How Franco Collé Won His Fourth TOR330 Title

In September 2023, Italian mountain specialist Franco Collé etched his name deeper into the history books by taking his fourth win in this 330-kilometre beast that cuts right through the Italian Alps. He crossed the line in Courmayeur in 66 hours, 39 minutes and 16 seconds and served up a lesson in pacing, mental grit and knowing when to make a move. This piece looks at Collé's background, breaks down what the TOR330 actually throws at you, unpacks how he played the race on the day, and runs through the winter-to-summer training that lets him tackle 24,000 metres of climb on next to no sleep. 

Who Is Franco Collé?

To understand how someone takes on a 330-kilometre mountain race and comes out on top, you have to look at where they're from. Franco Collé grew up in the shadow of the Alps, and he's a mountaineer through and through. 

From Mountain Sports to Ultra Trail Running

Collé's from Gressoney, in the Aosta Valley, so the Alps were basically his backyard. Before he was known for ultra-running, he was already deep into ski mountaineering and skyrunning. Winters he'd skin up frozen slopes; in summers, he'd be scrambling along high ridges. That combination built exceptional endurance and gave him an instinctive understanding of mountain terrain. 

Moving into ultra-distance trail running was a natural progression. Road runners often get broken down by the constant pounding on downhills and the technical footing, but Collé's skimo background meant his quads were already conditioned for big descents, and his cardiovascular system was well accustomed to the thin air at altitude.

His Journey to Four TOR330 Victories

Collé’s connection with the Tor des Géants has been built over more than a decade. He took his first victory in 2014, returned to the top step in 2018, and set a new course record in 2021 with a time of 66 hours and 43 minutes.

His 2023 win marked his fourth TOR330 title, a record that reflects not only his physical ability but also his deep understanding of the race. Few runners have shown the same level of consistency on a course where weather, fatigue, and technical terrain force many experienced athletes to drop out.

Trail Side Insight: 

Anyone who's done a wet, boggy weekend in the Lake District or taken on the Lakeland 100 knows how much night navigation can mess with your head. Now multiply the climbing by ten, swap soggy fell grass for sharp granite at 3,000 metres, and try getting through it all on a couple of hours' kip spread across three days. 

Why Is the TOR330 So Difficult?

The Tor des Géants is a full-on expedition that loops right around the Aosta Valley. Here's what puts it up there with the toughest endurance tests on the planet. 

330 Kilometers Through the Aosta Valley

The route winds through endless mountain passes, with four Alpine giants – Mont Blanc, Monte Rosa, the Matterhorn and Gran Paradiso – towering above. It's 330k, about 205 miles, and there are no compulsory stops. You're on your own for navigation, sleep management, and pacing, right from the start all the way to the line.

Around 24,000 Meters of Elevation Gain

To give you an idea of what 24,000 metres of climbing actually means, it's like going up Everest from sea level nearly three times over. The course throws 25 passes above 2,000 metres at you – brutal climbs, each one followed straight away by a technical descent that just hammers your legs.

Technical Terrain, Night Running and Changing Weather

The terrain on the TOR330 is all over the place – smooth singletrack one minute, loose scree, boulder fields, and exposed ridges with fixed ropes the next. And the weather in mid-September doesn't help. The weather can turn in a matter of hours. You're sweating in the valley one minute, then you're up on a pass like the Col Malatrà, nearly 3,000 metres up, in blizzard conditions and sub-zero chill. Add two or three nights of running through the dark with only a headtorch for company, and the odds of a wrong turn or your focus wavering get very high, very quickly.

How Franco Collé Won the 2023 TOR330

The 2023 race was a masterclass in patience, mental resilience, and getting every detail right under serious pressure.

Returning After His 2022 DNF

In 2022, Collé had to drop out halfway through with an injury and sheer exhaustion – a tough one to take, especially on home turf. When he lined up again in Courmayeur in 2023, he brought more than just good form. He had a point to prove – to himself as much as anyone that he could still go the distance after the disappointment of the year before. As the press picked up on, that comeback was driven by a real determination to set things straight.

Sharing the Lead With Romain Olivier

For the first half of the race, Collé spent long stretches running alongside French ultra-runner Romain Olivier. Instead of locking horns early and burning through energy, they struck an unspoken alliance on the trail, trading the lead through the tough night sections and keeping the pace uncomfortably high for everyone else.

