Hugo Deck of France won the 2026 Diagonale des Fous in 22 hours 54 minutes 19 seconds, taking the 34th edition of the Grand Raid de La Réunion on his first attempt at the race. The 26-year-old finished on Friday 16 October, some 57 minutes clear of his compatriot Robin Juillaguet, who crossed the line in 23:51:54. Belgium's Jérôme Vanderschaeghe completed the podium in 24:10:35. Deck is the fifth Frenchman in a row to win the men's race.
The race started at 10pm on Thursday 15 October in Saint-Pierre and, according to the organisers, covered 180.8km with 10,191 metres of climbing, making it the longest course in the event's history. The route no longer passed through Cilaos. A rockfall in the Mafate cirque a week before the start had raised fears of further changes, but the trails reopened in time. Trekking poles remain banned, with a one-hour penalty for their use, and runners are largely self-sufficient between aid stations.
The men's race was decided overnight. Vincent Esmiol led for long stretches, but Deck moved past him on the climb to the Maïdo and held the advantage through to the finish. Esmiol, who had been among the pre-race favourites, retired at Grande Chaloupe, 16km from the end. The attrition among the leading names was striking: of the five contenders highlighted in the build-up, only Tom Evans finished, in seventh place in 26:21:23, while Esmiol, Jean-Philippe Tschumi and Thibaut Garrivier all dropped out.
In the women's race, New Zealand's Ruth Croft was first at every timed checkpoint and finished in 27:13:23, 11th overall. The American Alyssa Clark closed to within 22 minutes at the Maïdo but could not hold the pace on the final sections, finishing second in 28:26:53, an hour and 13 minutes behind. France's Agathe Bes was third in 29:05:19. Sarah Vieuille, second woman at daybreak, faded in the second half. At 37, Croft became a first-time winner of one of the sport's most storied ultras.
The result adds to a busy autumn for long-distance trail running, following the Tor des Géants in September and the Grand Trail des Templiers at the weekend. For Deck, who had already won the Maxi-Race Annecy earlier this year, a victory at La Réunion on debut confirms him as one of the leading European ultra specialists of his generation. The Diagonale remains one of the sport's most demanding tests, and winning it at the first attempt, as both champions did this year, is a rare achievement.