Friday at 21:15h, at Notre Dame de la Gorge (above Les Contamines), the organizers announced that UTMB was canceled. Reason: the continuing bad weather, combined with the fact that somebody took the flags that mark the trail in the most dangerous part of it, between the Col du Bonhomme and the Chapieux. A stupid thing that helped to put an end to the 2010 Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc. Later that night, while the first runners were brought back from Contamines to Chamonix, Catherine Poletti (director of the race) announced in a press conference that "the weather changed every six hours. It was therefore impossible to decide to cancel the departure". In the weather forecast from Meteo-France at mid-day, you can read for the Mont Blanc area: the weather was unstable, with persistent rain storm. Moreover, the organizers had also the services of a private meteorologist, renowned for its reliability. But Yan Giezendanner, informed the organizers of the weather situation. "Last Saturday, I was confident and I announced the good weather. But Monday morning, I told Catherine Poletti that the weather changed. And Friday at 18.30h under enormous cumulus, the 2300 runners left for the UTMB. Yesterday morning, while some competitors were willing to leave for an alternative race from Courmayeur to Chamonix, other furiously attacked the volunteers who had no connection with the cancellation. Others, calm, as the defending champion Killian Jornet, were astonished that the departure was given. Le Dauphiné
