The 100 miles (6.500m+) Quebec Mega Trail in Canada is the next stop of the GranCanaria World Trail Majors this weekend; July 5-7, 2024. It’s the second race on the North American continent and follows the St. Lawrence River from Charlevoix to Mont-Sainte-Anne through the Laurentian Mountains.
The favourites to win the women’s queen race are Claire Bannwarth (France, Topo Athletic/Brubeck), Dominika Stelmach (Poland, On/Suunto), Alyssa Clark (USA), Myléne Sansoucy (Canada) and Kelsey Hogan (Canada, Norda).
Champions are back
Hogan is the defending champion and course record holder with 24:34:58. Bannwarth won this year the Montane Winter Spine Race in England. She finished third at the Istria 100 in Croatia and fourth at the Madeira Island Ultra Trail in Portugal, the race Alyssa Clark didn’t finish due to a fall and hypothermia. Last year Clark won the 25k VDA at Val d’Aran, just like the 100 miles Canyons Endurance Run.
Stelmach was fourth in The North Face Transgrancanaria 127k (6.220m+) race this year. Sansoucy, a Quebec local, won last year the QMT 80 at the Quebec Mega Trail, the 80 kilometres long (3.430m+) race. So she knows what’s ahead of her.
Sherpa versus Carretero
The course record in the men’s race is held by Sangé Sherpa (Nepal, Kailas): 19:35:52. Sherpa won the Quebec Mega Trail in 2022. This year he’s back in Canada to race. If he wants to win again, he has to beat Abel Carretero. The Spanish Otso runner finished fourth in The North Face Transgrancanaria this year. He was third in the Swiss Canyon Trail’s 115 k (5.294m+). Other contenders are Luís Fernandes (Portugal), who was sixth in MIUT this year, Anthony Lee (USA, Topo) and Ferdinand Airault (France, T8).
Photo: Sebastien Durocher
