The Grand Raid de la Réunion, also called La diagonale des fous (The Bishops'/Madmen's Diagonal) is a mountain ultramarathon race. The race takes place annually in October on Réunion island, a French overseas department in the Indian Ocean, situated between Madagascar and Mauritius. The route with of elevation gain is reputed to be highly challenging, brutally difficult and one of the hardest footraces in the world.
Three races are held at the same time:
This race has recorded three deaths since its inception. The 2002 edition was marked by the death of Gérard Bordage in the descent of the Kerveguen hillside and that of the Dutchman Guus Smit in the rampart of the Roche ÃÂcrite; while that of 2012 sees the death of Thierry Delaprez after a fall in a ravine at the Col de Fourche.