Courtney Dauwalter Earns Auto-Qualification To 2026 UTMB After Win At Nice Côte D’Azur

Last Updated: Oct 7, 2024 1:47 pm

Jessy Carveth

Jessy Carveth

Jessy is our Senior News Editor, pro cyclist and former track and field athlete with a Bachelors degree in Kinesiology.

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On Saturday, American ultrarunning legend Courtney Dauwalter added another impressive win to her 2024 season, taking first in the women’s race at the Nice Côte d’Azur by UTMB 100-miler. Not only did she dominate the women’s field, but she also placed second overall, finishing just 13 minutes behind Spain’s Cristofer Clemente Mora, the men’s winner.

Courtney Dauwalter Earns Auto-Qualification To 2026 UTMB After Win At Nice Côte D'Azur 1

This victory continues Dauwalter’s winning ways of 2024, following victories at Transgrancanaria, Hardrock 100, Mt. Fuji 100, and SwissPeaks 70. Her success comes on the heels of a historic 2023 season, where she became the first athlete to win the Western States, Hardrock, and UTMB 100-milers in the same year.

This recent race began in Auron, France, at an elevation of 2,523 meters. Runners had to negotiate 8,200 meters of climbing over the 150-kilometer route, catching views of the Mediterranean at the halfway point before descending toward the finish line in Nice.

This year, participants were faced with heavy rain, making the technical, rocky terrain even more difficult to navigate. The top three finishers in both the men’s and women’s races earned automatic entry to the 2025 UTMB World Series Finals.

Courtney Dauwalter Earns Auto-Qualification To 2026 UTMB After Win At Nice Côte D'Azur 2

Dauwalter kept pace with men’s winner Mora for much of the race, trading leads several times before he ultimately finished in 21:22:14, just 13 minutes ahead of Dauwalter, who crossed the line at 21:35:57.

French runner Nicolas Cerisier finished third overall and second in the men’s race at 22:28:25.

Dauwalter held a significant gap in the women’s field, with second place Enrica Dematteis of Italy finishing five hours later in 26:33:34, followed by France’s Agathe Lebel at 26:37:57.

Post-race, Dauwalter reflected on the experience, “I feel extremely fortunate to have experienced this race in such a stunning setting… I knew the course would be demanding, technical, and very tough, especially with the rain overnight, but I loved every moment.”