Rémy Coste wins the 19th edition of La Grande Odyssée VVF

Unstoppable.
At the end of the last stage in Isère, in Villard-de-Lans, the French musher Rémy Coste wins for the 7th consecutive time La Grande Odyssée VVF, in the OPEN category. During the 13 days of the race, he was able to face the Norwegian teams to keep his crown, with serenity.

Rémy gives us his impressions on the finish line: “A bit of a special edition, we went from very short stages to classic ones, but our dogs were well prepared, so we had no problem with that. We have two teams in good shape, mine and Aurélie’s, two teams that won La Grande Odyssée VVF again, we are very happy with the work we did !

Despite the snow conditions, the 19th edition of La Grande Odyssée VVF was once again a success. Thanks to the support of the resorts, the Domaines Skiables de France, and the outstanding work of the teams on the ground, it was possible to realize a magnificent race over 13 days. The mushers covered 250 km and 9,000 m of positive altitude difference in the beautiful landscapes of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.

A large family accompanied the mushers at each stage: handlers, veterinarians, volunteers of the crossed territories, staff of the stations, elected officials and members of the organization. The public was also present, and in great numbers on all the stages, for the greatest pleasure of the mushers, acclaimed at the departures as well as the arrivals.

The media covered the event on a daily basis, which allowed the broadcasting of beautiful images of the territory, the mountains, the resorts and the mushing to more than 30 million French people.

Annabel Kam, president of La Grande Odyssée VVF said:

“After two editions marked by the Covid, it is a real pleasure to find La Grande Odyssée VVF at its peak. This year, the snow fell as the stages went on. Thanks to the work of the staff and the KCIOP team, in close cooperation with the ski slopes and ski lifts services, the local authorities, the Tourist Offices and the prefectures of Haute Savoie, Savoie and Isère as well as all the partners, we have succeeded in this beautiful 19th edition of La Grande Odyssée VVF.

The 2023 edition of La Grande Odyssée VVF was lucky enough to host an exceptional sports line-up.

In the OPEN category, the Norwegians Sissel Wolf Molmen and Hans Lindahl followed Rémy Coste (FRA.) all along the race. Hans Lindahl even won on the 8th stage in Pralognan-la-Vanoise, ahead of the seven-time French winner.

In the LIMITED category, the long-awaited duel between the French Aurélie Delattre, title holder, and Cindy Duport, double winner of the 2020 and 2021 editions, was exciting until the last days of the race. Aurélie Delattre, Rémy Coste’s companion, won for the second time in a row. A 100% female podium in this category as Elsa Borgey (FRA.) takes the 3rd place.

Today, the last Trophy of this 19th edition was completed. The Frenchman Julien Chapelain won admirably, at the end of the 3 days of competition.

See you in January 2024 for the 20th edition of La Grande Odyssée VVF!