Leaving the seaside village of Porto Moniz at midnight on Saturday, April 27, runners within the 2024 Madeira Island Extremely-Path (MIUT) set off from northwest Madeira on their 115-kilometer (72 miles) run throughout the small Portuguese island within the Atlantic Ocean. When all was stated and achieved, Martina Valmassoi (Italy) and Ben Dhiman (U.S., lives in Andorra) took residence the ladies’s and males’s victories.
However there was loads of panorama and racing in between.
With 7,200 meters (23,600 toes) of climbing, the route is technical, steep, and demanding. Beginning at sea stage and ending on the far jap finish of the island at Machico, again at sea stage once more, runners journey over numerous mountains, together with the route’s excessive level, Pico Ruivo at 1,800 meters (5,900 toes). 1000’s of stairs are additionally notorious on this race course, which provides a novel component to the racing expertise. The route treats runners to beautiful views of massive mountains, the ocean, and every little thing in between.
The 2024 Madeira Island Extremely-Path 115k getting underway. Picture: MIUT/João M Faria
Whereas final yr’s race was much less aggressive than different editions, this yr promised to serve up quick racing on the ladies’s facet with a listing of starters together with Anne-Lise Rousset Séguret (France), Martina Valmassoi (Italy), Claire Bannwarth (France), and Maite Maiora (Spain), who all had the potential to combine it up on the entrance of the race.
On the boys’s facet, the likes of Miguel Arsénio (Portugal), Ben Dhiman (U.S., lives in Andorra), Arthur Joyeux-Bouillon (France), and Sebastian Krogvig (Norway) promised a present.
Final yr’s French sweep of the occasion was to not be repeated with new faces dominating the rostrum this version. On the boys’s facet, Dhiman, who positioned third on the 2023 Les Templiers, ran close to the entrance of the race for its entirety and pulled away from the remainder of the sphere after the excessive level, 75 kilometers into the race, to achieve the end line first.
The highest 2 of the ladies’s race stayed tight, and the hole between Valmassoi and Rousset didn’t open up till properly into the second half. Valmassoi, the 2022 TDS winner, finally broke the tape at Machico first in a time of 16:14:10.
Learn on for the in-depth race story.
2024 Madeira Island Extremely-Path Girls’s Race
Whereas on paper, plenty of names had been vying for the highest spot within the ladies’s race, it ended as a duel between Italy’s Martina Valmassoi and France’s Anne-Lise Rousset Séguret. After working inside minutes of one another for almost all of the race and opening up a seemingly insurmountable hole on the remainder of the sphere, it was Valmassoi who reached the oceanside at Machico first in a time of 16:14:10. Rousset was second with a time of 16:28:27, and Maite Maiora of Spain rounded out the rostrum with a time of 17:12:22.
Rousset was the primary to make her intentions for the race often known as she went straight to the entrance and created a virtually 2-minute hole on the remainder of the sphere simply 22 kilometers into the race. Valmassoi together with Fiona Porte (France), Sandra Sevillano (Spain), Maiora, and Aroa Sío (Spain) adopted to make up the highest 5 within the early hours of racing. Because the racers traversed the rugged mountains of Madeira, it turned clear that it was shaping as much as be a 2-woman race between Rousset and Valmassoi. Simply 30k in, they’d stretched the hole to third-place Maiora to greater than quarter-hour.
Anne-Lise Rousset Seguret protecting kilometers at night time within the rain. Picture: MIUT/João M Faria
By the point the ladies reached the course excessive level at Pico Ruivo, practically 75k into the race, the hole between the highest 2, Valmassoi and Rousset, who had been nonetheless shut to one another, and third-place Maiora was as much as half-hour. Claire Bannwarth of France was one other half-hour again in fourth, with Sío in fifth simply 30 seconds behind her.
From Pico Ruivo, at an elevation of 1,800 meters, it’s a protracted 40k downhill run to the ocean, with loads of climbs included to maintain issues attention-grabbing. As the ladies headed towards the ocean, Valmassoi elevated the 3-minute lead she held on Rousset as the two had crossed over the course excessive level. By Chão da Lagoa on the 84k mark, the hole was as much as about 7 minutes.
In the meantime, Maiora saved tempo with the lead duo and maintained the 30-minute hole as much as second. Behind her, Bannwarth and Sío continued to run close to one another a further 35 minutes in arrears.
Valmassoi was first to Machico, holding on to a 14-minute hole over second-place Rousset. Maiora rounded out the rostrum in a time of 17:12:22.
