Fans were on the edges of their seats right down to the final seconds of the women’s 100K CCC race in Chamonix on Friday, as race leaders traded the lead multiple times. While Martyna Mlynarczyk of Poland initially battled with France’s Blandine L’Hirondel, Sylvia Nordskar of Norway passed them both in the final minutes of the race–but was passed again by Mlynarczyk, who ultimately won 11 hours, 41 minutes, 55 seconds–the second-fastest time in the history of the race–only 18 seconds ahead of Nordskar, whose time was 11:42:13. Anna Tarasova of Kazakhstan took third place, only two minutes later, in 11:44:18. (L’Hirondel finished fourth, in 11:53:31.)
(The above photo shows Nordskar (left) with Mlynarczyk (middle) and men’s winner Francesco Puppi.
Mlynarczyk finished second at this race in 2024–so it’s not hard to imagine she was driven to improve her position on the podium and take the win on Friday; she also won Istria 100 by UTMB and Tenerife Blue Trail by UTMB in 2024, and is a five-time Polish mountain-running champion.
Nordskar was more of a surprise; she DNF’d at CCC last year, while winning the 50K distance at Nice Côte d’Azur by UTMB, as well as Zegama-Aizkorri, in 2024; in June of this year she won the Swiss Canyon Trail 50K, and was second at Val d’Aran by UTMB in July.
CCC (which stands for Courmayeur–Champex–Chamonix) is a 101K race starts in Courmayeur, Italy, crosses into Switzerland at Champex, then finishes in Chamonix. Often called the “little sibling” of the UTMB, it’s actually anything but small, and many elites use it as their proving ground before stepping up to the 171 km. It has also become highly competitive in recent years.
UTMB week is here: are you ready?
Francesco Puppi first Italian to win CCC
The men’s race ended a short time after the start of the 100-mile, with Puppi crossing the line in 10 hours, six minutes and two seconds–also the second-fastest time ever recorded at CCC. David Sinclair of the U.S. (a 50K specialist–this was only his second 100K race) was only seven minutes behind him, in 10:13:42 (the fourth-fastest time ever), and Drew Holmen, also of the U.S., was third, in 10:16:15.
Puppi had a standout year in 2024 that included victory at the 2024 Lake Sonoma 50-Mile and second place at the 61 km OCC race at the 2024 UTMB World Series Finals.
At the time of publication, the first women had arrived at La Balme, about 31 km into the 174K UTMB Mont-Blanc race, which began Friday evening local time; Ruth Croft of New Zealand was leading, with Courtney Dauwalter in second position.
Canadian ultrarunner Stephanie Case has been a steady presence on the live broadcast this year, along with longtime UTMB commentator Keith Byrne. Case won the Ultra-Trail Snowdonia 100K race in Wales earlier this year, just six months after becoming a mother.
