Moorea, with postcard-perfect scenery and a ruthless world. The sister island hosts a new edition of the Tahiti Moorea Ultra Trail, promising hell for athletes. Roots, rocks, mud… All under nearly 80% humidity. On jagged courses, bodies will be pushed to the limit. The program features five races, including an ultra-trail over more than 100 kilometers and 4,000 meters of cumulative elevation gain, which crosses Moorea’s caldera, with, in its latter stages, the steepest passages.
To lay out these new routes, the Ultra League had to open nearly 40 kilometers of trails. Uncharted stretches, often difficult to traverse, that promise to complicate runners’ tasks even further.
“The second part will be much harder and more complicated for everyone. (…) It’s longer than last year; we’ll also pass through places we haven’t had access to for several years, so I think it will be tough, with the weather, with the heat,” predicts Delby Villa Gongorra, an athlete registered for the TMUT 105k.
This year, the level rises again, with top trail runners in the XXL formats, such as Louis Calais, Alexis Sevennec and Yoann Lecauchois, winner of the TMUT last year. Athletes who are specifically looking to go off the beaten path.
“When you come here, you know you are on an island and it isn’t like home, that’s the challenge too,” analyzes Alexis Sevennec, an athlete registered for the TMUT 105k.
“We’ll need to be careful at the start and manage the race well, paying attention to hydration because it will be hot and it will be tough,” reminds Yoann Lecauchois, registered for the TMUT 105k and winner of the TMUT 80k in 2025. “In terms of competition, it’s a bit tougher than last year, so there will be tough opponents in the race, so we’ll have to manage well.”
Among the favorites: Delby Villa Gongora, a reference in ultra-trail on the fenua. Long at the forefront last year, he ultimately finished in second place, 31 minutes behind Yoann Lecauchois. This year, he hopes to take his revenge on his home soil.
“He’s a serious client. He knows the course by heart, he’s at home, clearly I count him as one of the big favorites, plus he’s someone who is really strong, he has a strong mindset, he proved it on several occasions, he made a podium at Val d’Aran this year, which is a well-regarded race (…). These are sturdy people, whom I respect a lot (…), it will be interesting to race with them and even enjoyable,” estimates Yoann Lecauchois.
More than 1,300 participants are signed up for this second edition, including 250 foreigners, all with one challenge: to take on the hell of the trails in the heart of Polynesian paradise