Making His Move in the Second Half

The move that decided it came after halfway, at the Donnas life base. Collé used his deep knowledge of the terrain and his knack for recovering quickly at stops to start pulling clear. As Olivier began to feel the pace, Collé kept rolling through the technical high passes of the second half, easing the gap out to over an hour. 

Finishing in 66 Hours, 39 Minutes and 16 Seconds

Collé crossed the line in Courmayeur to a roaring home crowd, stopping the clock at 66:39:16. That shaved over four minutes off his own previous course best from 2021 (66:43:57), cementing the fastest completion time in the race's history – proof that at the sharp end of mountain ultra-running, experience and smarter racing can still make you faster. 

How He Trained for a 330K Mountain Race

Winning an event like TOR330 requires a periodised training plan that blends heavy winter skimo volume with high-elevation summer running blocks.

Building Winter Endurance Through Skiing

Collé doesn't pile on the miles all year. Over winter, from December through to March, he switches almost entirely to ski mountaineering. That work builds his cardio and strengthens his glutes and calves, all without the heavy joint impact that comes from racking up big mileage on foot. 

Increasing Running Volume and Elevation Gradually

When the snow begins to melt in late spring, Collé eases back into trail running, slowly building up his weekly distance and elevation. He's not bothered about speed or flat-out pace – his focus is on time on his feet and how much vertical he's racking up each week. 

What His Peak Training Weeks Looked Like

During his peak summer training block (6–8 weeks out from TOR330), Collé’s training schedule reflects extreme mountain specificity:

• Weekly Vertical Gain: 10,000m to 15,000m of elevation gain.

• Back-to-Back Long Days: 6 to 8-hour mountain outings on consecutive days carrying a full race pack.

• Night Simulation Sessions: Late-night or early-morning mountain sessions to accustom his eyes and nervous system to headtorch navigation.

• Technical Scrambling: Practicing rapid descents on loose scree to maintain quad resilience and foot speed.

The Race Strategy Behind His Fourth Victory

Raw fitness alone will not get you to Courmayeur. The TOR330 is fundamentally a management problem: managing pace, nutrition, sleep, and gear.

Managing Effort Instead of Chasing Early Speed

Collé’s primary rule is never to burn matches in the first 100 kilometres. While younger or less experienced athletes often go out too fast out of Courmayeur, Collé uses a power meter or heart-rate monitor alongside strict rate of perceived exertion (RPE) to ensure his effort on early ascents remains well below his lactate threshold.

Food and Hydration During the TOR330

In a 66-hour race, your stomach packing up is the number one reason people drop out. Collé sticks to a tried-and-tested mix. At the life bases he gets proper food down him – polenta, hot broth, pasta, prosciutto, local cheeses and out on the trail it's liquid carbs, gels, and electrolytes. He keeps his carb intake steady hour by hour and never lets himself slip into the red. 

Managing Fatigue Without Sleep

Over the entire 66-hour effort, Collé spent under two hours inside life bases, keeping kit changes and refuelling stops as brief as possible. In 2023, he did not sleep at all. At key checkpoints, he simply closed his eyes for about 40 seconds, mentally counted from one to 40 to give them a brief rest, then opened them and continued running. 

Adjusting the Plan as the Race Developed

No 330-kilometre race ever goes exactly to plan. Whether it's a twinge in a muscle, a queasy stomach, or a sudden downpour on a high pass, Collé's biggest asset is his ability to adapt. When the weather turned, he got changed quickly at the aid stations. When energy dipped, he eased off on the climbs just enough to let his stomach settle and process some food, without letting it rattle him. 

Conclusion

Collé's fourth TOR330 win in 2023 didn't come out of nowhere. It was years of experience, careful prep, and a proper grasp of mountain racing coming together. He combined winter ski mountaineering with heavy summer volume on the climbs, and on race day he kept a tight grip on his pace and his decisions. That's what got him through 330 kilometres of brutal terrain.

But beyond the record, his run says something about what sets long-distance mountain racing apart. It's not just about fitness. It's about reading the situation, staying patient, and managing the constant stream of challenges that pile up over days in the hills.