Trail running - or off-road running- is booming in France, with around 80 events organised every week, and interest soaring in events like the Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc. But some say the rise is damaging the sport.
More than one in three French people regularly run, according to a 2018 Odoxa poll* for RTL and Groupama, with 14% ‘considering’ a marathon attempt.
After a steady growth in popularity over the past 15 years, long distance trail runs can almost claim the same mainstream appeal.
More than a million people are now estimated to take part in France, with more than 4,200 trail runs organised in each year.
The ‘holy grail’ of the sport, the long-distance 171km Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB) has grown so much in popularity that it now attracts major sponsors (last year’s was, controversially, car manufacturer Dacia).
“Ten years ago, you'd barely get a beer at the finish, and if you were lucky, a cupcake,” said Andy Symonds, one of Europe's most successful trail runners, to FranceInfo.
This year the UTMB was broadcast on television from August 26 to September 1, with participants paying up to €400 to claim prizes rising from €1,500 for a tenth-placed finish to €20,000 for the winner.
Read also: US ultra-trail runner shares fun and pain of winning Mont Blanc race
‘It was like a U2 concert’
Despite the challenge and the high entry fee, these events often sell out in minutes.
The Trail de la Côte d'Opale sold out 5,000 spaces in 12 minutes when it opened to participants last year, said race organiser Franck Viandier.
“It was like a U2 concert! Every year, we turn away between 3,000 and 4,000 people,“ he said. “For the Saturday races, we could easily double the capacity. And we've devised a system to prevent people from buying more than one race number…”
Because the race route passes through several protected areas, the organisers have had to reach an agreement with the regional nature conservation authorities, and keep numbers limited.
The ‘Parisians’ are coming…
The super-fast ticket sales have been attributed to what has been called ‘the Parisians’ - a new set of urban professionals who have crossed into trail running from typical road running (which itself is experiencing a boom).
Some races in Isère are even keen to attract literal Parisians, and advertise that they are “just two hours away by TGV”.
However, these participants are not always “familiar with the habits and customs of running in the great outdoors”, said Mr Viandier.
“We've really felt this change at an educational level. The kind of person who doesn't understand why you don't serve a drink at the refreshment station if you haven't brought your reusable cup, or why there aren't refreshment stations every 2km like in road marathons,” he said.
Sociologist Olivier Bessy, himself an experienced trail runner, said that the sport’s rising popularity is “a reflection of changes in society”, and a combination of earlier values of “a return to nature and simplicity”, and the “always more” desire for discipline and greater challenges.
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“The symbolic [street cred] benefits are considerable,” he said to FranceInfo. “Saying you've finished the UTMB is like saying you've done the Paris Marathon.”
There is even a diploma on trail running at Grenoble-Alpes University. Its head, Axel Pittet, said that the sport’s popularity was partly due to people’s insatiable interest in stories about “the struggle between man and nature”.
‘Dissonance’ in values
Yet, new brands and events are popping up more and more, keen to cash in on the soaring interest. It can cost more than €800 a year for participants to buy new gear and take part in a few races (according to figures from the 2022 Running Barometer.
Eco-responsible specialist brands like Wise sell trail running T-shirts for €150 and rucksacks for €300.
Trail-running is, as a result, caught in the middle of its “back to nature” values, and participants’ desire for the latest gadgets and kit. “Trail-running is aware that it is in the middle of this dissonance,” said Mr Pittet. “In France, trail running has become gentrified.”
Local councillors are also hopping on the trend, especially in mountainous areas that lend themselves to trail running, and are suffering from a lack of snow in colder seasons.
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‘Greenwashing’ and ‘hasty’ sponsorship?
Unsurprisingly, sponsoring companies are keen to attach their name to a sport that embodies fashionable concepts, from fitness, the great outdoors, and a love of nature.
But some experts now say that the rising interest is bringing negative consequences, and a risk of ‘greenwashing’ from some less-than-environmentally-friendly firms (‘greenwashing’ is a type of marketing spin that companies use to suggest that they are more eco-friendly than they really are in practice).
“We're on the verge of becoming like cycling in terms of greenwashing,” said Mr Symonds, in reference to the Tour de France, which is used as an advertising platform by oil companies including Total and Ineos.
In response to this, Mr Symonds is working to organise his own “more ethical” race in Provence.
“We must admit, [having Dacia as the main sponsor] was not well received,” said Frédéric Lénart, UTMB Group's managing director, to FranceInfo. This year, sports equipment and trainer manufacturer Hoka was a sponsor (although Dacia is still one of the event's partners).
“The brand remains a partner, but a little less visible. Perhaps we were a little hasty. But we're convinced that we're still sticking to the values of trail running,” he said.
*Odoxa online poll of 1,013 adults between April 4 and 5 2018
