British ultra runner Sabrina Verjee has described her record-breaking win at the Tor Des Géants (TDG) race as “my best performance to date”.
The fell runner from Cumbria, England, set a new women’s course record by more than five hours, in 80 hours 19 minutes. She is also the first female to finish the legendary 350km race in the Italian mountains in under 85 hours and she was fifth overall.
Sabrina, 41, from Ambleside, Cumbria, said: “I am super pleased with my race. I had some difficulties with lack of appetite due to the altitude, but I managed myself well and learned from the experience. I enjoyed the amazing journey and my win has left me feeling content.”
Silvia Trigueros Garrote, of Spain, who had won the race three times before, finished second in in 84 hours 58 minutes, which was a personal best. Her previous course record time was 85:23.
Jonas Russi, of Switzerland, who was second in 2021, was the TDG race winner in 70:36. Italian runners Simone Corsini and Andrea Macchi came second and third in 75:27 and 76:46 respectively.
What is the Tor Des Géants?
Considered one of the world’s toughest races, the Tor Des Géants extends to 330km and includes more than 24,000m of ascent. (That’s almost three times the height of Mt Everest). It takes place on the Alte Vie trails of the Aosta Valley of the Italian Alps. TDG starts and finishes in Courmayeur below the iconic mountain, Mont-Blanc.
There are more than 25 mountain passes of between 2000m and 3000m altitude to climb and descend.
There are six life-bases with food and drink, as well as multiple refugios (refuges) and support points en route. The runners have a total cut-off time of 150 hours. There are no set stops and each competitor decides where they will eat, rest or sleep throughout the day and night.
Who is Sabrina Verjee?
Sabrina has achieved many endurance running successes. Earlier this year, she set a new FKT on Saint Lucia’s highest three peaks. In 2021, she set a new Wainwrights Round record in the UK’s Lake District. She was the female winner of the Spine Race in 2020.
You can find out more about Sabrina in her new book, Where There’s a Hill. (Note: I receive a small commission for sales through this website.)
Sabrina’s record-breaking Tor des Géants 2022
Sabrina reports that she started the race at a “comfortable” pace. She said: “I don’t have a fast, fast pace and, anyway, this was a long race, so I set out at what I felt was comfortable. I definitely wasn’t racing early on.
“I stayed well down the field for the first section and it was only at about 50km and the first life-base at Valgrisenche that I passed the third and fourth placed ladies. I also found myself in top 20 overall but, still, I was doing my own thing and not racing. I didn’t care what was happening in front of me.”
Sabrina’s main concern became her appetite.
She said: “For the first eight hours I felt good and I ate really well. I had Mountain Fuel jellies and also the refreshment points were amazing with a huge array of food to choose from. I was pleased with how I was eating because I was worried about how the altitude would affect me.”
Sabrina had felt the effects of the high altitude during some recce runs in the two weeks prior to the race. She said: “I think the fact that the race includes many ups and downs, from up to 3000m and back down to around 300m, repeatedly, that it seemed to suppress my appetite. On recce days I was eating only one piece of chocolate all day.”
It was on the first night of the race that she really lost her appetite. Sabrina said: “I tried hard to keep eating and to manage my lack of fuelling but it was very difficult. I had to spend a lot longer at the support and life-bases than I would normally as I tried to force myself to eat.
“I knew from experience that if I overlooked proper nutrition that I would end up in a hole and feeling sick and unable to go on later on.
“In total, I had about 36 hours when eating was very difficult.”
‘Tors des Geants: A great race’
Aside from the fuelling issues, Sabrina speaks very highly of the race. She said: “The people and volunteers supporting the TDG are fantastic. They want to look after you and they offer a lot of food and very comfortable places to rest.
“There were incredible mountain stops where there were proper beds with clean linen and people so willing to help you.”
The scenery also inspired Sabrina. She says: “The landscape is amazing and I am keen to return for a holiday in this area. We were fortunate with the weather, too, and so I had clear views of the mountains.
“While some people found the conditions too warm, I liked the temperature. The peaks were a bit chilly and the valley was very warm but it suited me.
“We had beautiful full moons for two nights as well. It was as if someone had left on an overhead light.”
Running solo and with others
Sabrina started the TdG race on her own but then fell into running with other competitors when the opportunity arose.
She said: “After a night-time checkpoint at Eaux Rousses, where my husband Ben met me with food and kit, I started to feel a bit crap but I was still strong.
“I left there for a climb of Col Loson and I was amazed when I overtook a Swiss runner Martin Perrier. I am not used to overtaking people on the uphills because I am generally slower going up and faster on the descents. Martin then passed me later on going downhill.”
Heading into the next Rif. Vittorio Sella and the life-base at Cogne, Sabrina reveals she still couldn’t eat and had to sit for much longer than she would normally, while trying to coax down food.
After Cogne, she ran into Marco Gubert from Italy. She says: “Marco was feeling a bit fatigued and we ran together for a bit. I felt like I was slow but it seemed that everyone else was even slower than me. Then a runner went by me and this motivated me to go a bit faster.
“We started a longer and gentler climb of Col Finestra, which I quite enjoyed. I like gentler ascents but I was starting to feel very weary. It was by now about 8am in the morning. However, when the descent came, I felt okay again.”
Sabrina, who reports that she slept for less than half an hour in total in the race, took her first nap at Rif. Dondena, at around lunchtime on day two.
She says: “I felt like I was wasting a lot of time at the stop points because `I had to try to eat something and then I needed a sleep, too.
“I felt good enough for a fast descent after this and we headed down to about 300m elevation over the next 30km.”
