UTMB 2019: Pablo Villa Gonzalez wins the TDS, as perfect pacing gives him comprehensive lead
- Spanish runner takes the lead after 66km and does not relinquish it, as perfect pacing gives him 13-minute lead
Pablo Villa Gonzalez won the 145km Sur les Traces des Ducs de Savoie (TDS) at the Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB) running week in 18 hours, three minutes and six seconds. The Spaniard paced the race perfectly. He was fourth at Seez, the 47km mark, but over the next three check points was third, second and second. By Cormet de Roselend at 66km, he had taken the lead and never gave it up.
The TDS is one of seven races in the famous trail racing festival in Chamonix, which attracts the best ultra runners in the world. It is the second longest of the individual races, eclipsed only by the 171km UTMB itself. The course is considered the most technical of the events.
“When I saw the signs for Chamonix [the finish line], that is when I knew I was going to win,” Villa Gonzalez said on the finish line, having built an almost 15-minute lead by the last checkpoint. He looked fresh for someone who had just run non-stop through the mountains.
The TDS used to be 121 kms, but was extended this year to 145km. The race organisers were predicting the first finisher would cross the line in 19 hours, but some of the runners were guessing the winning time would be between 17 and a half and 18 hours.
