01-04-2022 - News
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The Golf coast in the spotlight
From June 30 to July 3 2022, the 17th edition of one of the most beautiful trail running races in France will take place: the Ultra Marin®. Traversing the coastal paths of the 16 communes of the Golf of Morbihan, runners will be able to discover exceptional, rich and diversified courses by passing from one cove to another by small beaches in the middle of the rocks. To top off an already exceptional adventure, the race will include boat crossing to complete the tour of the small sea of Vannes and its 53 islands.
The Ultra Marin : one event, seven races
Whatever your level or your objectives, the Ultra Marin® offers something for everyone!
The event will start on Friday 30 July with the long-distance races. The most athletic and adventurous will start the festivities with the 100-km Raid from the Port du Crouesty, followed by the 175km Grand Raid, the Grand Défi Solidaire or the Grand Relais starting from Vannes.
On Saturday it’s the turn of the shorter formats including the Trail of 56 km and the 29km Nordic Walking. On Sunday, the 34km Route des Douaniers will offer a completely new circuit starting in Baden. The impressive arrivals of the Grandt Raiders - who started their adventure two days before - will close this incredible and festive weekend on the esplanade of the port of Vannes.
New year, new impetus
Following the 2021 edition, which was marked by Covid-19, the Ultra Marin® returns in 2022 with new impetus novelties. This year marks the return of the Grand Raid Solidaire. This format allows 30 teams of 10 people to run the entire 175 km course without timing, for the cause of their choice. Each team must submit a complete file to participate in this unique race, and the five best teams will be rewarded with a check for 1000 Euros. Still in this spirit of solidarity, the organization choose a different local association to support with the Food Bank of Morbihan chosen for 2022 - each runner will be able to choose to donate 5 Euros to this association via the solidarity bibs.
A very popular event
Each year, the Ultra Marin entices participants with a magnificent challenge on the seaside and more than 8'500 participants are expected for this 17th edition with six of the seven formats sold out.
At 175km the Grand Raid is the only race with the final bibs remaining and long distance runners who are already for the challenge are encouraged to sign up and secure their place before it sells out.
Blind runner Patrick Bernard, ready to start the 175-km race
The challenge and the desire to surpass oneself are commonplace for trail runners, and even more so for Patrick Bernard. Suffering with retinopathy pigmentosa (a degenerative disease), Patrick gradually lost his sight and gave up solo running in 2002. Motivated to continue sport, the 66-year-old Breton rediscovered running from a new angle: team sports.
He joined the Bussy Running (77) in 1998 and made strong friendships with other running enthusiasts. The members of the club then embarked on sporting and human adventures together such as the Marathon des Sables, the Trail du Bout du Monde, the Ecotrail de Paris and many others.
This year he will be at the start of the longest distance of L'Ultra Marin® accompanied by his guides and long-time friends, Claude Marconi and Eric Chevalier. Valérie and Alain Brebion will complete this exceptional team. In 2013, Patrick participated in the 56km race of the Trail de L'Ultra Marin®. To now return on a longer distance represents a real challenge. To prepare for his race, Patrick has equipped himself with a harness especially for the single-track areas. Indeed, he says this is his main challenge, along with the stony paths.
Patrick has always been passionate about sports and has always been attracted by the Breton landscapes. He is looking forward to the start of this race and to its unique atmosphere. The objective is simple: to finish the 175 km, and why not in less than 32 hours....