The Moroccan Elhousine Elazzaoui won, on Sunday, the legendary Zegama-Aizkorri race in the Basque Country, signing a real feat in the last kilometers. In 3:43 ”, he succeeded Legend Kilian Jornet, which he had followed in the previous edition.
Favorite at the start, Elazzaoui perfectly assumed its status. On the 42 km and 2700 m of elevation gain of this dreaded mountain test, he made the difference in the final, placing a sharp attack a dozen kilometers from the finish, shortly after the 30th kilometer, Relates the team. He will no longer be joined.
Elhousine Elazzaoui ?? Guanyaa it @Zegamaaizkorri (3:43:28)
El Marroquí de l’Equip nnormal es converteix en el prime cormedor africà en procortar-se el triomf a zegama pic.twitter.com/j6xiqohjht
– Ultres Catalunya (@ultrescatalunya) May 25, 2025
The race took place under a generous sun and a discreet wind, almost ideal conditions on this course often swept by bad weather. Elazzaoui dug an impressive gap, relegating his closest prosecutor, the Spaniard Andreu Blanes Reig, at seven minutes. Italian Daniel Pattis completes the podium.
“I am so happy, because I had finished second second here, behind Kilian Jornet. This time, it’s the right one! ”He said on the phone, again between doping control and the podium call.
“There was a little pressure because Kilian was not there, so everyone was waiting for me to win. But the atmosphere was crazy, people shouted my name, it carried me. ”
ELHOUSINE ELAZZAOUI
Aged 33, measuring 1.66 m for 59 kg, Elazzaoui is now a reference on short formats (21 to 42 km) with high drop. His knowledge of the Basque route weighed in the scale: “I attacked the 30th kilometer, I was confident. My experience allowed me to beat my record here, and to go and seek this victory. ”
Winner in 2024 of the Golden Trail World Series, one of the most raised circuits in the international trail, the Moroccan continues an exceptional season. He now plans to recover before flying to the United States, where he will participate in the Broken Arrow Skyrace on June 19, then in Tepec Trail, Mexico, the following week.
