UTMB OCC: Blandine L’Hirondel and Jonathan Albon claim breathtaking 55km victories
- L’Hirondel smashes women’s record on her way to 20th place
- Albon emerges victorious in ‘Battle of the Britons’
The OCC, which starts in Switzerland and finishes in France, is known as a “hard and fast” event favoured by speedy runners. The racecourse consists of three major climbs, and it is on the last one – to the ski resort of La Flegere, the race is often decided. The 2021 edition was no exception.
The absence of Chinese runners did not diminish the competitiveness of the race, especially in the male category, where international marathoners, obstacle course world champions, trail running and sky running world champions were pitched against each other.
Former USA collegiate track and road star Hayden Hawks, who won the CCC in 2017, told the Post before the race: “It’s very competitive – with Robbie Simpson, Remi Bonnet, Jonathan Albon, Ruy Ueda, Nicolas Martin ... We all have different running backgrounds and it will be interesting to see who comes out on top.”
True to expectations, the runners went off at a blistering pace, storming up the first major climb, La Bovine.
L’Hirondel, the 2019 world trail running champion, went off with particular ferocity, and soon it became apparent that the Frenchwoman was not out only to win wire-to-wire, but to beat the course record.
At halfway, L’Hirondel had built a 14-minute lead on her compatriot Mathilde Sagnes and was five minutes under the course record of five hours and 49 minutes set by New Zealand’s Ruth Croft in 2019.
In the men’s race, a leading pack quickly formed, with seconds separating Hawks, Switzerland’s Bonnet, Frenchmen Martin and Kevin Vermuelen and Britons Simpson and Albon.
By the halfway mark, the two Britons started to pull away and it became a two-horse race between Simpson, a 2:14 marathoner and Commonwealth Games bronze medallist, and his compatriot Albon, a former world sky running, trail running and obstacle course champion.
Asia’s best hope, Ueda from Japan, hung on in the top 10 but began to fade eventually slipping out of top-20 in the closing stages.
Before the start, Ueda said the pandemic had affected his preparation for racing longer distances.
“I haven’t been running ultra-distance lately, so my endurance has decreased. This time I want to enjoy my first UTMB race in a while without worrying about the ranking,” Ueda said.
In the closing stages of the race, the leader Simpson was anxiously looking over his shoulder in the Battle of Britons as he approached the final climb to La Flegere.
Albon, just seconds behind him, was quickly catching Simpson, and overtook him in a desperate battle to the top of La Flegere.
The eight-kilometre descent to Chamonix is steep and scattered with exposed roots and rocks. Still, Albon went hell for leather on the descent, with Simpson trying to close the gap, but it was in vain.
Albon took the win in 5:02, beating the racecourse record by 17 minutes. Simpson was two minutes behind and Petter Engdahl of Sweden third in 5:08.
L’Hirondel, who led from the gun, finished 20th overall and broke the women’s course record by more than five minutes, finishing in 5:45.
Sagnes was second in 6:07 and New Zealand’s Caitlin Fielder third, just three minutes behind.
The upcoming 101km CCC race promises to be even more competitive.
