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Esteban Vacelet

Twenty years old and already so close to the record

Esteban Vacelet, the distance runner who devoured 100 km on his first try

No one saw it coming, yet here he is at the top of the bill. At 20 years old, Esteban Vacelet has leapt in one bound into the big league of French ultra-distance. Licensed with the Athletic Club du Lyonnais, this runner from the Rhône-Alpes region racks up the miles while most runners his age are still counting track laps. His favorite distance? The most formidable in road running: the 100 km 🏃. On October 3, 2026, in Amiens, he leaves with the title of French 100 km champion in 6h14'33", for his very first attempt at the distance—he had never even run a marathon 🤯.

A Lyon engine firing on all cylinders 🚀

Forget the classic trajectory, stretched over ten seasons, of the beginner who patiently climbs the ranks. Esteban Vacelet, on the other hand, goes straight from the half marathon to the 100 km. Behind the audacity lies an uncommon engine, honed under the guidance of Guillaume Ruel. The Rhône offers the ideal terrain for that: smooth Saône riverbanks, and climbs that burn the calves as soon as you lift your head ⏱️. Enough to forge a diesel engine capable of holding 3'45 per kilometer for more than six hours.

Esteban breaks the silence 💬

What stands out most about this athlete happens far from finish lines. For several months now, Esteban the runner has been speaking openly, through interviews and podcasts, about his eating disorders and his muscle dysmorphia. A subject long left taboo in the endurance world, which he chooses to address without a mask. To open up like that, at his age and on such an intimate terrain, requires a kind of courage different from that of wearing a bib.

French champion at the first attempt 🏆

For his big debut, he didn’t want to do things halfway. At the Somme 100 km, which hosted the French championships labeled FFA national, he goes out with the pedal to the metal: 3'32 per kilometer up to halfway 🔥. A little after halfway, the Lyon native is still flirting with the pace of the world record held by Aleksandr Sorokin (6h05'35", Vilnius, 2023). What a champion! He held strong until the final turning point, the one that bites, inevitably. Stomach issues then force him to slow down, but his lead holds up. He crosses the line in 6h14'33", averaging 16.02 km/h, and posts the ninth-best performance in history over the distance.