High drama at the UTMB

I find myself gripped yet again by the exploits of those crazy loons out racing around Mont Blanc

Photograph: Jacob Zocherman

I got caught up in the excitement and coverage of the UTMB earlier than usual this year, with the news that Joyline Chepngeno had become the first Kenyan to win a UTMB world series race after she came home first in the OCC, the first big race of UTMB week.

Not only have I been predicting the eventual arrival of the Kenyans in ultra running since my book in 2019, but I’ve been closely following the progress of Joyline’s team, the Milimani Runners, since they were set up by Swiss marathon runner Julien Lyon in about 2020.

They’ve had a lot of success in mountain marathons, but this was the first time any of their athletes had stepped up to the ultra distance. As you’ll know if you’ve read The Rise of the Ultra Runners, there are numerous barriers to getting Kenyans running ultras - the lack of precedent, the lack of money, the lack of gear in Kenya such as running packs etc. People also doubt sometimes whether they can cope with the tougher conditions of a mountain ultra, but I always knew the Kenyans didn’t lack toughness - just the understanding of what this sport of ultra running actually was, and what it took to succeed.

In a lovely interview after the race, Joyline talks about the sacrifices she had to make to even reach the start line of the OCC, leaving her children in the care of her mother (not just while she goes off to Europe to race, as the interviewer assumes, but for almost the entire year while she trains).

It felt like such a different story from the other elite runners, who are usually motivated by a love of the mountains, a love of the sport, of competition etc. None of the other runners are really doing it for the money. Sure, they do earn some money from it, and a handful will earn a decent amount, but, really, there are many, many easier ways to earn the small amounts you get even as a top ultra runner.

At one point in the race, Joylene was faltering, and she almost stopped, but then she said she remembered she had to do it for her children. Not so they would be proud of her, but so they would have food to eat.

In ultra running people talk about needing a good reason to keep going when things get tough, saying that you need a strong “why”. Well there can’t be many reasons stronger than the need to feed your children.