Italian Skyrunner, Luca Del Pero and Lucille Germain of France, walk away with the 18th titles of the Merrell Skyrunner® World Series at Sobrescobio Skyrace. 450 runners from around the world braved tough conditions with heavy rain and strong winds on technical and muddy terrain in the Natural Park of Redes, Asturias.
LUCA DEL PERO REPEATS VICTORY
In the men’s race, Team Scarpa runner, Luca Del Pero, set a fast pace from the start, which he maintained throughout the course. The Italian crossed the finish line in a time of 2:49:26, almost 10 minutes faster than the previous time of Asturian athlete, Dimas Pereira.
Manu Merillas (New Balance) followed in second with a time of 2:50:03, followed by Antonio Martinez (ASICS) six minutes after. The men’s top 5 was completed by Aitor Blanco (Basque Selection), who missed out on the podium by 25 seconds, and fifth place went to Sweden’s Martin Nilsson.
The 2024 champion, Del Pero, comments: “Until the last moments I had doubts if I could take the victory. It was very difficult to get ahead of Manu Merillas and it was a great battle between the two of us”.
Merillas comments: “I was always between 15 and 30 seconds ahead of Luca. On the downhills I fell back, but on the climbs I was able to pull away. It was a really fun race… I didn’t even look at the clock!”
LUCILLE GERMAIN MAKES THE DIFFERENCE
In the women’s classification, Team SIDAS MATRYX athlete, Lucille Germain of France, took the lead from early on and continued to increase the gap between her and the second. Germain stopped the clock in 3:25:35.
Second place went to Spain’s Oihana Kortazar (team Salomon) who crossed the finish line almost twelve minutes later. Júlia Font (BROOKS), also of Spain, closed the podium with a time of 3:38:20. The women’s Top 5 was completed by the British, Nichola Jackson (team Inov8), and the Basque Ainara Alcuaz.
Female winner, Lucille Germain, comments: “It was incredible. At the beginning I was behind Oihana, but then I felt strong and had speed in my legs so I passed her, and as I didn’t have the split times I pushed and pushed until the end. It was a good race for the final, great to gain confidence”.
Oihana Kortazar comments: “It was a very hard fought race. I knew that on the first descent Lucille was going to pass me because she descends very well and I did not want to risk falling, so I tried hard to keep the second position, because Júlia was also coming strong. Although I enjoyed myself a lot, I also suffered because the descents were nerve-wracking”.
“REALLY TOUGH CONDITIONS”
Race director, Juan Fuego, expressed his satisfaction of the race. He comments: “This year’s race has been very exciting. To have many of our local runners competing with some of the best athletes in the world makes me very proud and excited about what we have achieved.”
“The weather conditions today were really tough. It rained all morning and it was very cold outside. I want to mention the great work of all the volunteers who helped with all the runners along the course – they did an excellent job and I am more than proud of them.
“Having our race in the Merrell Skyrunner World Series is an honor and despite the rain, most of the runners enjoyed the race and we made them feel very happy during their stay in Asturias.”
Merrell Skyrunner® World Series representative, Seana Forbes, added: “It has been an incredible day here in Asturias. Despite the weather conditions, the race was a great success and we witnessed some impressive performances from Luca and Lucille, as well as everyone else who braved the conditions. The local community welcomed SWS with open arms and Asturias has been a great host.”
Finally, Forbes noted that, “the overall ranking of the circuit undergoes considerable changes after today’s victories by Luca Del Pero and Lucille Germain, and yesterday’s wins by Italian athlete Gianluca Ghiano and Anastasia Rubtsova at the 2Peaks Skyrace in South Korea. We are now one step closer to the final and it is still as unpredictable as ever‘, she concluded.
After the Asturian event, the circuit travels to Malaysia, on November 2, to celebrate the Kailas Penang Skyrace. In the final stretch, the competition will pass through Turkey, with the Sagalassos Skyrace on November 9, and will conclude with the celebration of the grand finale, the Skymasters, in Eslida (Castellón), on Saturday, November 16, with the Marató dels Dements.
Full results can be found here: https://www.empa-t.com/resultados/sobrescobio-redes-trail-2024/
Photos: Valentin Orange