Anne-Lise Rousset recounts her "incredible adventure" on the GR20 in Corsica

“I was going really fast on very technical descents but she kept pushing me.

Record holder of the GR20 in 30h25 and in a

role on Monday from 6 a.m., the Corsican Lambert Santelli admits to having been amazed by the departure of Anne-Lise Rousset, on the occasion of her attempt at the women's record over the 170 km ( 12,700 m of elevation gain) between Calenzana and Conca.

And for good reason, the 33-year-old Haute-Savoie veterinarian, mother of a little Faustin for eleven months, managed Tuesday evening to pulverize the mark of Emilie Lecomte (41:22 in 2012) on the legendary Corsican trail.

In 35h50, the Team Scott running trail runner achieved her dream.

She tells this Wednesday at

how she lived her "incredible adventure" at altitude, during which she had to negotiate a delicate night and quickly do without two of her

friends , Florian Bernabeu and Sébastien Chaigneau, victims of falls.

Before the start, you told us about your fear of covering the equivalent of 100 miles (160 km) for the first time in your career.

This premiere finally went off without a hitch or almost, didn't it?

(Smile) After all, I've never run so badly in my life as at the end of this GR20.

I had a terrible stride, it was terrible.

Physically, it held up, but I was very afraid of the diet part, and that's really the key point, the very hard aspect to manage.

At one point, we can no longer eat, we can no longer drink.

The digestive system is completely shut down on an ultra.

What was finally the most difficult moment to manage during the 35h50 of this crazy challenge?

I necessarily dreaded the night but I didn't expect to experience it so badly.

I was exhausted after refueling at Vizzavona (at km 92).

I was falling asleep, as if I were narcoleptic.

It was a rather rolling passage to Verde and I had planned to run.

But there, it was a way of the cross.

Twice, I did the trick to my friends by announcing to them: “There, it is absolutely necessary that I sleep.

Poor people, they were instructed not to let me sleep.

They were clueless and they tried to convince me to continue.

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Who won?

(Smile) First them, so I tried to talk because I fell asleep standing up, a bit like when you're very tired when you let go in front of the TV.

Then after Verde, in the middle of the Prati climb, I couldn't stand up anymore and I asked my friends Stéphane and Benoît to let me sleep for five minutes.

I never thought my body would ever do this, but I lay down haphazardly on the way, and slept super deep for five minutes (smile).

It did me a lot of good, it was incredible.

Shortly after, the sun rose, and it was on again.

It's a bit like there were two separate races for you, between your day and night performances?

Yes, at night, I felt miserable, I was not advancing at all, and I lost 1h30 compared to our estimates.

Fortunately, I had more than 1h30 in advance when I arrived in Vizzavona.

Didn't you see a bad sign on Monday with the falls of your “pacer” friends Florian Bernabeu, then Sébastien Chaigneau, who could have fractured ribs?

It was hard to live with because I knew they wanted to help me, and they couldn't go through with this collective adventure.

Seb had cramps before and he really scared us on his fall.

It was hard to leave them behind and go back.

Everyone was 200% mobilized around me.

For your part, did you have sufficient lucidity to negotiate the circus of solitude and the passage of chains to the needles of Bavella?

It is not necessarily the most technical and dangerous parts that are the most at risk, because there, unconsciously, we are more lucid and we are extremely careful.

On the other hand, in the parts where there are fewer stones, where you lift your foot less, that's where you can fall.

It happened to me less than 10 kilometers from the finish, perhaps on the cleanest part of the whole GR20.

I was really very lucky to get away with it without too many injuries, with only two falls in total.

At any time, on the entirety of the GR20, you can take a good…

Seeing Faustin, your 11-month-old boy, several times during your career, was essential to your success?

Yes, I was able to find him three times, then obviously on arrival at Conca.

In Bavella, I was afraid to arrive during his nap time and I was so happy to see him, all smiles and all cute.

He was my ultimate driving force, of course.

Apart from Faustin's smile, what are the moments that will remain etched in your mind?

I was still able to enjoy the scenery but the performance comes 100% from sharing.

The northern part was amazing because I didn't really feel any slack.

So it was always fun.

But the southern part was another atmosphere, it was the mind that had to take over.

And me, it's the sharing that made me move forward.

I remember my joy to find everyone at the aid stations and that of being in threes all the time [accompanied by two

].

It gives a damn strong mix.

I had an incredible adventure with my friends.

Our file on the ultra-trail

When will you return to your 50 hours of weekly work at the veterinary office in Cruseilles (Haute-Savoie)?

I will resume next Monday at the office, after a few days with the family to recover in Corsica.

Then I'll put the sneakers away for a few weeks (smile).

Once I stopped after the finish, I couldn't lift my legs at all.

There, it's “less worse”, but the muscular pains are so important that as soon as I move a little, it hurts.

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