Patrouille des Glaciers 2026

Three men (or women) roped together for 57.5 km at high altitudes, the equivalent of 110 km in terms of effort. Add 4,386 m of positive altitude change, with skis on, from one hill to another. The Patrouille des Glaciers is back with all of its sweat, tenacity, exhaustion, solidarity and emotions. The most serious competitors have their eyes on the current record time, established in 2018 by an Italian team, a prodigious 5 hours 35 minutes and 27 seconds.

Brigadier General Charrière, this summer you succeeded Brigadier General Sieber to lead the Patrouilledes Glaciers (PdG). What led to you taking on this role? I had no idea who from the army had submitted my name for consideration to the Federal Council, and I was incredibly happy and honoured to learn that I had been selected to fulfil this role. My career path has seen me in several functions and commands over the past 35 years of service, notably within general military staff for large units and then, after being named General Officer in 2018, as the replacement Major of Territorial Division 1 (editor’s note: the six French-speaking cantons plus Bern). I then directed and developed my own company and technical office with around 20 collaborators. I’m still Chairman, although these days I do not actively participate in operational functions. I was also elected Executive President of my municipality, Aubonne. In short, I have a lot of military, economic and political experiences that contribute to my role with the PdG. 

What feelings does this nomination evoke for you? Pride, honour, humility and respect.

Are there any changes planned for the 2026 edition of the PdG? My predecessor, Brigadier General Sieber, had already charted a perfect plan for PdG 2026, I simply continued his work. This edition will have a separate women’s division for the first time and also embodies a stronger collaboration between the army and the Patrouilledes Glaciers Foundation. Otherwise, there have been no major changes, but many small improvements in regard to route security, the services offered to participants and the relationships we have with the municipalities that honour us by welcoming us, including all of our vendors.  And of course – above all, I should say – that the winning troop performs their service in a way that brings added value to military training. At the end of the day, that aspect of this competition means a lot to me personally. The PdG is a military race that’s open to civilians; one of its goals is to contribute to the learnings of our general staff and our troops who work in high mountain environments.

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