Below unusually scorching and sunny skies, the 2025 Sierre-Zinal noticed Kenyans sweep the boys’s podium and take the highest two spots on the ladies’s. Kenyan Philemon Kiriago improved on his second-place end from 2024 and earned his second win at this occasion, and Kenya’s Joyline Chepngeno repeated her victory from final yr. Whereas Kiriago didn’t take over the lead till the ultimate descent, Chepngeno led from earlier than the midway level.
Racers set off on Saturday, August 9, at 11 a.m. native time with a extreme excessive temperature warning for elevations below 600 meters, together with within the beginning village of Sierre. If the temperatures slowed the racing only a bit, they could have added to the ever-changing dynamics out on the course.
There was by no means any doubt that the occasion was going to be a quick and thrilling race from line to line for each the women and men. On the boys’s facet, some 23 males have been on the beginning line who’d beforehand run below 2:40, together with 4 earlier winners and 15 of final yr’s high 20. On the ladies’s facet, defending champion Chepngeno was again on the occasion that proved a breakout efficiency in 2024. She was joined by 10 different girls who’d run below 3:10, together with seven of final yr’s high 10 girls.
Philemon Kiriago was ecstatic at his win on the 2025 Sierre-Zinal. Photograph: WMRA/Marco Gulberti
The race is a part of each the Mountain Operating World Cup and the Golden Path World Collection. Along with this race’s strong historical past as a aggressive mountain race, this collection double-feature ensures a world-class subject. Each collection are nearing their completions, with the World Cup solely having two extra occasions on the finish of the month, and the Golden Path World Collection with solely its finale remaining.
Beginning in Sierre, Switzerland, within the Valais Alps, and ending within the village of Zinal, the 31-kilometer (19 miles) race covers a staggering 2,200 meters (7,200 toes) of elevation achieve with just one,100 meters (3,600 toes) of descent. The race is thought for its steep climbing, large views of the 5 surrounding 4,000-meter peaks, and large crowds lining the path.
You may study extra about Sierre-Zinal in our deep dive into the occasion’s historical past, recognition, and competitiveness.
2025 Sierre-Zinal Males’s Race
It was a scorching morning in Sierre as the sector took off from the small Swiss village. The excessive temperatures have been forecasted within the mid-30s Celsius (mid-90s Fahrenheit), and by the 11 a.m. begin, situations have been sweltering as the boys’s subject shot up the primary climb to Ponchette. Simply 7.5 kilometers in, however with 1,350 meters of uphill, this part holds a lot of the climbing. Adrien Briffod of Switzerland, who competed in triathlon within the 2024 Olympics and completed fortieth at Sierre-Zinal final yr, wasted no time attending to the entrance, reaching the checkpoint in 49:00 elapsed and 1 minute, 20 seconds forward of Kenya’s Josphat Kiprotich. Kiprotich was trailed by an extra 20 seconds by the Kenyan duo of Timothy Kibett and Philemon Kiriago, in addition to Dominik Rolli of Switzerland. Race favorites Patrick Kipngeno of Kenya and Elhousine Elazzaoui of Morocco ran collectively one more 20 seconds again, two minutes down on the chief, a pairing that we’ve seen race collectively early in races a number of occasions earlier than.
The following 4.5 kilometers traverse the mountainside, climbing solely one other 110 meters or so, to the help station at Chandolin, 12 kilometers in. Briffod maintained the identical lead on the sector with 1:08 elapsed on the clock, however this time it was over Kibett and Kiriago, who had closed 20 seconds on the comparatively new mountain runner, and Rolli, now in fourth, had additionally handed a fading Kiprotich, who now had Kipngeno and Elazzaoui scorching on his tail.
Patrick Kipngeno on his method to second place on the 2025 Sierre-Zinal. Photograph: WMRA/Marco Gulberti
At 16 kilometers in, the race’s midway level at Tignousa, Briffod nonetheless led, however the hole to Kiriago, who had distanced himself from Kibett, was now all the way down to 1:13, and Kipngeno had moved himself into fourth to make a trio of chasing Kenyans.
By the Hôtel Weisshorn, practically on the excessive level of the race, 20 kilometers in, Kipngeno was now second alongside Kiriago, only a minute behind Briffod, who reached the checkpoint with 1:45 elapsed. It was one other 48 seconds again to fourth place to Michael Selelo Saoli of Kenya earlier than larger gaps appeared to the remainder of the sector. With a excessive traverse and a busy seven-kilometer downhill remaining forward of them, it was nonetheless anybody’s recreation, doubtlessly even notorious descender Elazzaoui’s, who sat in seventh, 3:21 down on the chief.
As anticipated, as soon as the descent began, all the things modified. Briffod rapidly fell again, and Kiriago spent no time utilizing his good descending abilities to open an almost 30-second hole on Kipngeno by the point the pair acquired to Barneuza, 27 kilometers in with 2:10 elapsed. Saoli has moved as much as make it a Kenyan high three, and Briffod discovered himself in no-man’s land with 4 kilometers left to race.
Michael Selelo Saoli en route to 3rd place on the 2025 Sierre-Zinal. Photograph: WMRA/Marco Gulberti
Nobody might contact Philemon Kiriago on the ultimate descent, and he crossed the end line in Zinal with a time of two:28:45, which follows from his win in 2023 and second place in 2024. Teammate and pal Patrick Kipngeno completed second in 2:29:08, and Michael Selelo Saoli made it a Kenyan podium sweep by ending third in 2:29:14. Switzerland’s Adrien Briffod restricted his losses on the descent to complete fourth in 2:32:06, and Paul Machoka (Kenya), who made up time on the descent, completed fifth in 2:33:00.
Early tempo pushers Kiprotich and Kibett, respectively, simply missed ending inside the highest 10 and completed out of aggressive competition.
