The Grand Raid in Reunion Island

The first edition of the Grand Raid took place in 1989. The race was then called La Marche des Cimes and proposed to connect Saint-Denis to Saint-Philippe. Now, the course has evolved and it is the main ultra trail of Reunion Island, whose fame extends far beyond the borders of the Indian Ocean.

Every year, the 2,200 participants start a race from the south of the island, in Saint-Pierre, to the Redoute Stadium in Saint-Denis, in the north of Reunion. The course passes through all the most emblematic places of the island, such as the summit of Piton de la Fournaise, or the natural cirques of Cilaos and Mafate. Although the route changes somewhat each year, it covers approximately 160 km, with nearly 10,000 meters of positive elevation gain. The maximum time to accomplish this feat is 66 hours!

To achieve the feat, the greatest athletes on the planet travel to Reunion Island. In 2019, the best time was achieved by Grégoire Curmer in 23 hours and 33 minutes. Similarly, some athletes are regulars of the challenge and have several victories in their records at the Grand Raid, such as Benoît Girondel (2 victories), Kilian Jornet (2 victories), or François d’Haene (4 victories).

On the women's side, the 2019 race was completed in 30 hours and 49 minutes by Sabrina Stanley.

In 2020, the Grand Raid was scheduled to take place from October 15th to 18th. However, due to the Covid-19 health crisis, the event was canceled. Nevertheless, the president of the Grand Raid association sought to reassure: "Know that the organization will take advantage of this long period that separates us from 2021 to strengthen its operational qualities. Know also that the Grand Raid does not see this episode as a failure, but as an incident along the way, which is not discouraging to us." In other words, if the challenge interests you, all you have to do is put on your sneakers and resume training for next year!

To register, visit the official event website. Continuously updated, it provides all the practical information to best prepare for the event. The Grand Raid's Facebook page will also inform you of the opening of registrations in the coming months.