LyonSaintéLyon - 156 km Course Data, Barriers and Statistics
LyonSaintéLyon is the 156.74km double: out from Lyon to Saint-Étienne on Saturday morning, a meal and a rest, then the whole SaintéLyon course back through the night. It carries 4,239m of climbing and 4,239m of descent, starts at 09:00 on Saturday 28 November 2026 and closes at Lyon at 16:00 on Sunday - 31 hours. Only 800 places.
Course profile
- Next edition
- Sat 28 Nov 2026 · 09:00
- Distance
- 156.74 km
- Elevation gain
- 4,239 m
- Elevation loss
- 4,239 m
- Highest point
- Monts du Lyonnais (885 m)
- Cutoff
- 31h
- Typical winning time
- ~21h36
The outbound leg is untimed and has to be done inside 13 hours, reaching Saint-Étienne by 22:30; the classification then runs on the return leg alone, started from the front line ahead of the 8,000-strong SaintéLyon field. That is why no 156km finish time is published anywhere, this page included. The terrain is the same twice over - the Monts du Lyonnais crest at 885m, Sainte-Catherine, Saint-Christo - so the second crossing is run in the dark on legs that have already done 78km. The organizer carries two drop bags for you, one to Sainte-Catherine and one to Saint-Étienne; crew assistance is banned.
Data is approximate and courses change between editions - always verify against the official race guide.
Enter a goal finish time and see estimated arrivals vs checkpoint cutoffs.
Plan against barriersElevation profile
Course math
Three numbers worked out from this course's distance, elevation and checkpoints.
UTMB Index category
100M
199 km-effort (distance + gain ÷ 100). Calculated from the course figures, not an official classification.
Estimate your UTMB Index →Biggest climb section
+939 m
Soucieu-en-Jarrest → Sainte-Catherine · km 18.8–43.6
The largest gain between two checkpoints, not one continuous climb.
Soucieu-en-Jarrest cutoff: Sat 12:15
Plan against barriers →Biggest descent section
−613 m
Soucieu-en-Jarrest → Sainte-Catherine · km 18.8–43.6
The largest loss between two checkpoints. ITRA's km-effort ignores descent; TrailMath counts it: 227 km-effort.
Open in GPX Explorer →LyonSaintéLyon · 2025
Who finished, 2025 edition
566 runners started. 420 came back.
The organiser published no finish times we can stand behind for this edition, so this page publishes the counts alone: how many finished, who they were and where they came from. No average and no median appears anywhere below, because we hold none worth quoting.
The start line
74.2%
420 of 566 starters made it; 146 did not.
Men and women
Men
386 finishers, 92% of the field
Women
34 finishers, 8% of the field
Finishers by age group
Every bar is a finisher count, drawn against the largest group. Men and women are on the same scale, so the two can be read against each other.
| Age | Finishers | Finishers |
|---|---|---|
| ES | 1 | |
| SE | 114 | |
| M0 | 70 | |
| M1 | 69 | |
| M2 | 64 | |
| M3 | 38 | |
| M4 | 25 | |
| M5 | 4 | |
| M6 | 1 |
| Age | Finishers | Finishers |
|---|---|---|
| SE | 7 | |
| M0 | 7 | |
| M1 | 7 | |
| M2 | 5 | |
| M3 | 4 | |
| M4 | 4 |
The shaded row is the biggest group.
Where the finishers came from
95% of the finishers came from France alone.
| Nation | Finishers | Share |
|---|---|---|
| France FR | 401 95.5% | |
| Belgium BE | 7 1.7% | |
| Switzerland CH | 4 1.0% | |
| Portugal PT | 2 0.5% | |
| Brazil BR | 1 0.2% | |
| Egypt EG | 1 0.2% | |
| Italy IT | 1 0.2% | |
| Romania RO | 1 0.2% | |
| United States US | 1 0.2% | |
| All other nations | 1 0.2% |
Showing 9 of 9 nations.
Bar length is against the largest nation. The smallest counts are drawn at a minimum visible width, so their bars are not to scale.
How these numbers were computed
The counts, the gender split, the age groups and the nations are computed from the full official result list. The finish times in that same list are not consistent with each other, so we publish none of them rather than a figure we would have to hedge. Bands with only a handful of finishers move a lot from one edition to the next.