2025 Sierre-Zinal Males’s Outcomes
- Philemon Kiriago (Kenya) – 2:28:45
- Patrick Kipngeno (Kenya) – 2:29:08
- Michael Selelo Saoli (Kenya) – 2:29:14
- Adrien Briffod (Switzerland) – 2:32:06
- Paul Machoka (Kenya) – 2:33:00
- Martin Nilsson (Sweden) – 2:33:52
- Dominik Rolli (Switzerland) – 2:34:07
- Andreu Blanes (Spain) – 2:35:19
- Elhousine Elazzaoui (Morocco) – 2:35:58
- Francesco Puppi (Italy) – 2:37:49
The 2025 Sierre-Zinal males’s podium (left to proper): 5. Paul Machoka, 3. Michael Selelo Saoli, 1. Philemon Kiriago, 2. Patrick Kipngeno, and 4. Adrien Briffod. Photograph: WMRA/Marco Gulberti
2025 Sierre-Zinal Girls’s Race
Like the boys’s race, the ladies had an early solo chief in Caroline Kimutai of Kenya after the primary main block of climbing. The relative newcomer to the game who just lately gained the Golden Path World Collection cease in China this yr, the Nice Wall 24k, lined the primary 7.5 kilometers of climbing in 58:14 elapsed. Final yr’s winner, Joyline Chepngeno (Kenya), trailed by 1:43 and ran simply forward of Laura Hottenrott of Germany, who raced within the marathon on the 2024 Olympics. Behind her by practically a minute, 2:40 down on the chief, got here a trio of race favorites with 2022, 2020, and 2019 winner and present course file holder Maude Mathys of Switzerland, 2024 third-place finisher Mădălina Florea (Romania), and 2023 fourth-place finisher Miao Yao (China).
Joyline Chepngeno successful the 2025 Sierre-Zinal for the second consecutive yr. Photograph: WMRA/Marco Gulberti
By Chandolin, with 12 kilometers lined and 1:20 elapsed on the clock, Chepngeno had closed the hole to Kimutai by a minute and was now solely 41 seconds behind. Hottenrott was nonetheless properly inside placing distance in third, 1:41 off the chief, and Mathys and Florea ran just a few seconds aside in fourth and fifth, about 2:20 down on the lead. The again half of the highest 5 was now made up of Susanna Saapunki (Finland), 2025 Hardrock 100 and 2024 UTMB winner Katie Schide (U.S.), Yao, Cristina Simion (Romania), and Oria Liaci (Switzerland).
Chepngeno handed her countrywoman Kimutai on the climb to Tignousa and rapidly established a 20-second lead, now with 1:39 elapsed on the clock, and the hole to the remainder of the sector had grown by one other 30 seconds with the ordering of the highest 10 unchanged. As soon as within the lead, Chepngeno by no means seemed again. By midway, on the Hôtel Weisshorn at 16 kilometers lined and never lengthy to go earlier than the seven-kilometer, 750-meter drop into Zinal, Chepngeno had opened the hole on Kimutai to 1:16 and on Hottenrott to three:23. Mathys and Florea continued to run collectively, now 4:24 behind the chief.
Caroline Kimutai of Kenya seems elated with second place on the 2025 Sierre-Zinal. Photograph: WMRA/Marco Gulberti
Partway down the descent at Barneuza, 27 kilometers in with 4 kilometers left, Chepngeno held a slim 16-second lead on Kimutai. Mathys had handed Hottenrott and was now 2:53 behind the chief in third however held solely an eight-second margin on her podium spot. In the meantime, longer-distance specialist Schide made an enormous transfer to work herself into fifth, 3:37 off the lead. Behind Schide, the gaps started to widen with Liaci 4:34 again and Saapunki practically one other minute behind her.
Katie Schide takes third on the 2025 Sierre-Zinal, lower than a month after successful the 2025 Hardrock 100, displaying her unimaginable racing vary. Photograph: WMRA/Marco Gulberti
Joyline Chepngeno’s descending abilities acquired her to the end line within the lead for the second yr in a row with a time of two:54:49, narrowly edging out fellow Kenyan Caroline Kimutai, who completed second in 2:55:31. The U.S.’s Katie Schide made good use of her endurance, after successful the Hardrock 100 lower than a month in the past, to complete third in 2:58:30, shifting up two spots within the closing kilometers. The Swiss duo of Maude Mathys and Oria Liaci completed in fourth and fifth with occasions of two:58:56 and three:00:20, respectively.
The Romanian duo of Florea and Simion completed within the high 20.
The 2025 Sierre-Zinal girls’s podium (left to proper): 5. Oria Liaci, 3. Katie Schide, 1. Joyline Chepngeno, 2. Caroline Kimutai, and 4. Maude Mathys. Photograph: WMRA/Marco Gulberti
2025 Sierre-Zinal Girls’s Outcomes
- Joyline Chepngeno (Kenya) – 2:54:49
- Caroline Kimutai (Kenya) – 2:55:31
- Katie Schide (U.S.) – 2:58:30
- Maude Mathys (Switzerland) – 2:58:56
- Oria Liaci (Switzerland) – 3:00:20
- Laura Hottenrott (Germany) – 3:00:30
- Miao Yao (China) – 3:01:35
- Susanna Saapunki (Finland) – 3:02:29
- Anna Gibson (U.S.) – 3:05:25
- Joyce Njeru (Kenya) – 3:06:03
[In 2015, Maude Mathys received a warning without suspension from the Disciplinary Chamber for Doping Cases of Swiss Olympic for two positive tests for clomifene (previously clomiphene) after it was determined that she was mistakenly taking the drug without first obtaining a World Anti-Doping Agency Therapeutic Use Exemption.]
