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More than ten years. More than ten springs — and a few autumns — on the water. More than ten early mornings on the banks of the canal, in Chanaz, watching the mist lift off the lake. The Alpine Lakes Tour Canal de Savières and Lac du Bourget has become far more than a race: it’s a reunion, a tradition, a collective story written stroke by stroke.
2014: What if we try?
You have to remember what stand up paddle racing looked like in 2014. A young discipline, electric with energy, still inventing its own rules. The boards were long, the paddles heavy, SUP race kit barely existed. But the enthusiasm? It was immense — and contagious.
It was in that spirit that the Canal de Savières stage was born, as the final round of the Alpine Lakes Tour 2014. The idea was simple and beautiful: to reveal one of the most stunning waterways in Savoie — a natural canal linking Lac du Bourget to the Rhône, threading through landscapes of absolute serenity. Chanaz, nicknamed the “Little Venice of Savoie”, was the obvious choice for the starting village — its stone alleyways, artisan workshops, and reflections shimmering in the water make it a perfect setting.
On that first day, 44 paddlers set off over 11 km. Philippe Lachenal took the lead from the start and never let go. Behind him, Lionel Mougin and Vincent Verhoeven — then a member of the French national team — fought for second place within seconds of each other. Everyone improvised, organised on the fly, discovered together. Everything was still to be built. And that’s exactly what makes that era so precious in the memories of those who lived it.
A setting that never needs to justify itself
What made this stage immediately beloved was its scenery. The Canal de Savières is no ordinary stretch of water. It’s a living waterway, lined with willows and reed beds, where the current gently carries paddlers toward the Rhône. Paddling upstream — as the long-distance format requires — means battling that current in near-total silence, broken only by the sound of blades and birdsong. An effort, yes, but an effort worth every stroke.
At the end of the canal, the deep, calm waters of Lac du Bourget — the largest natural lake in France — open up like a reward. That moment when the canal meets the lake is described every year by participants as magical: suddenly the horizon widens, the Alps appear, and you understand exactly why you made the journey.
No matter the edition, no matter how the formats have evolved over the years — this landscape has never changed. And that is, without doubt, the best reason to come back, year after year.
The courses
Two courses have run side by side since the very first editions:
The long distance (~14.5 km): starting from Chanaz, paddling upstream against the current, looping around Lac du Bourget to Châtillon beach, then returning with the current behind you. A course that rewards power and strategy in equal measure. See the interactive route on OpenRunner.
The short distance (~6.5 km): starting from Châtillon on the lake, riding the current down the canal to Chanaz — ideal for discovering the race, whether as a family or as a first-timer. See the route on OpenRunner.
A race that learned to grow
In 2015, the start was moved to Conjux beach on the lake shore. Three races on the programme: short, long, and a hotly contested junior race. Italians, Swiss, Parisians, people from Marseille were already travelling to compete — the international dimension was there from the second edition.
In 2016, it was the 10th and final stage of the Alpine Lakes Tour 2016. 78 competitors gathered on a grey early-October day… which miraculously transformed into a sunny, almost warm afternoon in Chanaz. A food truck rolled in from Talloires, and a long communal table after the race sealed the event’s festive character a little more firmly.
In 2017, entries topped 110 for the first time. A new food truck joined the adventure: wood-fired BAO buns, French-Asian fusion. Innovation was everywhere.
In 2018, the lake loop was extended toward Châtillon beach at Chindrieux, further enriching the course. The long route reached its definitive 14.5 km.
The race also gradually shifted from autumn to spring. Held in October during the early editions — as the circuit’s closing round — it eventually settled permanently in April, becoming the season opener for many paddlers.
The unpredictable years
2020. The race was set for spring. Then the world stopped. The stage was rescheduled to 1 August after obtaining the prefectoral authorisation. Life jackets mandatory, masks required at race bib collection and on the podium. An edition unlike any other, organised in unprecedented circumstances — but organised nonetheless. The municipality of Chanaz, through its mayor, warmly congratulated the team. That was what mattered.
2021. A setback. The Savoie prefecture flatly banned the event, citing excessive summer footfall on the canal — an argument contested by the organisers, who pointed out that the race had been held seven times without a single incident and never received the statistics they requested. After eight months without competition due to COVID, it was a hard blow. But the Alpine Lakes Tour is an international circuit, and the convoy moved on toward Val d’Aoste.
2022. The race returned — in spring, for the very first time. As if to welcome this new beginning: temperatures had flirted with 20°C the week before. On race day, snow capped the summits, a north wind blew, temperatures barely above freezing. And yet, the paddlers were there. They always have been.
The duels that make history
2019: 4 seconds. Samuel Carbillet and Olivier Comazzi delivered an epic duel over 13.6 km. Carbillet, a local, had already won here in 2017. He took the victory again — in 1h22’58”, with just 4 seconds over Comazzi. The win propelled him to first place in the overall Alpine Lakes Tour 2019 standings, 31 points clear at the finish. Ugo Clay, third, stayed glued to the leading pair all the way out of the canal.
2025: 3 seconds between the top three. Sébastien Jalmain crossed the line in 1h24’54”, ahead of Olivier Comazzi (1h24’55”) and Vincent Fondeviole (1h24’57”). Three seconds separating three paddlers after more than an hour of racing. A sprint finish on the water at Chanaz. The kind of race you never forget.
