Kilian Jornet wins Zegama Aizkorri mountain with NNormal shoes

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It had been a while since we had seen Kilian Jornet running. That’s because the legendary trail runner and mountaineer launched NNormal, an outdoor sports brand created in partnership with footwear company Camper.

But on Sunday he returned to winning form by taking the top step of the prestigious Zegama-Aizkorri Alpine Marathon in northern Spain for the 10th time – the first race of the Golden Trail World Series (GTWS). Fortunately, he was putting on a pair of NNormal trail shoes.

Ahead of the race, NNormal’s official Instagram account shared that the race was an opportunity for him to test a prototype of his new trail shoes “against the best competition” – and it certainly did.

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The race, which starts from the small village of Zegama in the Basque Country and climbs 5,472m above sea level, notoriously attracts some of the best male and female athletes in the world, and this year has been no different, with the likes of Rémi Bonnet, Davide Magnini, Courtney Dalwater and Nienke Brinkman on the starting line.

Jornet took on Italian Davide Magnini on the 42km loop which takes runners over four of the highest peaks in the Basque Country: Aratz, Aizkorri, Aitxuri and Andraitz. They raced neck and neck for more than half the race, until Jornet pulled away around the 16 mile mark. He finished two and a half minutes clear of the 24-year-old in 3:36:40 – breaking the course record by nine minutes. Dutch trail and road athlete Nienke Brinkman won the women’s marathon in 4:16:43, breaking the course record by 18 minutes. You can watch full race coverage in the player below:

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Jornet left longtime sponsor Salomon late last year to start NNormal, which focuses on creating sustainable products. After the race, the brand’s Instagram account shared that “shoe testing went well.”

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NNormal athlete and Jornet’s partner, Emelie Forsberg, also ran in a pair of NNormal shoes, winning the 3km VK race the day before the marathon, which consists of a 1,015m ascent ending at the top of the peak of ‘Iraule.

NNormal products are expected to launch in the fall/winter of this year and will include footwear, apparel and accessories for trail running and hiking.

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