Mathieu Blanchard: The ex-adventurer of Koh-Lanta is an international champion in a demanding field, he talks about his daily life separately

Revealed to the general public in 2020 during his participation in Koh Lanta on TF1, Mathieu Blanchard stands out today at the top of the world ultra-trail. This extreme discipline consists of running in a natural environment, often on mountainous and steep terrain, over distances that far exceed the 42 kilometers of a classic marathon. At 38 years old, the athlete spoke at length about his preparation and lifestyle in an interview granted to the daily newspaper The Parisian Friday June 5. He returns in particular to his discovery of running in nature, initiated by a desire to get back into shape.“That’s how it all began: four years after taking up road running, in 2014, in order to take control of my health, I discovered trail running, more powerful, because it combines adventure and supply management. It was love at first sight”he explains to the newspaper.

To maintain such a level of performance and endurance, the ex-adventurer follows a strict discipline from the moment he wakes up. Admitting to Parisian that he sometimes feels “a little rusty” in the morning, he specifies: “I start my day with a short hour of muscle activation, stretching on a yoga mat, in my living room. This session takes place when I get out of bed, and before my breakfast, because my vacuum exercises […] make my stomach tuck under my ribs.” This physical preparation is completed by regular practice of apnea and geometric breathing. These techniques “on three beats, or squares, on four […] slows down the heart rate, calms me down and helps me concentrate”.

Mathieu Blanchard (Koh-Lanta) releases a documentary

 

This vital need to evolve outdoors logically dictated his place of residence. Former engineer who lived for ten years in Montreal – a city for which he says he is “très attaché” —, Mathieu Blanchard chose to settle two years ago in the Isère resort of Les Deux Alpes. This base camp allows him to practice skiing, cycling and mountaineering on a daily basis. A big fan of bivouacs since childhood, he tells the Paris daily: “Nothing makes me happier than adventure. It removes the masks we wear every day, at work, with friends, with family…”. This mentality, inherited from parents “frequent travelers”pushes him today to flee “the places to absolutely see and post on Instagram” for the benefit of a constant quest for“authenticité”.

His appetite for extreme challenges is at the heart of the documentary The Call of Silencewhich retraces his formidable progression of 650 kilometers in the Canadian Far North during the Yukon Arctic Ultra. This film will be screened on June 7 at the Théâtre de la Tour-Eiffel in Paris, as part of the Polar Nights event. During these endless ordeals, Mathieu Blanchard explains that he isolates himself using his headphones: “Music helps me enter into a kind of introspection during my outings, when I need to create, to reflect”punctuating his strides to the sounds of Kygo, Paul Kalkbrenner and Worakls (who created the soundtrack for his film). Finally, to nourish his mind, the champion regularly listens to podcasts on history or finance, trusting in Parisian : “I like to listen to it to cultivate and entertain myself”.