Nationality here shows who travels to this race, not who runs it best. That alone is why a host nation tops almost every list.
Computed from the full official results, verified September 18, 2026 - Official results
Talk to your race
Ask LyonSaintéLyon anything about climbs, pacing, crew or cutoffs.
Which climb should I respect most?
Soucieu-en-Jarrest to Sainte-Catherine: +939 m over 24.8 km, from km 18.8. Hike the steep sections at an effort you could hold for hours - the race is decided after this climb, not on it.
Where can my crew meet me?
Soucieu-en-Jarrest, km 18.8 - your first checkpoint, and no crew can meet you there or further on: the organiser lists no crew access on LyonSaintéLyon. Carry your own warm layers: the course tops out at 885 m, through the night, in November.
Is 26h a realistic finish for me?
26h leaves 5h inside the 31h cutoff. It means holding 9:57/km overall.
Your long runs peak at 30 km, so the plan builds to 4-hour long runs, two of them at night. Cutoff buffer at Saint-Étienne: 2h46.
To answer this for you, the Coach uses your training and your race plan.
Example answer
Your long runs peak at 30 km, so the plan builds to 4-hour long runs, two of them at night. Cutoff buffer at Saint-Étienne: 2h46.
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~10 weeks · peak ~8 h/week · 5 run + 2 strength days
For a 156.74 km race, aim for about 12 h/week at peak. Set your availability to 14 h/week in the app for the headroom to build there gradually.
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Aid stations and checkpoints
| Checkpoint | Km | Cumulative gain (m) | Cumulative loss (m) | Cutoff | Crew | Drop bag |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start - Lyon, Halle Tony Garnier | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - |
| Soucieu-en-Jarrest | 18.8 | 537 | 337 | Sat 12:15 | No | No |
| Sainte-Catherine | 43.6 | 1,476 | 950 | Sat 17:00 | No | Yes |
| Saint-Christo-en-Jarez | 58.4 | 1,945 | 1,351 | Sat 19:30 | No | No |
| Saint-Étienne (rest, outbound barrier 22:30) | 77.1 | 2,276 | 1,949 | Sun 00:40 | No | Yes |
| Saint-Christo-en-Jarez | 96.3 | 2,891 | 2,297 | Sun 04:00 | No | No |
| Sainte-Catherine | 111.1 | 3,288 | 2,761 | Sun 07:00 | No | No |
| Le Camp - Saint-Genou | 122.2 | 3,653 | 3,204 | Sun 09:30 | No | No |
| Soucieu-en-Jarrest | 136 | 3,901 | 3,701 | Sun 12:00 | No | No |
| Chaponost | 142.5 | 3,993 | 3,850 | Sun 13:30 | No | No |
| Lyon - Halle Tony Garnier (Finish) | 156.74 | 4,239 | 4,239 | Sun 16:00 | No | No |
Data is approximate and courses change between editions - always verify against the official race guide. Source: official race guide, verified September 18, 2026 - Official race website
FAQ
How long is LyonSaintéLyon?
LyonSaintéLyon is 156.74km with 4,239m of elevation gain and the same again in descent - Lyon to Saint-Étienne and back, on the 2025 measured course.
What is the cutoff time for LyonSaintéLyon?
Thirty-one hours, from the 09:00 Saturday start to the 16:00 Sunday finish. The outbound leg has its own limit: Saint-Étienne closes at 22:30, thirteen and a half hours in, and the return leg then follows the SaintéLyon barriers.
Why is there no finish time for the 156 km?
The organizer times the return leg only. The 78km outbound is untimed and run to a 13-hour limit, and the clock restarts at Saint-Étienne, so the published winning time of 7:05:05 covers the return leg rather than the full distance. Elwan Mehl actually took about 21 hours 36 minutes from Lyon back to Lyon in 2025.
How many people finish LyonSaintéLyon?
420 of 566 starters finished the 2025 edition, a 74% finish rate - markedly harder than the 89% on the 80km, which is the same course run once and fresh.
Can I leave a drop bag on LyonSaintéLyon?
Yes, and this is the race that gets them: the organizer carries two lightening bags per runner, one to Sainte-Catherine and one to the rest area at Saint-Étienne. Crew assistance at aid stations is still banned.
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