From semi-pro rugby player to ultra-trail prodigy: Yanis Debaud’s journey is nothing short of impressive. A portrait of an RGENTec team member who has turned his ambition and love of challenge into a driving force to overcome every obstacle.
Photo credit: Krizotof
From Rugby to Ultra-Trail: a story of determination and ambition
In 2023, Yanis Debaud was a promising young rugby player. But during a match, disaster struck. His sciatic nerve was damaged, and below his right knee, on the outside of his calf, his muscles no longer functioned. He couldn’t lift or stabilize his foot.
For the medical team assisting him through recovery, the goal was simple: to get Yanis walking again. But he was not built that way. Barely a year after his accident, he ran his first marathon. “I needed a good kick in the butt. I couldn’t just settle for walking — that’s not how I’m wired. But during my preparation, I realized road running wasn’t really my thing.” So Yanis turned to trail running. He set his sights on a legendary race in the Alps — 174 km with 9,900 meters of elevation gain — and joined Boris Ghirardi’s Team Adaptive. Modestly, he admits, “I trained for a year. My only goal was to finish. And not only did I finish — I did it in under 36 hours!” That’s how Yanis operates: “When I set a goal, I think about the challenges I’ve already overcome. I told myself that if I finished that race, I’d be superhuman. Now that I know 36 hours is doable, next year I’m aiming for under 30.”
Yanis is ambitious and driven by challenge — perhaps that’s the secret behind his determination. “When I set a goal that feels too easy, it lacks flavor. If I’m convinced I can do it, there’s no stress, no fire pushing me to train. I gave so much because I doubted it was possible.” His accident and his beginnings in trail running have redefined his view of performance. “Since I was a kid, I’ve always played rugby with full intensity. I needed another way to feel that same fire. In rugby, when you play a good match, you can say it’s thanks to you; when you play a bad one, you can blame the team. In trail running, it’s just you and your performance. At first, I was frustrated by my results. All I could see was what I’d lost. But I ended up making peace with that. I set my own goals. I’m the one who decides what’s a success and what’s a failure.”
The young man knows his view of performance is particularly demanding. “Ultra-trail running is a humanly insane discipline. It’s not always good for the body. But I’m starting to know mine well. My right foot is in rough shape, and I have to take care of it.”
The one who runs with a brace
Photo credit: Krizotof
To compensate for his disability, Yanis runs with braces that he’s still learning to master.
“I haven’t yet finished adapting in terms of equipment. We’re really poorly informed about what’s available and what we’re entitled to. I started running with braces I bought at the pharmacy. That’s how I ran my marathon and did all my Ultra-Trail training — just with kind of elastic bands that lifted my foot. At the end of 2024, I found out I was eligible for a carbon brace, which is much more efficient. It’s life-changing, but not perfect. I had two, and I broke them both during my race. I’d need sports-specific equipment, but it’s not covered. So for now, when something breaks, I patch it up and send it to the workshop. While waiting for proper trail gear, I wear a carbon sole. Two rods run up along the outside of my leg to just below the knee. My foot is supported, but it rubs against my calf and under my foot. I finish every race with burns and scrapes.”
A large part of Yanis Debaud’s recovery work is therefore devoted to caring for the skin on his leg and right foot. “I used Bye Bye Burn all summer. After scouting the Ultra-Trail course, I applied it daily to the areas burned by the brace, as well as between my thighs. My skin had to heal quickly because I was heading into some heavy training weeks. At first, you think they’re just minor irritations, but mentally it’s really tough. That cream saved me!”
Besides taking care of his skin, Yanis is also learning to ease the pressure he puts on himself. “For months, I restricted myself with food and training. Now I go more by instinct. It’s less structured, maybe less effective, but mentally, it feels good to let go!”
Trail running and parasport as a life project
Yanis needs time to breathe: after having to abandon his physiotherapy studies due to the accident, he went back to school in September to become an orthotist-prosthetist. “This career project really drives me. I know firsthand how valuable good equipment is. As an orthotist-prosthetist, my job will be to help people get devices suited to their real needs. With orthoses and prostheses, patients want to regain their previous lives without restrictions — but I think sport isn’t included enough in those discussions. It’s a part of disability that isn’t taken seriously enough.”
And as if that weren’t enough, he’s also challenged himself to run the Veni Vici on November 8 — 82 km with 2,200 meters of elevation gain, between Nîmes, the Pont du Gard, and Uzès. “I liked the idea of running that race — it’s right near my parents’ place, and close to a lot of my friends, where I live now. My preparation’s going to be a bit chaotic because I’ve gone back to full-time study, and I’ve had to reorganize my training. But mentally, I think I’m happier when I’m tired than when I haven’t trained. Going home to bed at 9 p.m. doesn’t bother me at all!”
An intense life — but one he doesn’t see as a constraint: for Yanis, the journey is more rewarding than the destination.
