Samu Ponce Wins Envalira at Storm-Hit Pas de la Casa Travessa

Pas de la Casa's fifth Travessa running event wrapped up successfully over the August 14-16 weekend, with all 450 entries sold out despite storms that cancelled the children's race and prompted schedule changes.

The mountain race, held across four distances—Estany (3.4km, 157m positive elevation), Directa (6.8km, 513m), Antenes (10.2km, 626m) and flagship Envalira (22.1km, 1,371m)—drew a record turnout from the parish's main square. Sunday's main events, with 350 participants, started earlier than planned due to weather forecasts, but courses remained unchanged and rain held off. Organisers shifted final aid stations, awards and lunch indoors to the village hall as a precaution.

In Envalira, which earns 1 ITRA point for the UTMB Index and counts toward the Multisegur Assegurances Copa d'Andorra de Curses de Muntanya in O19, U20, O40 and O50 categories, Andorran Samuel Ponce took first in 1:44:00. China's Jiasheng Shen placed second, ahead of Oriol Olm in third. Lola Oiarzabal of the Basque Country won the women's race in 2:07:00, with local runners Caitlin Fielder and Nikola Matkova—recent Sky Comapedrosa victor—second and third.

Other winners included Gerard Rogé and Foix Ortiz in Antenes; Kim Ambor and Bàrbara Martins in Directa; and Nil Villanueva and Alaia Riviere in Estany.

A new Friday night charity run, a nearly 4km low-difficulty street loop, attracted about 120 participants—mostly locals—and raised €900 for the Fundació Enriqueta Villavecchia to support children with cancer. Saturday brought preparatory activities such as XBionic gear demos, a Forza Fitness workshop, nutrition advice from Marta Payola and injury prevention tips from osteopath Sergio Valenciago, though rain impacted the Village area.

Event director Rui Da Costa highlighted safety measures and participant satisfaction, noting that routes stayed intact and slots filled completely. Encamp councillor for Sports Nino Marot called the outcome positive, emphasising annual growth and its role in promoting Pas de la Casa beyond the ski season while aiding economic desestacionalització.