d4cde1_1280x720_174334.jpg?itok=zksaek0o)
This year’s line-up at the 170-kilometre Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB) was touted as one of the strongest – but the supposed duel between Spanish legend Kilian Jornet and American hotshot Jim Walmsley never happened, while superstars such as Mimi Kotka and Magdalena Boulet were felled by injuries.
Almost none of the big names, who before the race basked in the light of the cameras and churned out autographs, even finished.
The exception was diminutive Frenchman Xavier Thevenard, who quietly coasted to his third UTMB win, in 20 hours 44 minutes and 16 seconds. An unknown Romanian, Robert Hajnal was in second in 21:31:37, with Spain’s Jordi Gamito third in 21:57:01.
Thevenard is a local, and the inhabitants of this mountainous Savoy region, can feel it in their gut when humans are not being humble enough in the mountains. Xavier turned his back on publicity and made no predictions before the UTMB.
He was right – the irate Mont Blanc Massif threw foul weather at the runners. The temperatures on the high ground dropped to minus 10 degrees Celsius, with low cloud, rain and high winds. The trails became skating rinks. Not a day to take liberties on the course.