The 2024 Sierre-Zinal mountain race used to be exciting proper till the athletes crossed the end line. Joyline Chepngeno (Kenya) gained the ladies’s race in a breakout efficiency, whilst Kilian Jornet (Spain, lives in Norway) took his tenth win of the boys’s race, and set a path file through the narrowest of margins.
The race began at 11 a.m. native time on Saturday, August 10, within the village of Sierre, Switzerland, within the middle of the Valais Alps, and featured round 2,200 meters (7,200 toes) of elevation achieve over 31 kilometers (19 miles). The development finishes within the village of Zinal.
Sierre-Zinal is an iconic Ecu mountain race and is often referred to as the ‘race of 5 4,000s,’ because the path sits in view of 5 major Swiss peaks: Weisshorn (4,404 meters), Zinal Ironthorn (4,221 meters), Obergabelhorn (4,063 meters), Matterhorn (4,478 meters), and Dent Blanche (4,357 meters).
Just lately, we used knowledge in this newsletter to dive deep into the historical past and festival of Sierre-Zinal.
The race used to be concurrently a part of the Global Mountain Operating Affiliation (WMRA) Global Cup and the Golden Path Global Collection.
It used to be a sizzling begin to the day, with temperatures attaining 26 levels Celsius (79 levels Fahrenheit) at the starting point. There have been transparent blue skies all the way through and dry stipulations, with temperatures best getting hotter all the way through the race.
There used to be a surprise win for Kenyan athlete Joyline Chepngeno, who had an enormous lead all the way through, regardless of it being her first ever path race. While Kilian Jornet gained the race for the tenth time, he used to be driven to his limits through Philemon Ombogo Kiriago (Kenya), remaining 12 months’s champion who attacked close to the shut of the race. Learn on for the whole race tale.
2024 Sierre-Zinal Ladies’s Race
This 12 months’s Sierre-Zinal’s greatest tale surrounded the ladies’s winner Joyline Chepngeno of Kenya, a real underdog within the race. This used to be Chepngeno’s first ever path race, in reality, it used to be her first recorded race since operating at school. After the delivery of her two youngsters, Chepngeno misplaced 30 kilograms and made up our minds to run once more, and this used to be her impressive debut to the arena of path operating.
Now not best did Chepngeno win some of the aggressive path races on the earth, however she gained through an enormous margin. Proper from the start, she took pole place within the girls’s race, and prolonged her lead all the way through.
Joyline Chepngeno, the marvel winner of the 2024 Sierre-Zinal. Picture: Global Mountain Operating Affiliation/Marco Gulberti
There used to be some hypothesis as as to whether Chepngeno used to be going as a way to handle the lead, probably going too exhausting in the beginning and not able to fend off extra skilled athletes. On the other hand, she buried any of the doubts and ruled the ladies’s race to the top, completing greater than 8 mins transparent of her closest competitor.
While Chepngeno took the lead, some other ascendant athlete took moment position. Scout Adkin (U.Okay.) used to be collaborating in her longest path race up to now, alternatively she’s been temporarily emerging throughout the WMRA Global Cup ranks this summer time, with prior best performances. She handed throughout the checkpoint at Ponchette (7.5 kilometers) in 59:29, one minute forward of one of the most race favorites, Joyce Muthoni Njeru (Kenya).
Scout Adkin takes moment on the 2024 Sierre-Zinal. Picture: Global Mountain Operating Affiliation/Marco Gulberti
Operating with Muthoni Njeru used to be Monica Mădălina Florea (Romania), who lately took moment on the 2024 Marathon du Mont Blanc.
Because the runners entered the following checkpoint at Chandolin, Muthoni Njeru overtook Adkin for moment position, however this lead used to be reputedly brief lived. At the descent to Tignousa at 16k, it seemed as regardless that Muthoni Njeru had overcooked it, and Adkin made a powerful assault, holding her second-place place.
Adkin handed the checkpoint 29 seconds forward of Muthoni Njeru. Florea persisted to handle her place in fourth a minute again, while Philaries Jeruto Kisang (Kenya) got here via in 5th a few mins later.
Sadly for Muthoni Njeru, she persisted to vanish, and this labored to Florea’s benefit. She overtook to take over 3rd position across the 20k mark, now lower than two mins at the back of Adkin in moment. As an impressive downhill runner, this used to be a possibility for Florea to make up flooring, however Adkin maintained her place the entire strategy to the end line.
Joyline Chepngeno crossed the end line in 2:54:06, taking an enormous win. She used to be adopted through Scout Adkin, who completed in 3:02:21, and Monica Mădălina Florea in 3rd in 3:04:29. Philaries Jeruto Kisang moved as much as fourth and completed in 3:05:52, and Cristina Simion (Romania) completed 5th in 3:07:51.
Joyce Muthoni Njeru dropped out of the highest 10 and completed in twelfth in 3:13:30.
