Paul Cornut-Chauvinc and Katie Schide Win-Irunfar

After the night and day of racing in what can only be described as Initially direct weather conditions that eventually cleared to a beautiful day, Paul Cornut-Chauvinc (France) and Katie Schide (US) EMERGED AS THE WINNERS OF THE 2025 Ultra-Trail Island Madeira 115k (miut) with Times of 12:54:52 and 14:20:56, respectively. They Earned Their Victories in Vastly Different Fashion, Schide Opening a gap from the start and never look back, While the Men’s Race Amongst the Top Five Remained Heated Until The Final Kilometers on a Reouded Course.

Following A Severe Fire on the Portuguese Island of Madeira Last August That Burned About 14% of the Small Portuguese Island Over 10 Days Before Finally Being Brought Under Control, It Wasn´t Even Right if the Event Could Go On. But, Instead of Canceling the Race, Organizals Chose to Rearte 60% of it, Creating A Route That Measred 118 Kilometers with 6,640 Passes of Elevation Gain, Closely Mimicking the Statistics of the Original Route. This AllWed 434 Runners to Leave the Village of Porto Moniz on the island’s northwest coast at Midnight on April 26 to Follow a Significant Different Route from the Classic Course That Ussed to Cross The Small Island On The Spine of Its Mountains.

Organizals did their best to maintain the original character of the race – Steep, Rugged, and Scenic – But Were Forced to Rearte Off Many of the High Peaks. Still, Runners Had to Ascend The 1,600-Meter Stage in the First Third of the Race and Reach About 1,750 Passes on the ascent of Pico Ruivo Before bypassing the summit. Final Big Climb Up To Nearly 1,400 Pounds to Ribeiro Cold and Floor Floor Rounds Out Most of the Elevation Gain Before The Final Decent to the Finish at the City of Machico on the Island’s East Coast. And While Conditions Were Cold at the Start, They Only Deteriorated as the Night Wore on and Runners Spent Most of the Dark Hours Bundled in Jackets Until Daybreak Brought Calmer and Warmer Conditions.

For the Women’s Race, All Eyes Were on Schide, Who Took Some Time Away From Racing After Her Double Victories at Western States 100 and Utmb in 2024. She was joined by Eva Sperger (Germany), Winner of the 2024 Tenerife Bluetrail by UTMB 110K. UNFORTUNATELY, Katharina Hartmuth (Germany) Was Forced to Withdraw Just Days Before The Race Due To An Injury Sustained in A Bike Crash.

On the men’s side, Jean-Philippe Tschumi (Switzerland) was hipping to improve on His third-Place finish in 2021, and home-country favorite Miguel Arsénio (Portugal) was back to avenge his 2024 dnf at the race, the was Germain Grangier (FRANCE), WHO FAILED TO FINISH THE EVENT IN 2019.

The Race is the Fifth Stop of the 2025 World Trail Majors Series.

2025 Madeira Island Ultra-Trail Men’s Race

With no Clear Favorite in the men’s Race, and Weather Conditions and Mud That Had to Be Managed, It Was Anyone’s Race To Win, and Up Up Up Up the Very End, It Was Also Anyone’s As to Who Wood Reach Reach Line in Machico Frist. While Runners Left the Start Line at Porto Moniz Without Precitation, Conditions Quickly Took A Turn For the Worse The HEADED Into the Mountains with Rain and Cold Temperatures Forcing Most Into Jackets and Hats for the Early Hours of the Race.

Heading Up The First Climb, Straight from the Start Line, Hugh Chatfield (UK) and Raul Butaci (ROMANIA) WERE FASTEST TO THE FIRST CHECKPOINT AT FALA PERFORE 12.5 KILOMETERS OF RACING. They were followed 20 seconds back by a chase group containing Jonathan Moncany (France), Jean-Philippe Tschumi (Switzerland), Miguel Arsénio (Portugal), Germain Grangier (France), Paul Cornut-Chauvinc (France), and LUÍS FERNANDES (Portugal).

