Big turnout for the 32nd Semi de Cannes as 6,500 runners take part

It is the Riviera’s flagship winter sporting event: the Semi de Cannes, which enjoyed a hugely successful Sunday morning under brilliant sunshine and temperatures hovering around 15°C. More than 6,500 people representing 70 nationalities collected their race numbers from the dedicated volunteers of Athlétic Club de Cannes from Saturday morning onwards at the event village.

At 8:30 a.m., the nearly 3,000 runners in the signature event set off first. Almost two hours later, at 10:45 a.m., they were followed by the speedsters, keen to let their legs rip, or simply able to tackle 5 km but not 21.0975 km. Finally, the 10 km got underway at 11:15 a.m., with several headline names on the start line, including local runner Alessia Zarbo and Breton Florian Caro.

Whatever the chosen distance, runners had every opportunity to open up on a flat course starting on Boulevard Winston Churchill. The route was made for letting loose along the Croisette, famous for the film stars who have walked its iconic tarmac, before finishing at the Pantiero esplanade.

A tight half marathon all the way to the finish

Moroccan runner Abdellah Kertoum, who represents AC Cannes, took the half-marathon title in 1:04:27. He was followed by Kelvin Chirchir, who was dropped just before the final straight and finished in 1:04:29. Arthur Berland of CA Balma took third in 1:06:58. In the women’s race, it was Ilona Hadhoum of Grand Besançon Trail Académie, also representing Poissy Tri, who crossed the finish carpet exhausted but victorious in 1:14:56, on her debut over the distance. Dutch runner Jessika Oosterloo took second in 1:17:56. Katia Raoult of Castres Athlétisme completed the podium in 1:18:22. 

A flat-out 5 km

It came down to a sprint for Lucas Gehin of Menton Marathon, who took the win in 14:32, just ahead of Hugo Nelaton (14:35) and Anthony Felber (14:37). The women’s race delivered plenty of drama too. Clara Entresangle, a track athlete and the 9:47.95 national record-holder over the 3,000 m steeplechase, made a flying appearance over 5 km and did not disappoint her AS Cavaillon club. The Distance athlete won in 15:32, smashing her previous personal best by almost 40 seconds from 16:11, and became the second-fastest French U23 woman of all time over the distance. Fiona Cornet of Alès Cévennes took second in 16:18, while Laly Porentru of Racing Multi Athlon completed the podium in 16:29.

Ethiopian clean sweep in the 10 km

The Ethiopians took centre stage to round off a thrilling morning. Selemon Ataklti Kidanu, Tilahun Yibeltal and Demmashu Abdi dominated the 10 km, clocking 27:53, 28:09 and 29:16 respectively. Florian Caro of Stade Brestois was far from disgraced in 29:44.

In the women’s race, Kenyan runner Miriam Cherop won in 31:23. German athlete Gesa Felicitas Krause, a two-time European 3,000 m steeplechase champion in 2016 and 2018, took second in 32:02, ahead of Norway’s Hanne Mjoen Maridal in 32:06. Antibes runner Alessia Zarbo finished just off the podium in 32:24. Not necessarily at her best preparation-wise, the 24-year-old Olympian would surely have hoped for more. Fortunately, the French 10 km record-holder, who ran 31:00 in Prague in 2025, did not have far to travel to reach the start line in Cannes. After her strong performance in the 5 km at the Monaco Run last Sunday, where she finished seventh in 15:26 as the first Frenchwoman, she will have plenty more opportunities to make her mark this year.

For its 32nd edition, the Semi de Cannes once again put on a fine show for the supporters who turned out to cheer on the runners in all three events. This time, there was no grey sky over Cannes, just brilliant sunshine lighting up the finish for the brave finishers.

➜ Semi de Cannes results