Round 8 - MILLET SKI TOURING COURCHEVEL - Wednesday 29 January 2025

Yoann Offredo at the Millet Ski Touring Courchevel!

All the conditions were in place for the launch of the second half of the Millet Ski Touring Courchevel (MSTC) season this Wednesday 29 January, with lovely fresh snow that had fallen the day before delighting the 128 entrants in the 8th round.

On the start line of this stage was Yoann Offredo, a former professional cyclist who has become a consultant for France Télévisions. It was a first in ski touring for this athlete, who spent most of his career between 2008 and 2017 with FDJ before joining the Belgian team Wanty-Gobert at that point until his retirement from sport at the end of 2020. Since then, Yoann has been fighting an autoimmune disease that is causing him to lose his sight. To cope with this situation, returning to sport on a daily basis has become an essential driver. “This evening as a whole was extraordinary because, for me, these are the values of sport: getting close to your limit, surpassing yourself without necessarily surpassing others. For my part, pinning on a bib again and having the adrenaline, dopamine and endorphins help me overcome the illness. In this situation, there is often a tendency to withdraw into yourself. In general, sport represents a social link. In this race, you chat with the other runners, people come to see you and cheer you on. That is really everything I love about sport. Beyond the competition, conviviality and human values are very present, it’s really cool,” he told us in essence after covering the 3.2 km and 500 m of elevation gain of this Vertical Race course between Courchevel Le Praz and Courchevel 1850 in 44min35s.

A fine experience that has made him want to come back and take on, as a team, the formidable and extraordinary triathlon “Dynastar X3 Courchevel”, combining cycling, trail running and ski mountaineering, on 13 April, before picking up the microphone again to commentate on the Tour de France, and more particularly the 18th stage between Vif and Courchevel, which will finish at the Col de la Loze (altitude 2,304 m) on Thursday 24 July.

Yoann Sert under 23 minutes.

At mid-season, peak form is starting to arrive for most athletes, and particularly the elites of the discipline, with the Ski Mountaineering World Championships approaching, to be held in Morgins, Switzerland, from 2 to 9 March, before the great ski mountaineering party on Monday 10 March at the 2025 MSTC finale.

With 36 seconds gained since the first round held on 15 December during the World Cup, Yoann Sert won this 8th round in 22min45s, which puts him in 27th position in the Provisional Overall Standings. Compared with his personal best of 21min41s, there is no doubt he should improve further in the rounds to come and make the final top 10. This weekend, he will take part in “La Belle Etoile” paired with TDS winner Thibault Marquet , who won the 6th round of the MSTC on 15 January. 

Winner of the 2nd and 5th rounds, Frédéric Perrin has to settle for second place with a time of 25min44s after a fine battle with Quentin Zijp of team Isère Montagne, 3rd in 25min50s.

A special mention goes to Phat Watteau Louis Dara (10 years old), who completed the course in 42min05s (Vermeil medal) accompanied by Joseph Chedal Anglay, an MSTC regular.

3rd bouquet for Géraldine Bau.

A regular on the podium since the start of this season 15 (3 wins and 2 places of honour), Géraldine Bau clocked 32min15s and leads the women’s S3V challenge, S3V being a partner company of the event. Erika Borg of Valmorel finished second in 33min13s. She finished ahead of Italian Martina Giachino , who bagged her 3rd podium of the season in 34min42s.

Echappées Belles and crêpes on the menu for the 9th round.

It has become one of the unmissable stages of the MSTC. The Candlemas special, with crêpes expertly made, as every year, by 2 loyal participants, Nathalie Langeard and Gilles Poirier, will reward the runners of the 9th round next Wednesday.

This 9th round will also be in the spotlight, with presenter Sophie Jovillard coming to give the start as part of a report for the programme “Echappées Belles”. 

Next date: Millet Ski Touring Courchevel on Wednesday 5 February 2025