It sounds terrible and it is. The Ultra-Trail of Mont-Blanc, which begins Monday, is the queen of endurance races. Three countries, 18 different municipalities, 100 nationalities among the competitors for 7 different races until September 1st. This is the challenge of a lifetime for many runners. They are 2,300 runners hoping to swallow the 171km, 10,000 vertical meters, three countries crossed (Switzerland, France, Italy) ... A dream for all trailers, which requires more than four months of preparation. Too complicated for Gilles Bouleau, as he explained to Mathieu Belliard on Monday morning.
"I fell into the pot of running around 13 or 14 years old" says Gilles Bouleau, who claims to practice "marathon, 10 kilometers, trail."
Heard on europe1:
"7 years ago, I was sometimes exhausted at 8pm"
Each week, Gilles Bouleau finds colleagues who share the same passion and some of whom participate in the Ultra-trail, and walk 30 to 35 kilometers: "This race is not the Grail. the Diagonale des Fous, it's the toughest race in the world. " "For 25, 30 hours, you run, you go up and forget about sleep and rest," he adds.
Gilles Bouleau also makes his comeback tonight at 20h in front of the French: "A 20 pm is a partition that must constantly be renewed and modernized" he says while saying that "the only thing that does not change, it is the time and duration. "
So, is it easier to present the 20h than to participate in Ultra-trail? "There are similarities," says the presenter. "You have to know how to manage your effort because in the 20h, do not run out right now (...) At the beginning, 7 years ago, I was sometimes exhausted at 20h" he confides.