Beginnings

The first event was held on the 19 August 1984, but was only a hint of what it would become. It had a 750 m swim, 30 km bike and 10 km race walk. However, the first bike ride included the steep climb up the Cote de Chalvet (indeed the competitors had to tackle it twice) and which still features today at the end of the bike stage - triathletes today still call it "The Beast"

In 1985, the event was given the organisation of the standard distance triathlon championship of France. The route was adapted by lengthening the distance to 1,500 m swim, 70 km bike and 21 km run on a difficult circuit. 280 triathletes participated in the event, backed by 200 volunteers and 20,000 supporters.

A long distance event

In 1986 the Embrun triathlon became a long distance event with a 4 km swim, 131.5 km bike and 42.2 km run. The organisers claimed at the time that among all categories of triathlon it was the most difficult in the world. In 1987, the distances were increased to 5 km swimming, 180 km cycling and 42 2 km of running. A larger climb was introduced of 2600 m on the bike course and 400 m in the marathon. The event's popularity increased with 420 competitors, 480 volunteers and a large audience attending the event. In 1989, the swimming distance of long-distance triathlon was reduced to 3800 m, to meet the specifications of the French Triathlon Federation (FFTRI). In 1990, the route was changed for the last time with the introduction, in the bike portion, of the ascent of the Col d'Izoard. This new route of 186 km in one loop is characterized by increased difficulty: 3600 m of climbing.

In 2008, despite the competition of the Olympic Games in Beijing, the event see a record of number of participates with 1260 registered on the long route and 600 on the short. Despite awful weather the race is held, although there are over 110 dropouts during the descent of the Izoard. In 2010, the event supports the twinning of the town of Embrun with the Thai island of Ko Samui with the creation of a long-distance triathlon on the island. The planned first event in 2011 was canceled due to natural disasters, but an event took place on 22 April 2012.

The short distance triathlon

In 1988, in addition to the long-distance triathlon, an Olympic distance triathlon (triathlon M) was started, with 1.5 km swim, 43.5 km bike, and 10 km run. 520 competitors, 600 volunteers and 40,000 spectators participate in this event. In 1991, the Embrun short distance triathlon became a stage of the World Cup triathlon , a competition with 11 stages and held across 5 continents. For this event, the bike course was totally changed, with greater technical challenge and a vertical climb of 1,200 m located mainly on the first part of the course. 1,260 triathletes participated in the various formats as well as 1,000 volunteers and nearly 100,000 spectators. As part of its tenth event in 1993, Embrun hosts a stage of the World Cup triathlon for the third consecutive time. The attendance increased, to a record with 1,500 triathletes involved in various formats, 1300 volunteers, and over 100,000 spectators. It was not until 1997 that the short distance triathlon Embrun was a stage of the World Cup triathlon again, and for the last time. To date, with these 4 appearances, Embrum is the French triathlon which has most often hosted a stage of the World Cup circuit.

Male winners

Year	Winner	Time
1984	Gérard Honnorat
1985	Alain Dallenbach
1986	Dirk Aschnoneit
1987	Yves Cordier
1988	Yves Cordier
1989	Klöczl Gabor
1990	Klöczl Gabor	10 h 31 min
1991	Scott Molina	10 h 19 min
1992	Pim Van den Bos	10 h 09 min
1993	Philippe Lie	10 h 08 min 01 s
1994	Yves Cordier	10 h 10 min
1995	Philippe Lie	10 h 08 min
1996	Floris Jan Koole	10 h 24 min 48 s
1997	Philippe Lie	10 h 28 min
1998	Yves Cordier	10 h 19 min 51 s
1999	Yves Cordier	10 h 14 min 49 s
2000	François Chabaud	10 h 01 min 49 s
2001	Félix Rubio Martinez	9 h 57 min 37 s
2002	Félix Rubio Martinez	10 h 07 min 41 s
2003	Cyril Neveu	9 h 59 min 21 s
2004	Félix Rubio Martinez	10 h 02 min 43 s
2005	Félix Rubio Martinez	9 h 59 min 32 s
2006	Hervé Faure	9 h 54 min 31 s
2007	Hervé Faure	9 h 48 min 58 s
2008	Xavier Le Floch	10 h 06 min 35 s
2009	Marcel Zamora Perez	9 h 39 min 45 s
2010	Marcel Zamora Perez	9 h 38 min 49 s
2011	Hervé Faure	9 h 34 min 10 s
2012	Marcel Zamora Perez	9 h 39 min 23 s
2013	Marcel Zamora Perez[3]	9 h 42 min 20 s
2014	Marcel Zamora Perez	10 h 2 min 32 s
2015	Andrej Vištica	9 h 44 min 45 s
2016	James Cunnama	9 h 35 min 45 s
2017	Marcel Zamora Perez	9 h 43 min 13 s
2018	Diego Van Looy	9 h 45 min 54 s
2019	William Mennesson	9 h 48 min 6 s
2021	Léon Chevalier	9 h 26 min 18 s

Female winners

Year	Winner	Time
1985	Odile Lagarde
1986	Nadia Cédolin
1987	Rita Keitmann
1988	Chantal Malherbe
1989	Marion Van Bouen
1990	Dominique Damiani	13 h 33 min
1991	Dominique Damiani	13 h 26 min
1992	Tracey Ellingham	12 h 01 min
1993	Anne Marie Rouchon	11 h 37 min
1994	Gail Watson	12 h 27 min
1995	Barbara Alber	12 h 25 min
1996	Gail Watson	12 h 24 min
1997	Catherine Houseaux	12 h 40 min
1998	Barbara Alber	12 h 23 min
1999	Pascale Lafosse	12 h 46 min
2000	Bianca Van Djik	12 h 10 min
2001	Isabelle Mouthon-Michellys	11 h 55 min
2002	Bella Bayliss Commerford	11 h 41 min
2003	Catherine Houseaux	11 h 55 min
2004	Estelle Patou	12 h 26 min
2005	Estelle Leroi	12 h 17 min 25 s
2006	Estelle Leroi	11 h 56 min 37s
2007	Audrée Cléau	11 h 57 min 39s
2008	Bella Bayliss Commerford	11 h 26 min 06s
2009	Bella Bayliss Commerford	11 h 02 min 48s
2010	Teresa Macel	11 h 20 min 09s
2011	Erika Csomor	11 h 15 min 40s
2012	Jeanne Collonge	11 h 07min 09s
2013	Jeanne Collonge[4]	10 h 56 min 43s
2014	Eimear Mullan	11 h 29 min 36 s
2015	Emma Pooley	10 h 57 min 56 s
2016	Carrie Lester	10 h 46 min 26 s
2017	Tine Deckers	10 h 51min 14s
2018	Carrie Lester	10 h 51 min 43 s
2019	Judith Corachan Vaquera	10 h 54 min 7 s