UTMB 2019: Ruth Croft feels ‘horrible’ as she cruises to OCC win by going back to basics
- The New Zealand runner sets an aggressive pace to put pressure on her competition, even though she is suffering from a tough travelling schedule
“I felt horrible,” the New Zealander said. “I haven’t been fresh since Sierre Zinal (31km race, August 11). Last year, I felt good from start to finish [on the OCC]. You can enjoy it more. But for the first 19km, I just felt horrible.”
The OCC is the shortest of the major races at the UTMB running festival, which happens annually in France. It attracts some of the best runners in the world and concludes with the 171km UTMB itself.
Croft added that the atmosphere and support on the trail helped her enjoy it despite suffering. She put her slump down to a lot of travel recently and the accumulation of many races. This season, she has come second in the 44km Trail World Championships and won the 42km Marathon du Mont Blanc.
Despite being off her best, Croft decided to put pressure on Sheila Aviles Castan, who came third at the Trail World Championships. Croft saw the Spaniard as a threat, but knew that 55km was the longest she had run to date.
“I thought she was the strongest, I hoped she would try and stick with me and blow up,” Croft said. It worked, and Castan dropped out at 35km. “I knew the course, I was going out hard but running within myself.