Blandine L’Hirondel breaks Transvulcania

Trail running got one of those results that makes a whole season feel different. Blandine L’Hirondel won the 2026 Transvulcania Ultramarathon on Saturday, May 9, in 7:43:47, and that alone would have been big. But Lucy Bartholomew finished second in 7:49:26, which means two women ran faster than the old course record on the same day. On a race as storied and punishing as Transvulcania, that is not normal. ### What race are we talking about? Transvulcania is the classic volcanic island ultra on La Palma in Spain’s Canary Islands — roughly 75 kilometers with about 4,240 meters of climbing. The course starts at sea level at Fuencaliente Lighthouse, climbs for hours to Roque de los Muchachos at 2,421 meters, then drops hard back toward the coast before one last sting into Los Llanos. It’s famous because it mixes huge elevation with terrain that is still runnable enough to reward aggressive racing. (irunfar.com) ### Why is this result such a shock? Because the old women’s record was not soft. Ruth Croft set it only in 2024 at 8:02:49, beating Ida Nilsson’s 2017 mark. L’Hirondel didn’t just sneak under that — she chopped off 19 minutes and 2 seconds. Then Bartholomew also got under it by more than 13 minutes. In most big mountain ultras, one record goes and everyone says the conditions were fast. Here, the second-place runner also erased the old benchmark. That tells you the front of the race was moving at a completely different level. (irunfar.com) ### How did the women’s race actually unfold? Bartholomew went out hard and led early. L’Hirondel stayed close, then moved in front on the climb and built a gap. But the race never turned into a solo time trial. Bartholomew reeled her back near the high point and briefly took the lead, which forced L’Hirondel to answer on the descent. That response decided it — by Tazacorte, L’Hirondel had opened the race back up and carried the advantage through the final climb to the finish. (marathonhandbook.com) Basically, the record came out of a real duel, not a lonely perfect day. ### Why were times so fast? Conditions mattered. Last year’s race was battered by rain, wind, and cold, and several top runners unraveled. This year was mild and dry, and the fields were loaded on both sides. That combination is the sweet spot for Transvulcania — hard enough to stay selective, but fast enough that elite runners can actually press the descents and runnable sections instead of just surviving them. (marathonhandbook.com) ### Who else was in the mix? Emelie Forsberg finished third in 8:14:40, which is wild in its own way. That time would have won some editions comfortably, and it was only a little slower than her own winning mark from 2013. Spain’s Gemma Arenas took fourth and Beatriz Parrón finished fifth. On the men’s side, David Sinclair also smashed the course record, winning in 6:32:24 — more than 20 minutes faster than Luis Alberto Hernando’s 2015 mark of 6:52:39. Petter Engdahl was part of the lead battle but did not win. (irunfar.com) ### Why does L’Hirondel fit this race so well? She’s a two-time trail world champion, and her strength is that she can climb with the pure mountain specialists but also descend with real intent. That matters here because Transvulcania is basically a race of pressure changes — long controlled climbing, then a descent where hesitation costs minutes. Her own post-race comments centered on sticking to plan, then taking risks on the downhill when Bartholomew threatened to flip the race. (marathonhandbook.com) ### Does this change the rest of the season? It should. Transvulcania is one of the reference races people use to judge form going into the European summer. When one athlete breaks the record, you mark up a great day. When two do it in the same race, you start wondering if the level at the front of women’s trail running has moved again. That’s the real story here. ### Bottom line? L’Hirondel did more than win a famous ultra. She turned a benchmark performance into the opening move of a faster era — and Bartholomew made sure it wasn’t a fluke. (irunfar.com)