Kipngeno and Njeru Unstoppable at Giir di Mont Uphill
Kenyan pair continue their winning streaks in a new addition to an old classic on the Valsir Mountain Running World Cup.
There were wonderful conditions for the first edition of Giir di Mont Uphill as the 4th Gold Label race of the 2022 Valsir World Cup took place under clear blue skies in the mountains around Premana, Italy. The brand new race saw athletes race 9km from the town centre to the spectacular setting of Alpe Solino, 1,050m up above.
Against international fields containing World Cup winners and World and European champions, and with the race’s place in the Italian Championship bringing in the best domestic talent, the Team Run2gether duo of Joyce Njeru and Patrick Kipngeno continued their phenomenal 2022 seasons, each taking their 4th straight Gold Label win in the Valsir Mountain Running World Cup.
The women’s race was the first to get underway. After a cautious start, Njeru made her move with 2 kilometres run, looking to capitalise on the race’s fast first 5km. Nobody followed and the defending World Cup champion carried an advantage over the rest of the field as the course steepened in the second half.
In her first World Cup appearance of the year, the great Andrea Mayr battled hard to close this gap, coming agonisingly close, but there just wasn’t enough race left for the 6 time World Champion to make the catch and Njeru held on to take the win by 20 seconds.
Madalina Florea of Romania, silver medallist in the Up and Down race at the European Championhips, stayed within touching distance of the front pair, finishing just 25 seconds further back to claim the third spot on the podium. Scout Adkin was 4th and Francesca Ghelfi was first Italian in 5th, taking the national title in the process.
Camilla Magliano and Lucy Murigi, 2nd and 3rd in the World Cup standings going into the race, finished 9th and 7th, adding valuable points to their tallies. Murigi is one of the athletes who will attempt the double this weekend, coming back in the morning to race the full 32km and 2,400m+ of Giir di Mont.
Unlike Njeru, Kipngeno pushed the pace right from the start, shadowed by his compatriots Lengen Lolkurraru and Philemon Kiriago. Lolkurraru faded but once again the Run2gether athletes stayed strong.
The margins were smaller than they were at La Montée du Nid d’Aigle 2 weeks go, but the result was the same; a 4th season win for Kipngeno in 46:09 with Kiriago second in 46:58. Were it not for his teammate’s superlative success, Kiriago would be the talk of the town; today marked the 3rd successive 2nd place finish on the Valsir World Cup for the 19 year old.
The pair were pushed all the way by French and European champion Sylvain Cachard, who finished 3rd just 24 seconds behind Kiriago. Andrea Rostan, the first Italian, and Zak Hanna both had excellent races finishing 4th and 5th respectively, narrowing the gap between them as they vie for the 3rd spot in the overall standings. Hanna hangs on to it for now.
Cesare Maestri’s 6th place was enough for him to seal the Italian championship and defending World Cup Champion Henri Aymonod made a welcome return to racing after time out due to injury, finishing 8th.
In the U20 races Axelle Vicari and Elia Mattio once again proved too strong for the competition, adding uphill victories to the wins that they took last month’s up and down Italian Championship race in Gazzaniga.
The action continues tomorrow with the 28th edition of Giir di Mont, the 5th Gold Label race of Valsir World Cup. Stay tuned!
Full results from today’s race are available here.
World Cup Standings after 7 races are here.
Photos by Marco Gulberti. Check out a full gallery here.
You can find results for all this year’s World Cup races, any more more besides, on the World Mountain Running Ranking.
After a 2 year break due to the pandemic, the classic Italian endurance test is back, and it’s better than ever! With the addition of a brand new Uphill race, incorporating the Italian National Championships, mountain runners from 14 countries will go toe to toe over 2 days of incredible racing in the beautiful mountains to the east of Lake Como.
All 3 of the women’s medallists from last month’s Up and Down Italian championship will be in the race; Francesco Ghelfi, who also won the Italian long distance title at Trofeo Nasego last year, Sara Bottarelli, 4th at the Up and Down race at the European Championships, and Alessia Scaini. If they want to add more silverware to their collections they will have to contend with Alice Gaggi, World and European medallist and one of the most consistent performers in the sport.
Giir di Mont
Following a successful career on the roads, with personal bests of 62:49 for the Half Marathon and 29:20 for 10k, both set in Kenya at around 2,000m above sea level and both marks he is intent on improving, Kipngeno made his mountain running debut in winning the Kenyan national championships in 2020.
You are on a team with 2 previous World Cup winners, Geoffrey Ndungu and Joyce Njeru. Have you been able to draw on their experience in your first year on the circuit?
A month earlier than the event’s usual slot in late June, these dates coincide with the Maxi-Race, a huge weekend of mountain and ultra-trail racing in Annecy which has hosted both the Mountain Running World Cup in 2019 and the Trail World Championships in 2015; an incredible atmosphere is guaranteed.
