On Friday, August 28, Geneviève Asselin-Demers lined up at the Place de l'Église in Chamonix for the UTMB : 174 kilometers, close to 10,000 meters of elevation gain, three countries. It's the race trail runners talk about like no other. Here's how she got there, in her own words.
A jagged season. No two blocks of Geneviève's 2026 season looked the same. Knee surgery to remove an old piece of metal opened her year, and the months that followed were about finding her legs again more than chasing results. The comeback wasn't smooth.
"A year of preparation that went in fits and starts, with knee surgery to remove a piece of metal. Pain through my first three big races of the season, but it worked on the mental side."
A comeback that fell short of her own bar. By the time the Canadian championships came around, the surgery and the early-season pain were supposed to be behind her. She came back with an 8th-place finish, a real comeback after a rough year, but far from what she was aiming for. By her own standards, it wasn't enough.
"A strong comeback for the Canadian championships, with a result that's disappointing by my own high standards."
Two weeks at the Craft Cottage. With the disappointment of the nationals behind her, the final block of training became less about chasing fitness and more about arriving at the start line in the right shape, mentally and physically. Before Chamonix, Geneviève joined her Craft teammates and the Craft crew for one last training block together, the final tune-up before the start line.
"A preparation that's going beautifully, with rigorous support from specialists."
The fear that comes with the finish line. UTMB isn't a blank page for Geneviève, it's personal ground. Her only career DNF happened on this exact course, in Courmayeur, after a fall and a concussion forced her out mid-race. Two weeks before the start, she wasn't hiding how that memory sat with her.
"Febrile, excited, and scared, because this loop around the rocks scares me. My only DNF ever, after a bad fall and a concussion that forced me to pull out in Courmayeur."
The goal this time. Going back to the same mountains that once stopped her could have been about proving something or settling a score. Instead, Geneviève kept her goal simple. Not to erase what happened in Courmayeur. To finish, and to enjoy it.
"I'm going back with one goal: have fun, finish it, and leave nothing behind."