The results, year by year
Over the editions, names return, faces establish themselves. Here is what history has recorded:
| Year | Winner — Long Distance | Winner — Long Distance (Women) | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Philippe Lachenal (FR) | Virginie Samson (FR) | 1st edition — 44 participants |
| 2015 | Nicolas Carlier (FR) — 1h12’42” | Virginie Samson (FR) — 1h26’50” | Start from Conjux |
| 2016 | Philippe Lachenal (FR) — 1h10’46” | Edith Teulade (FR) — 1h22’53” | 78 participants |
| 2017 | Samuel Carbillet (FR) — 1h13’31” | Micheline Hauchecorne (CH) | Carbillet is 18! 110+ entries |
| 2018 | Vincent Verhoeven (FR) — 1h19’39” | Marie Dautruche (FR) — 1h28’17” | New loop to Châtillon |
| 2019 | Samuel Carbillet (FR) — 1h22’58” | Tanja Ecker (DE) — 1h34’31” | 4 sec over Comazzi! 1st ALT overall |
| 2020 | Ludovic Teulade (FR) — 1h16’54” | Anna Tschirky (CH) — 1h24’53” | August edition — COVID |
| 2021 | Edition cancelled — prefectoral decree | ||
| 2022 | Antoine Ribault (FR) — 1h25’16” | Emmanuelle Marcon (FR) — 1h41’04” | First spring edition — snow! |
| 2023 | Loïs Chardebas (FR) — 1h26’33” | Florence Julen (CH) — 1h38’15” | Comazzi 2nd at 5 sec |
| 2024 | Olivier Comazzi (CH) — 1h27’02” | Olympe Vernede (FR) — 1h37’25” | Participants GB, DE, CH, FR |
| 2025 | Sébastien Jalmain (FR) — 1h24’54” | Florence Julen (CH) — 1h33’45” | 3 sec between the top 3! |
The faces that give the race its soul
Philippe Lachenal is the first great name in this race’s history. Already leading the overall Alpine Lakes Tour 2014 standings, he won the Canal de Savières stage and returned to take victory again in 2016 on his F-One 14′ in 1h10’46” — a stage record that stood for a long time. His consistency set the sporting tone of the event from its very beginning.
Samuel Carbillet made his mark in his own particular way. In 2017, he was just 18 years old when he won the long distance. Two years later, in 2019, he returned to claim victory with just 4 seconds over Comazzi — and was crowned overall Alpine Lakes Tour champion. “The new star of the Alpine Lakes Tour”, the website declared at the time.
Emmanuelle Marcon, from Pagaies Club Thonon, is the most consistent female presence in this race’s history. Racing here since the early editions, virtually always on the podium, she won in 2022 in near-winter conditions. Her mastery of the current, her positioning through the canal’s bends, her management of the lake loop have become a reference point for women entering competition.
Olivier Comazzi, Swiss from Muraz, is the race’s other constant thread. Racing here since 2017, regularly in the top three, he finally won the 2024 edition after finishing second in 2023 — and came back in 2025 to finish one second off the winner. That kind of loyalty to a race says everything about what it means to those who love it.
Olympe Vernede represents the discipline’s next generation: 3rd in 2023, she won at age 19 in 2024. Florence Julen, from Switzerland, won in 2023 and came back to win again in 2025 with her best ever time on the course. The next generation is here, and it’s magnificent.
And then there are all the others — the ones whose names don’t appear at the top of the results but who form the beating heart of the event. Those who paddle 6.5 km as a family for the first time. Those who come back every year with the same friends, the same jokes, the same coffee shared on the water’s edge before the start. Those who discovered stand up paddle through this race and never stopped.
Thank you to everyone who keeps it running
A race is not just paddles in the water. It’s also dozens of volunteers marking buoys at dawn, the municipality of Chanaz opening its doors and its quays, photographers capturing every start, the rescue teams of CFS 73, the loyal partners — Red Paddle Co alongside the event since 2015, the Miellerie de Chanaz, the Brûlerie de Chanaz, the Distillerie des Aravis, the Auberge de Portout and the Shana Hotel.
Every edition, the same magic: a small Savoyard town waking up in SUP race colours for a few hours, then returning to its quiet life alongside the canal.
Looking ahead
In 2014, nobody knew quite what this event would become. We hoped it would work, that it would last, that it would make people happy. More than a decade later, the answer is there — written in the results, in the archive photos, and in the memories of those who were there.
Stand up paddle has changed. The boards are faster, the paddles lighter, the athletes more specialised. Formats have been refined, the community has grown to span all of Europe. But something remains intact: that desire to meet on the water in a beautiful place, to push yourself, to share a meal after the race talking about the turns in the current and the moments when your legs were burning.
This race belongs to everyone who has already experienced it. And it’s waiting for everyone who hasn’t yet.
If you’ve never paddled the Canal de Savières on a spring morning, with the sun grazing the Alps and the green water of the canal stretching ahead of you — it is an experience genuinely worth having. Whatever your level, whatever your board. There’s a course for you. There are people just like you.
👉 2026 Registrations — now open!
See you on the water. 🌊
— The Alpine Lakes Tour team
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