In a historic showdown at the 51st edition of the Sierre-Zinal trail race in Switzerland, Spain’s Kilian Jornet and Kenya’s Joyline Chepngeno delivered remarkable performances. Jornet claimed his record 10th victory in the men’s race, narrowly beating Kenya’s Philemon Kiriago by just one and a half seconds, while Chepngeno surprised the women’s field in a breakout performance, winning her first trail race by a large margin.
Sierre-Zinal, one of the most renowned mountain races of all time, is part of the Golden Trail World Series and the World Mountain Running Association (WMRA) World Cup. The race traverses 31 kilometres with 2,200 metres of ascent and traditionally attracts a very steep elite field, with this year being no exception. The race is known as ‘la course des cinq 4,000’ because the runners get to enjoy the views of five peaks over 4,000m along the way. Athletes start in Sierre at an elevation of 570 metres, and climb up to the highest point at 2,425m over the first 24 km. The final seven km is downhill, with a sprint through the city of Zinal to the finish line at 1,680m.
Women’s race
Chepngeno made an extraordinary debut in trail running, leading from the start and increasing her lead throughout the race. Competing in her first European trail event and first competitive race since high school, the 25-year-old Kenyan shocked fans and her competition alike.
Chepngeno, who had been a talented track runner in her youth, returned to competitive running after having two children. Motivated by the success of her former competitors, she spent 18 months dedicated to returning to racing form, losing more than 50 pounds along the way. Chepngeno took control of the race from the start, taking the lead at a blistering pace and steadily extending it throughout the race. She crossed the finish line eight minutes ahead of her nearest rival, Scout Adkin from Britain. Madalina Florea of Romania, last year’s Golden Trail World Series Grand Final champion, took third place.
Top women
Joyline Chepngeno (Kenya) 2:54:06
Scout Adkin (U.K.) 3:02:21
Madalina Florea (Romania) 3:04:29
Philaries Kisang (Kenya) 3:05:52
Christina Simion (Romania) 3:07:51
Men’s race
Jornet delivered yet another legendary performance. The 37-year-old Spaniard, often dubbed the greatest trail runner of all time, found himself in a battle for first throughout the entire race. Despite leading early, Jornet was overtaken by Kenya’s Josphat Kiprotich on the first climb, and then by Kiriago during the final descent. Kiriago charged ahead with just over two kilometres to go, but Jornet fought back to reclaim the lead in the final stretch, crossing the finish line in 2:25:34. Jornet beat his own course record, set in 2019, by a mere second. Kiriago finished only one and a half seconds behind Jornet, capturing second place in 2:25:36, and Kenya’s Patrick Kipngeno took third, only one minute and 24 seconds behind Jornet.
SIERRE-ZINAL
キリアン僅差で優勝。最後のスプリントもさることながら、ダウンヒルの技術も世界一。速すぎるし、うますぎる。 pic.twitter.com/tM9nlwCGi2— Masahiro Natori (@natori5296) August 10, 2024
Top men
Kilian Jornet (Spain) 2:25:34
Philemon Kiriago (Kenya) – 2:25:36
Patrick Kipngeno (Kenya) – 2:26:59
Josphat Kiprotich (Kenya) – 2:31:35
Roberto Delorenzi (Italy) – 2:32:26
