Document 6497575

WORLD SUMMIT OF TRAIL-RUNNING
or how to experience a fabulous adventure, through
5 ultra-endurance events, around Mont-Blanc!
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UTMB [Ultra-­‐Trail du Mont-­‐Blanc ]: 3 countries -­‐ 168km and 9 600m ascent in semi-­‐autonomy -­‐ 2 300 runners start on Friday, August 29th at 17:30 from Chamonix to Chamonix in 46 hrs max. ® CCC [Courmayeur-­‐Champex-­‐Chamonix]: 3 countries – 101km and 6 100m ascent in semi-­‐autonomy -­‐ 1900 runners start on Friday, August 29th at 09:00 from Courmayeur to Chamonix in 26 hrs max. ®
 TDS [sur les Traces des Ducs de Savoie]: 119km and 7 250m ascent in semi-­‐autonomy 1 600 runners start on Wednesday, August 27th at 07:00 from Courmayeur to Chamonix in 33 hrs max. ®
 PTL [la Petite Trotte à Léon] : 3 countries – 300km and 28 000m ascent in total autonomy. A non-­‐stop hike, without ranking, open to 100 teams starting on Monday, August 25th at 17:30 from Chamonix to Chamonix in 141 hrs max.  OCC [Orsières-­‐Champex-­‐Chamonix]: 53km and 3 300m ascent in semi-­‐autonomy 1 200 runners start on Thursday August 28th at 08:00 from Orsières to Chamonix in 14 hrs max. Chamonix, 26 August 14th 2014
The North Face® Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc® TDS® : kick –off tomorrow at 7 am The race committee has approved the normal route for TDS® "Traces des Ducs de Savoie" and advises all competitors, due to a forecast of strong winds in the morning, to bring warm clothes! They will be 1,600 runners on the start line in Courmayeur to go to Chamonix in 33 hours max. 119 km and 7,250 m of positive height gain in semi-­‐autonomy for this race that borrows Great Excursion nature trails of the Mont Blanc, Valle d'Aosta, Haute Tarentaise and Beaufortain. This event has many mountain passes at altitude (> 2,500m), that weather conditions can make difficult. It requires a very good training, adapted equipment and a real capacity of personal autonomy. Both Savoie and the Aosta Valley are among those provinces that have a sustainable part of the Duchy of Savoy and the three regions united around Mont Blanc offer an itinerary where the mountains and history are intertwined. The first racer of the TDS® is expected to finish Wednesday evening at Chamonix around 10:00 pm. Many favotites hope to finish on the podium. Among them, Xavier Thevenard, winner of the 2013 UTMB® and, having won the CCC® in 2010, is trying for a triple this year. A win at the TDS® would make him the first to win the three races: CCC®, TDS® and UTMB®. Other potential winners are the Spaniards Jordi Bes, Arnaud Julia Bonmati, Javier Rodriguez Bosas, Nepali Samir Tamang or the Frenchman Benoit Thiery. For the women, there will also be a fight for the top. Maud Gobert(FR) will be one of the big favorites, while in the end Nathalie Mauclair (FR) decided to race the UTMB instead.
Runners came from all around the world Argentina 3; Australia 2; Austria 7; Belgium 77; Brazil 13; Bulgaria 1; Canada 2; China 11; Colombia 2; Czech Republic 8; Denmark 9; Ecuador 4; Spain 127; USA 16; Finland 12; France 1049; Germany 29; Hungary 8; Indonésia 1; Ireland 11; Island 2; Israël 1; Italy 146, Japan 42; Latvia 9; Luxembourg 4; Malaysia 2; Mauritius 1; Mexico 1; Nepal 1; Norway 8; Netherlands 14; Philippines 1; Poland 29; Portugal 26; Romania 7; United Kingdom 76; Russia 1; Singapore 1; Slovakia 2; Slovenia 1; Sweden 10; Switzerland 40; Ukraine 1; United Arab Emirats 1; Uruguay 1; Venezuela 5. Some news from PTL At TDS® departure time, PTL® runners are still running the mountains. The teams started at 17:30 PM on monday from Chamonix, they had to fight against heavy rains and gusty winds. Seeing those very hard wheater conditions, the organisation had to modify the route. The runners had to cross from Champex to Bovine instead of the route to the Autannes and Arpette Window. On thuesday afternoon the 26th, the first teams arrived in Bourg Saint Pierre and the last ones at Champex. This very long trip across the wilderness, around 300 kilometers long, as to be run in autonomy, most part of the time on off trails, on top of that, they have to follow GPS tracks provided by the organisation. PROGRAMME
Monday August 25th - Chamonix
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17:30 : Start of the PTL
Tuesday August 26th – Chamonix
13:00-19:00 : Ultra-Trail® Salon
Wednesday August 27th – Courmayeur and Chamonix
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07:00 : Start of the TDS , Courmayeur (Italy)
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10:00-19:00 : Ultra-Trail Salon
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22:00 : First TDS finishers
Thursday August 28th - Chamonix
08:00 : Start of the OCC, Orsières (Switzerland)
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All through the day, arrival of TDS finishers
10:00- 19:00 : Ultra-Trail® Salon
14:00 : Arrival of first OCC runners
18:00- 19:00 : Official Press Conference with athletes and organisers
Friday August 29th – Courmayeur and Chamonix
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09:00 : Start of the CCC , Courmayeur (Italy)
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09:00- 13:00 : Ultra-Trail Salon
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17:30 : Start of the UTMB
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20:30 : First CCC finishers
Saturday August 30th – Chamonix
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07:00 : First PTL finishers
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All morning, arrival of CCC finishers
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14:00 : First UTMB finishers
Sunday August 31st - Chamonix
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All day, arrival of UTMB finishers
10:00- 11:00 final press conference
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14:30 : Last UTMB & PTL finishers
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Official closing ceremony of the The North Face Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc
CONTACTS
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The North Face Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc
Catherine POLETTI, communications and race director
36 Avenue du Savoy – 74400 Chamonix Mont-Blanc - France
Tel : +33 (0)4 50 53 47 51
Email : catherine.poletti@autmb.com - www.ultratrailmb.com - ultratrail.tv
Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/UltraTrailMontBlanc - Twitter : http://twitter.com/TNFUTMB
PRESS RELATIONS
Press file and releases downloadable at: www.ultratrailmb.com
High resolution photos  access codes upon request from Infocimes
INFOCÎMES
Tel : +33 (0)4 50 47 24 61
Anne Gery Mobile : +33 (0)6 12 03 68 95 annegery@infocimes.com
Morgane Raylat Mobile : +33 (0)6 66 15 53 13 morgane@infocimes.com
THE NORTH FACE - Pr Europe
Keith Byrne: Tel : +41 79 931 04 55
Email: keith_byrne@vfc.com
COURMAYEUR (Italie)
Carmen MENNELLA : mobile : +39 345 263 24 73
carmen.mennella@courmayeurmontblanc.it