The 19.5 km course featured an outstanding performance by Patrick Kipnego and Philemon Ombogo Kiriago, who led the race from the start. The two Kenyans were shoulder to shoulder until the seventh kilometer. Later, Patrick arrived alone beating his teammate and taking first place with a record time of 1:38:54. Kipnego states that he was “feeling nice all along the course, and the landscape was breathtaking”. On his side, Kiriago was seven minutes behind his partner. For him, “the race was fantastic, but the altitude was challenging.” The French flag also joined this podium with a third place obtained by Théodore Klein, who set a time of 1:45:03.
At the moment of comparing this race to last year’s, there is an increasing interest from new athletes to join and a rapid ascent in the level of performance. In the previous edition, the winners were Lucy Wambui and Xavier Cheverier, who were present on this occasion too and occupied the 5th and 12th places respectively. The past year Cheverier got the new record of time in the course by completing the route in 1:44:25 however, Patrick Kipnego took his title away by marking 1:38:54. On the women side, after 16 years of what seemed an unbeatable time of 2:06:06 from Isabelle Guillot, finally, Joyce Muthoni Njeru set a new record with 2:00:31.
In the case of women, there are also some movements on the table, with a consolidated first place under the name of Joyce Muthoni Njeru accumulating 150 points after her previous victories in Portugal, Austria, and now France. Just behind her, the Italian Camilla Magliano claimed her second position in the ranking. Magliano climbed two spots after today’s splendid performance. The novelty in the results is Blandine L’Hirondel, whose name just appeared in the Cup with 40 points positioning herself as a threatening competitor.
The appointment for this promising race is scheduled for July 16, 2022. The 35th edition of the 
This date can become a turning point between Patrick Kipngrno and Zak Hanna. They occupy first and second place respectively in the table of points of the Valsir Mountain Running World Cup. In the same way, Henri Aymonod leading the World Mountain Running Ranking this year, and Geoffrey Gikuni Ndungu who is right behind him with a nine points difference. Miquel Corbera will also be in the mix after 2 top ten finishes at the European Championships in La Palma.
Runners can pick up their number on Friday between 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. The race starts on Saturday at 9:00 a.m and the first arrival is expected around 10:45 a.m.
The event was supported by the French Athletics Federation, European Masters Athletics and the MaXi Team association. In the presence of Giovanni Tracanelli, vice-president of EMA, Sandra Ferrari, Mayor of the commune of Les Déserts, and Philipe Gamen, President of Grand Chambéry, 19 nations marched through the city center of the Savoyard resort on Friday 8th July. A colorful parade that set the tone for the weekend and competitions offered to runners.
On Saturday it was time for the Trail race, a testing course of 38 km and 2000 m of climbing. The route offered some of the most beautiful viewpoints over the Bauges massif with two passes at the Croix de Nivolet Revard, an alpine promontory on Lake Bourget. On a route combining a perfect blend of technical sections and faster, rolling terrain, the race was fast paced. Britain’s Andrew Fallas was the first to cross the line in 3:28:40. Two Frenchmen, Nicolas Halgrain and Christophe Polaszek 3:29:53 followed close behind, 3:29:31 and 3:29:53 respectively.
For both Kenyans these represented their second wins from the two Gold Label events thus far in the 17-race series.
Recently crowned European uphill champion Cesare Maestri of Italy was next in 1:13:47, ahead of Austria’s Manuel Innerhofer (1:14:06). Defending champion Lengen Lolkurraru of Kenya was ninth.
Njeru, ranked No.1 on the World Mountain Running Association’s global rankings, said: “In the first kilometre, I had to see who was strong and who was keeping the pace. In the second kilometre I decided to push. It was not slippery like last year. I was feeling positive from the beginning. It went as I expected. I think I am in good shape. My target is to once more become the overall winner [of the World Cup].”
Njeru continues her quest to claim a second consecutive World Cup title. She began in style with victory in the opening Gold Label race at 
On the men’s side, Lolkurraru will be looking for a repeat of his 46-second win last year. With a recent 30:23 10,000m time on the track to his name, he clearly has the speed to achieve that. However, he faces a strong field set for what could be a close race. 
The starting strip fell at precisely eight in the morning. The men and women left at the same time giving their best to take advantage of their rivals. The rain did not intimidate the competitors. The trails became muddy and small streams formed through the ascents and descents totaling more than 2000 meters of elevation.
The order and time of the competitors were as follows:
The podium is no stranger to both winners. Sandra Ferreira has previously won competitions like the 13th edition of Corridas Vindimas in Castelo de Paiva. Moreover, she belongs to the Sporting Club of Espinho/Antonio Leitao. On his side, Germano Figueira also signed as part of his club Amigos da Montanha, which translates to friends of the mountain, a place where he spends a lot of time. He has some previous victories as his 3rd place in the Amarante Trail, and 5th place in the Ultra Trail Serra do Alvão 2021.