Early in the evening, American Hayden Hawks won the 101km and 6000m D+ of the CCC, while South African Toni McCann did the same in the women’s race.
The two 2024 CCC winners are regulars on the podiums of the UTMB Mont Blanc event. American Hayden Hawks had already won this event in 2017, in 10H24. Seven years later, and after a last season marked by a long injury, the HOKA team runner was able to repeat this performance, in a time improved by 4 minutes. A victory that took shape between Arnouvaz and the Grand Col Ferret, where the American felt like he was growing wings, and took the lead of the race, and almost never left it until the finish, except on the descent to La Fouly, where he played yo-yo with his friend and compatriot Adam Peterman (USA – Hoka).
A success built on the strength of his thighs, Hawks having evolved without poles throughout. “In 2017, when I won, I didn’t have any. In 2022, I took some, but it didn’t work well for me, so I decided to do without them again this year” explained the person concerned. A bold but profitable technical choice, Hawks proving particularly strong on the climbs.
7th in the event in 2023, the young Slovak Peter Frano, 28 years old, 3rd in the 2023 Long Trail World Championships, finished his 100 KM like a cannonball to fail 7 minutes from victory, ahead of another American, Adam Peterson. The latter’s victory in the Western States in 2022 had revealed him to the general public, and since then, a lot has been expected of the American. A long injury in 2023 delayed his emergence, but this 3rd place in the CCC confirms his skills and his renewal (started at the start of the season with a victory in the Speedgoat in the United States) for his first outing in a UTMB event.
With two athletes on the men’s podium, the United States continues its fine harvest, unlike the French, who are still struggling a bit, with 10th place, in the sprint of the former French champion Arnaud Bonin (Scott), for his first 100km.
Among girls, Toni Mc Cann (AFS- Adidas Terrex) also won a new victory in Chamonix. The partner of Frenchman Bastien Perez won the OCC last year, and she successfully completed the 100km, the first of her career. “I had a bit of a bad patch in Champex, but I think it was due to my inexperience with the distance. I know what 50 or 60km is like, beyond that, I was discovering it. So I let this bad patch pass, and with the help of my family and fans, I managed to find a second wind for the second part of the race” explained Toni, who finished ahead of Poland’s Martyna MLYNARCZYK (Hoka) and Germany’s Rosanna BUCHAUER (dynafit).
Anne-Cécile Thévenot (team macsport), the first Frenchwoman, finished in 7th place, after a great final climb in the Flègère and on the descent towards Chamonix.
