Ultra-trail: who is the American Courtney Dauwalter, 4th in the Diagonale des Fous?

Participating in the Diagonale des Fous was her “Christmas present”, she said Wednesday at 24 hours from the start of one of the most prestigious and also the most demanding races on the Ultra-trail planet.

The American Courtney Dauwalter was eagerly awaited on this 30th edition of the Grand Raid de la Réunion, 165 km long for 10,000 m of elevation gain. Firstly because she was aiming for the “grand slam” for women, i.e. victory in the four major races on the world circuit (UTMB, Western States, Hardrock 100 and therefore the Diagonal), a feat that only the Catalan Kilian Jornet has achieved so far. Then because many saw her capable of grabbing the podium in the scratch classification, after the last minute withdrawals from favorites like François D’haene or Benoît Girondel.

In contact with the head of the race for more than 100 km

The Salomon team athlete did not disappoint. Throughout the night, then in the early morning until entering the Mafate circus, she remained in the Top 5, in contact with Benat Marmissolle and Jean-Philippe Tschumi who were racing in the lead, ten to fifteen minutes ahead. If the American left them behind, on the technical slopes of Mafate, she managed to stay with Ben Dhiman and her Salomon teammate Germain Grangier, until the return to the seaside about twenty kilometers from the finish. . She only gave up a little ground on the American Dhiman in the last climbs above Saint-Denis. Still remains a 4th place synonymous with achievement. Especially since her time of 24:37 allows her to also break the women’s record of the “Diag”.

At 37, Courtney Dauwalter marks a little more the history of the ultra-trail. Cross-country skier in her youth, she nevertheless broke through later, winning the world circuit in 2016 only, at the age of 31, with a first victory on the “Run Rabbit Run”, one of the 100 most prestigious miles in the United States. She then sticks more than an hour to her pursuer and decides to leave her job as a biology teacher to devote herself to ultra-trail.

The UTMB record

We have to wait two more years to see it impose itself on international races. Ultra-trail of Mount Fuji, Western States in 2018, then the prestigious Madeira Ultra-Trail and especially the Ultra-Trail of Mont Blanc in 2019. It is there, in the streets of Chamonix, that the general public really discovers it . Covid obliges, she will have to wait two years to confirm… What she did by offering herself the UTMB women’s record, in 10:30 p.m., during the 2021 edition (with a 7th place scratch). Still a winner in Madeira this year, then on the Hardrock, she completes her collection with the Diagonale.

Burgers and M&Ms

An atypical athlete, who does not follow any training plan and trains by feeling, she says she likes very long distances, “where the head pushes the body”. She also stands out with her diet. She recently confessed to Runner’s World: “I eat whatever makes me happy, from burgers to M&M’s.” Amazing.

Beating men, “it motivates her”

Now that she has won everything, Courtney Dauwalter will have to find new challenges. Maybe beat the men in a big race. Grégory Vollet, Salomon team manager, did not hide before the Diagonale: “it’s something that motivates her”. She will certainly return to the paths of Reunion.