The mountain bike world elite is coming to Nalles on the third weekend in April

Several Olympic champions, world and national champions will take part in the 18th Marlene South Tyrol Sunshine Race in Nals on April 19th and 15th. These include top-class names such as Sabine Spitz and Gunn-Rita Dahle-Flesjå, José Hermida, Marco Aurelio Fontana, Manuel Fumic, Fabian Giger, Gerhard Kerschbaumer, Eva Lechner and the XCE world champions Daniel Federspiel, Kathrin Stirnemann and Alexandra Engen. With four first places, Eva Lechner from Eppan is the record holder of the “Marlene Südtirol Sunshine Race”, followed by mountain bike legend Gunn-Rita Dahle with three.

The woman from Überetscher is already looking forward to the home race in Nals. “I was recently at the training camp in the south of France with Jolanda Neff and have been fine-tuning myself for the upcoming mountain bike season in the last few weeks. This weekend I will be at the start in Montichiari, and next week the race in Nals is on the agenda. I can hardly wait for the season to finally get started,” said the woman from Eppan at the press conference in the Hotel Laurin. For the men, South Tyrol has a hot iron in the fire with Gerhard Kerschbaumer. Although: At the start of the season, the Verdingser always needs a few races to really get going. “According to training, I’m in pretty good shape. I was actually able to cycle almost all winter this year. We then carried out some of the preparations in Gran Canaria and Tuscany. The route in Nalles suits me, but unfortunately things haven't always gone as planned for me in recent years. There are a lot of strong drivers at the start this year, so it will be difficult. “But I’m in good shape and will definitely do my best,” says the Verdinger happily.

This year, the “Marlene Südtirol Sunshine Race” is part of the “Internazionali d'Italia” racing series for the tenth time and is its third stop. The international participation is correspondingly large: the organizers are expecting around 700 athletes from over 20 nations on both race days. Last year, the German runner-up world champion Manuel Fumic and the 2010 relay world champion Katrin Leumann from Switzerland won.

The Nals circuit, which was developed 15 years ago by the Sunshineracers together with former world champion Hubert Pallhuber, is one of the most demanding cross-country routes in the world. It measures five kilometers and has an altitude difference of 222 meters. The men ride it seven times and the women five times. The starting lap measures 800 meters. “The circuit is the same as in previous years. There aren't many other options in Nalles. But the athletes like the area and the route, which is why it has proven itself over the years and attracts numerous stars to Nals every year,” says OC boss Florian Pallweber.

In order to avoid bottlenecks and difficult overtaking maneuvers on the climbs, women and juniors will start separately, like last year. The new mode had proven itself and was therefore retained. The juniors start the race at 10.45:12.45 a.m. while the women start at 14.45:XNUMX p.m. The men's start follows the women's race at XNUMX:XNUMX p.m. In the morning, students and young people compete.

Eliminator race on Saturday

The XCE Sprint elimination race will take place on Saturday, April 18th. The spectacular circuit through the center of Nals requires the athletes to be fit, strong and have great technical skills. The favorite among men is the Austrian vice world champion and World Cup winner Daniel Federspiel, who has already won the Nals Eliminator four times in a row. For the women, it will be an exciting battle between the world champions of the last two years, Kathrin Stirnemann (2014) and the first XCE World Champion 2013 and last year's winner Alexandra Engen are coming. The final is scheduled for 18 p.m.

This will be followed by the award ceremony and the official start number handover. In the morning, students and pupils compete in the MTB technology competition to demonstrate their skills and riding skills.

Because the first of six UCI-XCO World Cup races will not take place until May 24th in Nove Mesto na Morava (Czech Republic), the classic Nals race has special significance. It allows the athletes to continue to hone their form and technique with a view to the start of the highest international racing series.

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The mountain bike world elite is coming to Nalles on the third weekend in April

On the third weekend in April, the Marlene South Tyrol Sunshine Race is celebrating a small anniversary. The top-class international mountain bike race in Nals is in its 15th edition. The event was presented to the press at the Parkhotel Laurin in Bolzano on Tuesday.

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