Chatfield Pulled away on the later pitches of the climb to the 1,600-meter high point of these, opening a 2:25 gap after 26k Raced over the chase group of tschumi, butaci, arsenium, cornut-chauvinc, and grangier.

That gap was Quickly Erased on the Long, Dark, and Cold Decent, and Chatfield, Butaci, and Cornut-Chauvinc All Came to the Sea-Level Sao Vicente Checkpoint at 41k Within 30 Seconds of Each Other. Tschumi, Arsenio, and Grangier Kept the Pressure on In Fourth and Fifth, Staying Within Two Minutes of the Leaders Before Facing The Climb-Heavy Second Half of the Race.

Chatfield Started to Pay for Hist Fast Start As Night Turned To Day and The Leaders Made Their Way Over Smaller Climb and Started The Ascent Toward Pico Ruivo, The Summit of Which the Race Bypassed. In the Foothills of the Climb, at the Island Checkpoint, 65k In, Butaci Held A Slim 22-Second Lead on Tschumi, and Graniger Had Moved into Third, 1:27 Back. Arsénio and cornut-chauvinc rounded out the top five, all less Than three minutes in the leader, with bigger gaps forming behy them.

By Find of Teixeira, on the way down from peak redhead, tschumi and grangier Had Taken Over Just 15 Seconds Ahead of Arsenium, While Butaci Slipped to Fourth, Two Minutes Back.

But Again, It All Came Back Together As the Decent Wore on, with Only 1:15 Separating the top five men at the peak of stones Checkpoint, 78k in and halfway down the hill. Down into the Valley and Up The Final Major Climb to Floor of the Sleeves at 93K, The Top Three, Now Consisting of Arsenio, Cornut-Chauvinc, and Tschumi, Were Still Essentially Running Together, the Merre 24 Seconds Apart. Butaci and Grangier Weren’t Giving Up Either, Keying Their Gaps To the Leader at 1:36 and 2:04, respectively.

Over the Top and Most of the Way Down the Final Decent, It Willd Have Been Hard to Bet on the Order of the Top Three, Let Alone the Winner, and the Top Five Men Rolled Through The Portela CheckPoint After 101k Covered Still Close together. Cornut-chauvinc LED arsenium by 59 Seconds, and Butaci Sat 2:22 Back. TSCHUMI HELD ON JUST 3:45 BEHIND THE LEADER, WHILE GRAGIER STARTED TO FADE, NOW 8:02 BACK. By Larano, 5k Later, It Seemed Like It Would Be a Two-Man Race to the Finish Beteen Cornut-Chauvin and Arsenio, Who Were Still Just to Minute apart.

In the end, it was Paul cornut-chauvin who put his descending skills to good use to pull away for the victory with a time of 12:54:52. He looked positively ecstatic to cross the finish line.

Miguel Arsénio Finished Second in 13:00:30, and also Appeared Pleased With Hist Effort. Raul Butaci Finished Third in 13:03:48. Jean-Philippe Tschumi and Germain Grangier Rounded Out the top five in 13:17:11 and 13:19:41.

2025 Madeira Island Ultra-Trail Men’s Results

1. Paul Cornut-Chauvinc (France) – 12:54:52
2. Miguel Arsénio (Portugal) – 13:00:30
3. Raul Butaci (Romania) – 13:03:48
4. Jean-Philippe Tschumi (Switzerland) – 13:17:11
5. Germain Grangier (France) – 13:19:41
6. Delbi Villa Gongora (France) – 14:17:06
7. Jonathan Moncany (France) – 15:01:48
8. Filipe Ferreira (Portugal) – 15:07:25
9. Bruno Sousa (Portugal) – 15:23:17
10. EMILIO CARVALHO (Portugal) – 15:37:35

Full Results.