Claire Bannwarth and Aroa Sio completed fourth and fifth respectively, with instances of 17:50:24 and 18:14:53.
Martina Valmassoi cruising on her strategy to successful the 2024 Madeira Island Extremely-Path 115k. Picture: MIUT/João M Faria
2024 Madeira Island Extremely-Path Girls’s Outcomes
- Martina Valmassoi (Italy) -16:14:10
- Anne-Lise Rousset Séguret (France) – 16:28:27
- Maite Maiora (Spain) – 17:12:22
- Claire Bannwarth (France) – 17:50:24
- Aroa Sío (Spain) – 18:14:53
- Mélanie Delasoie (Switzerland) – 18:26:57
- Robyn Cassidy (U.Ok.) – 18:33:53
- Geneviève Asselin-Demers (Canada) – 18:42:54
- Marie Janod (France) – 18:42:55
- Celia Neto (Portugal) – 19:49:37
2024 Madeira Island Extremely-Path Males’s Race
Whereas there was loads of robust racing on the entrance finish of the race within the early hours of the occasion, it was finally Ben Dhiman, from the U.S. however who lives in Andorra, who reached the ocean at Machico first in a time of 13:52:46. He was adopted by Norway’s Sebastian Krogvig and France’s Martin Kern who completed in 14:12:54 and 14:15:23, respectively. Fourth place Anthony Costa of France was simply 17 seconds behind. The highest 4 males established themselves on the entrance at Pico de Ruivo, the excessive level of the race at about 75k, and by no means seemed again.
Early on within the occasion, all the anticipated high names featured on the pointy finish of the race, together with Miguel Arsénio (Portugal), Arthur Joyeux-Bouillon (France), Luís Fernandes (Portugal), Dhiman, Jeff Mogavero (U.S.), Krogvig, and Kern. This lead group was inside minutes of one another for the primary 20k of rugged Madeira mountains.
Dhiman and Arsenio gave the impression to be on a mission to push the tempo early on within the race and ran in shut proximity to one another till Estanquinhos, 33k into the race. From there, it appeared just like the racing was correctly on, with the 2 of them altering leads over the following 30k.
Sebastian Krogvig getting it achieved on the best way to inserting second. Picture: MIUT/João M Faria
Their tempo opened up a big hole on the remainder of the sphere. After 48k of racing, the trio of Krogvig, Kern, and Mogavero had been shut collectively coming into the Encumeada checkpoint, with the time hole between them below a minute as they battled for third place on the bottom. Their hole to the entrance 2 leaders was practically 10 minutes just below midway into the race. Brian Culmo (U.S.), Francesco Cucco (Italy), and Costa adopted the highest 5, one other 20 minutes again.
Because the kilometers ticked by and runners reached the course excessive level 75 kilometers into the race, Dhiman established a transparent lead on the sphere as Arsénio pale again and finally dropped from the occasion. Krogvig, Kern, and Costa made up the remainder of the highest 5 on the checkpoint, with second by way of fourth all inside 20 minutes of each other. With Arsénio dropping out, there have been now 2 podium locations to combat for on the again half of the course.
With all the massive climbs over, runners merely needed to make it again to the ocean. But it surely was removed from all downhill with a number of important inclines to barter within the last 40k. Nonetheless, little or no modified on the entrance of the race from the excessive level to the end, with Dhiman persevering with to run regular on the entrance of the sphere and Krogvig, Kern, Costa, and Mogavero behind, making up the highest 5. Portuguese runners Nelson Santos and Fernandez did their finest to take care of contact with the lead.
Within the last kilometers of the race, first place appeared secured, however the battle between second and fourth stayed tight. Krogvig was in a position to maintain on to second and Kern simply edged out Costa by simply 17 seconds to seize the ultimate podium place. Santos was in a position to shut the hole to Mogavero to spherical out the highest 5.
Ben Dhiman on his strategy to the win on the 2024 Madeira Island Extremely-Path 115k. Picture: MIUT/João M Faria
2024 Madeira Island Extremely-Path Males’s Outcomes
- Ben Dhiman (U.S., lives in Andorra) – 13:52:46
- Sebastian Krogvig (Norway) – 14:12:54
- Martin Kern (France) – 14:15:23
- Anthony Costa (France) – 14:15:40
- Nelson Santos (Portugal) – 14:51:20
- Jeff Mogavero (U.S.) – 15:01:01
- Luís Fernandes (Portugal) – 15:01:15
- Ferdinand-Clovis Airault (France) – 15:16:53
- Michal Jurek (Poland) – 15:18:19
- Richard Lockwood (U.S.) – 15:25:11