Monica Mădălina Florea celebrates 3rd position on the 2024 Sierre-Zinal. Picture: Global Mountain Operating Affiliation/Marco Gulberti
2024 Sierre-Zinal Ladies’s Effects
- Joyline Chepngeno (Kenya) – 2:54:06
- Scout Adkin (U.Okay.) – 3:02:21
- Monica Mădălina Florea (Romania) – 3:04:29
- Philaries Jeruto Kisang (Kenya) – 3:05:52
- Cristina Simion (Romania) – 3:07:51
- Anna Gibson (U.S.) – 3:08:39
- Sophia Laukli (U.S.) – 3:09:36
- Oria Liaci (Switzerland) – 3:10:46
- Julie Lelong (France) – 3:12:11
- Caitlin Fielder (New Zealand) – 3:12:54
2024 Sierre-Zinal Males’s Race
It used to be a daring however anticipated begin to the race from favourite Kilian Jornet (Spain, lives in Norway), who already had 9 wins to his title at the respected direction. He began on the entrance of the race and seemed to have a vital hole on the remainder of the sphere.
Kilian Jornet successful the 2024 Sierre-Zinal in a dash end. Picture: Global Mountain Operating Affiliation/Marco Gulberti
On the other hand, on the Ponchette checkpoint, 7.5k in, Josphat Kiprotich (Kenya) had closed the distance and got here via sizzling on Jornet’s heels. Switzerland’s Rémi Bonnet, the 2022 and 2023 Golden Path Global Collection total winner, got here via subsequent, adopted through Patrick Kipngeno and Paul Machoka of Kenya.
The primary twist of the boys’s race got here in a while thereafter, when Kiprotich overtook Jornet. That is the place the primary struggle on the entrance of the boys’s race commenced and it used to be a cat-and-mouse chase between the 2 athletes, with Kiprotich operating inside 15 seconds after all file tempo on the 12k mark.
Via midway, Kiprotich nonetheless had a modest lead, coming throughout the checkpoint in 1:23:15, adopted through Jornet in 1:24:01.
While the struggle ensued for first, Kipngeno and Bonnet labored in combination to carry onto 3rd and fourth positions, as they handed throughout the 16k mark in combination in 1:25:26. Philemon Ombogo Kiriago (Kenya), the 2023 Sierre-Zinal champion, had through now controlled to overhaul Machoka to transport into 5th position.
Philemon Ombogo Kiriago is all smiles after a second-place end on the 2024 Sierre-Zinal. Picture: Global Mountain Operating Affiliation/Marco Gulberti
After the 20k mark, the place many of the hiking were finished, the race in point of fact turned into unpredictable. Jornet stuck up with Kiprotich and so they handed the 20k checkpoint in 1:43:17, however that is the place Jornet made his assault. He created a 30-second lead on moment position, and rolled alongside the paths while others battled it out at the back of.
Even if Kipngeno and Bonnet hit Resort Weisshorn on the identical time (1:45:03), it used to be Kipngeno who went for the assault and overtook Kiprotich for moment position. However that wasn’t the top. Kipngeno’s coaching spouse Ombogo Kiriago steamed forward, and with a well mannered faucet at the again, powered previous Kipngeno and had his points of interest set on Jornet.
At the technical descent towards the end line, it appeared like Jornet had a at ease lead when Ombogo Kiriago got here out of nowhere to overhaul the nine-time winner or even won on him.
This used to be through a long way the most important surprise of the race, and it wasn’t lengthy earlier than Jornet drove down the descent exhausting to reclaim first place, however he needed to paintings for it the entire strategy to the end line. Ombogo Kiriago used to be chasing exhausting, and the dash end throughout the streets of Zinal led Kilian Jornet to win and in addition take a brand new path file, completing in 2:25:34, beating his earlier 2019 path file through a unmarried moment.
Philemon Ombogo Kiriago completed simply at the back of in 2:25:36 and the 2 athletes collapsed as they crossed the road. Patrick Kipngeno held 3rd place and crossed the road in 2:26:59, adopted through Josphat Kiprotich in 2:31:35 in fourth, and Roberto Delorenzi (Switzerland) in 2:32:26 for 5th position.
Paul Mochoka in the end took 6th in 2:32:35, and Rémi Bonnet light all the way through the latter finish of the race and dropped again to 9th place, crossing in 2:33:57.
Patrick Kipngeno taking 3rd on the 2024 Sierre-Zinal. Picture: Global Mountain Operating Affiliation/Marco Gulberti
2024 Sierre-Zinal Males’s Race Effects
- Kilian Jornet (Spain, lives in Norway) – 2:25:34
- Philemon Ombogo Kiriago (Kenya) – 2:25:36
- Patrick Kipngeno (Kenya) – 2:26:59
- Josphat Kiprotich (Kenya) – 2:31:35
- Roberto Delorenzi (Switzerland) – 2:32:26
- Paul Machoka (Kenya) – 2:32:35
- Sylvain Cachard (France) – 2:32:45
- Jonathan Castillo Sáenz (Columbia) – 2:32:45
- Rémi Bonnet (Switzerland) – 2:33:57
- Ezekiel Rutto (Kenya) – 2:35:21