At Donnas, the third life-base, Sabrina spent 40 minutes – “this seemed so long,” she recalled – acclimatising to the sudden heat. She said: “It was 30C and while I like the heat, I suddenly felt over-heated. I decided to have a rest. I think many people were suffering with the heat at this point.”
The next climb was described by Sabrina as “a slog”. She said: “It took me about 4.5 hours to reach the top of that pass and I felt tired.”
Reaching half way in Tor Des Geants 2022
The half way point on the TDG is Rif. Coda and Sabrina describes a stunning night. She said: “It was the second night by now and it was so peaceful and beautiful. There was a bright moon and the sun was just setting. It felt like an amazing place to be during a race.”
Sabrina’s plan to sleep for an hour was jeopardised by a banging door. She said: “I managed about 10 minutes and I felt rested enough. I ate a bit and got up.
“By then Marco had come in to the refuge, too, and we decided to leave together. It was great to have someone to chat to through the night. He was slightly faster than me on the ups and I was slightly faster on the downs but we had good banter.”
The racing starts for Sabrina
It was at the next refuge, Rif. della Barma, that Sabrina learned that Silvia, who was then leading the female race, was asleep. She said: “I guess I could have rushed off to take the lead here but I wanted to stick to my own race plan and I needed to eat. Although I didn’t rush I still left before Silvia woke up but not by much and she later overtook me while I was having a brief nap at the next refuge.”
During the following 20km, Sabrina caught another few runners. Sabrina also enjoyed a companionable cat-and-mouse run with Marco until the fourth life-base at Gressoney Palazzetto.
Leaving the base, Sabrina felt sleepy and in the end she had a five-minute nap at the next Rif. Alpenzu. By this point, she had started to be able to eat again.
Sabrina at Frassati in the later stage of the race. Credit: Stefano Coletta / Zzam Agency 
Climbing into the clouds. Credit: Riccardo Cabella / Zzam Agency
Sabrina rediscovers her appetite
Sabrina said: “Thankfully, by the third day of the race my appetite began to come back. I was somewhere around 48 hours after a good ascent to Champoluc and I drank a can of Red Bull and that really helped.
“Going up the next climb, I was with Marco and Jose and then I got to another life-base at Cretaz (Valtournenche). Ben met me there and he gave me a tasty chicken burger and I was suddenly eating well again.”
Sabrina was delighted that the food intake paid off with renewed energy and strength. She said: “I felt much better and I left with Marco and Jose again. I had a massive spurt of energy and I ran well for two hours on what I would call my kind of terrain.”
It was just after the next rifugio, Barmasse, that Sabrina spotted another British runner Damian Hall in the distance. She said: “I saw Damian ahead and I thought I’d like to catch up with him for a chat. But I never saw him. I must have overtaken him in the next 5km.”
Tors Des Geants 2022: Sabrina takes the female lead
At Vareton (Torgnon), at around 260km, Sabrina caught up with Silvia again. Sabrina said: “I thought it would be nice to run for a while with Silvia and we enjoyed a few hours together and chatting.
“At the next rifugio, Lo Magià, Silvia went for a sleep but I wasn’t feeling tired. I had a strong coffee and dark chocolate and I felt good enough to continue.
“It was a tough section of the route but I felt good and I had another burger at Oyace thanks to Ben.”
Leaving that CP, Sabrina was frustrated to head off in the wrong direction and she was forced to retrace her steps and then embark on what she felt was an “abysmal slope”. She said: “The trail was very steep and exposed and then there were pine cones everywhere. I ended up slipping and going into deep bog. It was a slog.”
The weather also changed here with cloud and drizzle. Sabrina put on her rain poncho. The final life-base, Rey (Ollomont) brought a treat for her, however.
Sabrina said: “Some of the support team of Martin [Perrier] had bought him some amazing cakes from a local patisserie. They told me Martin didn’t want anything more to eat and they let me devour some. There was black forest gateau and tiramisu. They were so delicious.
“This is the stuff that makes things happen. I was fuelled on sugar and I only had another 50km to go and I was now lead female.”
Of course, with every sugar high comes a low. Sabrina said: “I started up the next climb feeling great but then I suddenly felt dead on my feet. I was so tired. At the next refugio I had a sit down.”
By good fortune, Sabrina then bumped into a long-distance walker and she asked if she would hike with him. Sabrina said: “Frederico said he was happy to oblige me and we chatted and hiked for a while. It was such a help to keep me going.”
Sabrina also started to suffer what she calls “Ddéjà vu mode”. She said: “Many ultra runners talk of this feeling. You brain is so tired after so little sleep and you feel like you are experiencing something that has already happened but only just before. It was hard mentally and physically by now.”
Just 30km to finish
Taking on more food and drink at Bosses, Sabrina knew she had less than 30km to the finish line.
She said: “I climbed from there like a zombie. I’d never been so sleep deprived but I was still managing to run a bit. But then I’d fall asleep while on my feet. I kept trying hard and then I got to Leuchey and there was a long descent.
“It was lovely and grassy and I just ran and ran. It was at this point I felt some tendonitis in my left shin but I kept on going. The crowds as I ran into Courmayeur were amazing.
“I felt good. I thought, “Yeh, I’ve done it.”
Support and thanks for Sabrina’s Tor des Géants 2022 win
Sabrina wants to thank her husband Ben for his support, as well as all the race volunteers and teams. Her sponsors are La Sportiva, Mountain Fuel, Leki, Petzl, Berghaus and Supernatural Fuel. Sabrina also credits the strength and conditioning training she has done with Play in the Wild, in Cumbria, as being critical to her performance.
See: Tor des Géants.
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