How to Get a Bib for the Diagonale des Fous on La Réunion

With 180 km and 10,200 m of elevation gain between Saint-Pierre and Saint-Denis, the Diagonale des Fous is one of the most legendary races in ultra-trail. Every year, demand outstrips the number of bibs available, and getting one means going through several steps. Here is how they work, based on the official rules published by the organizers for the 2026 edition.

The Diagonale des Fous at a glance

The Diagonale des Fous is the flagship race of the Grand Raid de La Réunion. In 2026, the start was given on October 15 at 10 p.m. from Ravine Blanche in Saint-Pierre, with the finish in Saint-Denis. Runners had a maximum of 66 hours, and the field was capped at 3,000. For a detailed look at the route, read our course breakdown.

Entry requirements: qualifying points

To enter, you need to have finished two trail races worth at least 85 points each within a window set by the organizers. For 2026, those races had to be run between January 1, 2025 and July 31, 2026.

The Grand Raid uses its own scale, which differs from ITRA and the UTMB Index: 1 km earns 1 point, and every 100 m of elevation gain earns 1 point. A 60 km trail with 2,500 m of climbing is therefore worth 85 points. Only races run entirely on foot, in a single stage and with a ranking count, and points from several races can't be added together.

Registration timeline

For the 2026 edition, the key dates were as follows (La Réunion time):

• Mid-January: travel packages open, along with registration for international and non-resident runners, with no lottery.

• January 20, 2 p.m.: pre-registration opens for the lottery.

• March 6, midnight: registration and pre-registration close.

• March 18, 2 p.m.: lottery draw overseen by a bailiff, held only if demand exceeds the number of places.

• Until August 31: places that open up are offered to runners on the waiting list.

• May 1 to August 31: submission of the medical certificate, on the organizers' official template, and of the PPS (Parcours Prévention Santé, a health prevention course). Without a certificate by August 31, the registration is cancelled.

Quotas: who goes through the lottery?

In 2026, the 3,000 Diagonale des Fous bibs were split as follows:

Runners who weren't drawn the previous year, and who didn't get a bib another way, had a coefficient of 2 in the draw, which doubled their chances, as long as they pre-registered for the same race with the same account.

Entry fee

In 2026, entry to the Diagonale des Fous cost €260. If you withdraw, the refund depends on the date: 60% from March 18 to May 31, 40% from June 1 to September 15, and nothing from September 16 onward.

The other Grand Raid races

If the Diagonale des Fous feels like too much, the Grand Raid offers other formats with more flexible entry requirements. The Trail de Bourbon requires a trail worth at least 75 points, the Mascareignes one worth at least 40 points, while the Métis Trail and the Zembrocal, a relay for teams of four, require no points at all.

What about 2027?

The organizers haven't yet published the schedule or registration requirements for the 2027 edition. This article will be updated as soon as they are announced. In the meantime, relive Hugo Deck's win at the 2026 edition.