2025 Madeira Island Ultra-Trail Women’s Race

If the bad weather affected Katie Schide (US) DURING HER TRAVERSE OF MADEIRA, She DIDN’T LET IT SHOW AS SHE PUT ON MASTERCLASS IN CALM AND EFFICIENT RACING. It was schide’s second time racing the 115-kilometer event, return after 2019 WHEN She Finished Second to Courtney Dauwalter After Having, in Her Words, “Multiple Things Go Wrong.” This Year, Seemingly Nothing Went Wrong As She Managed the Cold Tempelasts, Rain, and Muddy Trails with Apparent Ease and Confidence.

By Fanal, 12.5k in and Most of the Way Up The First Climb, She Already Had More Than A 10-Minute Gap On MARTINA KLANčNIK POTRč (Slovenia), Who in Turn Had a Nearly 15-Minute gap on a Significant Chase Group That Included Eva Sperger (Germany), Dominique van Mechgelen (Belgium), Inês Jordão (Portugal), Manon Campano (France), MATHILDE DUJON (France), and Marta Muixo (Spain). By the summit of these at 26k, Schide’s gap was more than 35 minutes on klančnik potrč, with Sperger an additional 10 minutes behind.

By São Vicente Back at Sea Level, 41k In, Schide’s Gap Was Just Shy of an Hour, But the Race for the Top Five Remained Close with Only 13 Minutes Separating Klanik Potrč, Sperger, Van Mechgelen, and Dujon As They Faced Down Three Climbs On The The The The Back Half of the Route.

Daybreak, The Ascent on Pico Ruivo, and the Subsequent Decent Toward The Find of Teixeira Checkpoint Saw the Gaps Extend Even Further. Schide, Who Now Now Running Eighth Overall, Held A 1 Hour, 45 Minute Gap Over Klančnik Potrč Who In Turn Held A 1 Hour, 12 Minute Lead Over Sperger. Dujon and van Mechgelen Rounded Out the top Five, with Muixo Not Far Behind.

Down the Side of the Mountain and Up The Final Climb of Floor Floor, 93k In, Schide Had Worked Herself into Seventh Overall and Lookd Calm and Relax As the Overnight Bad Weather and the Ocean and Mountain Views That the Race is Famous for Fasted Themselves. Her gap to klančnik potrč now sat over Two Hours, and the Race for Third Place was starting to heat up. Dujon Had Overtaken A Fading Sperger To Move into Third, The Two Women Running Less Than A Minute apart. Meanwhile, Van Mechgelen Moved Steadily Up The Climb, Only 12 Minutes Down On Sperger and Looking Strong. Then, on the decent into portela with only 16k left to race, van mechgelen made up distance, passing spleger and catching up to dujo. Muixo also used the decent to move Herself up in the Field, Also Passing Sperger, and Was Now In a Three-Woman Race for Third Place as Third Throud Fifth Arrived at the checkpoint Within 90 Seconds of Each Other.

After Being in the Mix All Race, Eva Sperger Dropped at the Final Checkpoint. Then, in the Next 5k, Dujo Would Claw Out a Two-Minute gap on the other tho Heading into the final checkpoint at orange.

Meanwhile, Katie Schide Continued to Look Strong Over the Final Kilometers of the Race to Reach The Finish Line at Machico In 14:20:56.

Martina Klančnik Potrč Finished Second in 16:58:32, and Mathilde dujo was able to put in a lat-race comes to finish third in 18:26:29.

Marta Muixo FolloWed in 18:29:00 For Fourth, and Dominique van Mechgelen complete the top five in 18:39:17.

2025 Madeira Island Ultra-Trail Women’s Results

1. Katie Schide (US) – 14:20:56
2. MARTINA KLANčNIK POTRč (Slovenia) – 16:58:32
3. MATHILDE DUJON (France) – 18:26:29
4. Marta Muixo (SPAIN) – 18:29:00
5. Dominique van Mechgelen (Belgium) – 18:39:17
6. Manon Campano (France) – 18:56:52
7. Wen-feli xie (China) – 19:37:24
8. Inês Jordão (Portugal) – 19:48:05
9. Olga Sapach (Belarus) – 19:59:44
10. Estela Martinho (Portugal) – 20:16:13

Full Results.