The 10th edition of the SkyRace des Matheysins concluded today with remarkable victories by Italy’s Alex Oberbacher and France’s Lucille Germain at the fifth race of the Merrell Skyrunner® World Series.
Ever-changing weather conditions leading up to the event resulted in the course being altered more than once. Due to snow and high winds, the final route for today’s race would avoid the technical ridge “L’Oreille du Loup”, as well as the steep climb leading to Le Perollier, “the Devil’s Garden”, however, the race remained as demanding and exciting as ever and as soon as the famous Matheysins gun was fired, the race was on – at full speed.
In the men’s race, Alex Oberbacher (team La Sportiva) delivered an outstanding performance and was able to steal the lead from Great Britain’s Jacob Adkin (team New Balance) after the first climb. With a winning time of 02:25:50 for the 27-kilometre course, with 2000m+ of elevation gain, this victory marks a significant achievement in his skyrunning career.
Oberbacher comments: “It was perfect conditions for me today. I’ve just come from a winter season so I enjoy the cold and wind. I would definitely say this was the best achievement of my running career and I look forward to the rest of the skyrunning season – Monte Zerbion, Saint Jeorie and Ultraks.”
After a fierce fight for the podium between Adkin, Roberto Delorenzi of Switzerland (team Brooks), Frederic Tranchand of France (team Merrell), Luca Del Pero of Italy (team Scarpa), and Jan Torella of Spain (team Salomon), which lasted almost the entire race, Delorenzi was able to power ahead and finish second, just two minutes behind Oberbacher. Youngster, Jan Torella, closed the men’s podium, eight seconds behind Delorenzi.
In the women’s race, Germain was also able to swipe the lead from her main French rival, Julie Roux (team Salomon) on the first climb. After Germain’s takeover, it was full speed ahead and the gap continued to increase until the finish line where Germain was crowned the winner with a finishing time of 02:51:20, eight minutes ahead of Roux in second place. Third place went to Marta Martinez of Spain (team La Sportiva), after an incredible battle with her best friend, Greta Garcia of Spain (team Asics) for the final podium position.
The new female winner, Germain comments: “I knew what I had to do. I put one foot in front of the other, remained focused and stayed true to my strengths. I didn’t have the splits so I just had to give it everything until the end. It was very hard but I just kept on going. I didn’t know how my legs would be coming from the winter season, so I was terrified at the beginning which makes me even more happy to win!”.
This year’s race also featured innovative live coverage, with a dedicated team capturing the action through drones and strategically placed cameras, providing fans with immersive access to the competition.
Once again, Skyrace des Matheysins proved why it is one of the most competitive races in the Merrell Skyrunner® World series by putting on an amazing show for fans and athletes.
Full results: https://chronoconsult.fr/result/skyrace-des-matheysins-2025/#1_938748
Watch the Live here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UE99zLDVKto
The next race of the 2025 season is the Kailas Penang Skyrace in Malaysia on the 26th of April.
2025 MSWS race calendar: https://www.skyrunnerworldseries.com/races/
