By conquering a mountainous 140 kilometre course, the Belgian athlete proves she is one of the world’s best in this extreme discipline.
After a long forced break, Hélène Dassy made the comeback she had hoped for in Verbier. The Belgian, slowed down this winter by a stress fracture, returned to the top of ultra‑trail running by winning the demanding X‑Alpine, the flagship event of the Trail Verbier Saint‑Bernard by UTMB.
Nearly a year after her stunning second place at the TDS, Dassy confirms that she now belongs among the major figures of ultra‑running. At 32, the Namur native dominated the women’s field on a gruelling course of 140 kilometres and 9,000 metres of elevation gain. Her time of 23:17:31 earned her not only the victory but also an impressive tenth place overall, in a race won by Frenchman Bastien Fleury in 19:42.
In Verbier, the Belgian delivered a masterful performance, managing her effort perfectly to claim another prestigious mountain victory, two years after her triumph at the Ultra Tour du Beaufortain.
Bravo to this extreme athlete!
