South Tyrol Cup: Gerhard Kerschbaumer is ahead at Monte Pana

A new four-kilometer-long circuit was designed specifically for the national cross-country race in the area of the Nordic Ski Center of Monte Pana. The elite men had to ride it six times and the elite women five times. The course was mainly in the forest and on single trails. Long technical climbs on soft ground covered in tree roots and bumpy descents demanded everything from the participants. The spectators also got their money's worth: They were able to follow the athletes up close shortly before the finish, on the climb and descent along the jumps.

Kerschbaumer lands a start-to-finish victory In the men's category, Gerhard Kerschbaumer achieved a start-to-finish victory. The man from Verding covered the 24 km and 960 m in 1:15.39 hours and relegated Martino Fruet, the veteran from Trentino, to second place by 1.49 minutes. Daniele Braidot from Gorizia came third, 2.35 minutes behind.

“I wanted to be the first to leave the start,” says the Olympian. “I managed to do that and pushed the pace.” Kerschbaumer finished the first lap with a lead of 25 seconds over Italian champion Mirko Tabacchi. Daniele Braidot, Giuseppe Lamastra and Martino Fruet followed. In the second lap, the World Cup sixth-place finisher from Andorra slowed down a bit and let his pursuers get within 15 seconds of him. In the remaining four laps he steadily increased his lead again. “I knew I was in top shape,” says the winner.

Serena Calvetti dominates women's competition

Serena Calvetti also dominated the women's race. The 23-year-old from Domodossola took the lead from the start, extended her lead lap after lap and won confidently. After five laps, 20 km (800 meters altitude) and 1:21.31 hours of driving time, she distanced second place, the U23 Italian champion Lisa Rabensteiner from Villandro, by 2.25 minutes. Judith Pollinger secured third place, 4.23 minutes behind. XC Eliminator Italian champion Anna Oberparleiter was eliminated in the second round.

The votes for the race:

Gerhard Kerschbaumer, winner: “The route was very interesting, but above all hard. I won’t be going to the World Cup in Canada next week to rest myself for the World Cup in South Africa.”

Martino Fruet, 2nd place: “I wanted to do well today because I'm disappointed with my elimination from the Eliminator yesterday. But Gerhard was unbeatable today. To follow him would have been to enter. I didn't want to start too fast because the race was over 1600 meters. In the end you still need reserves. It was easy to make mistakes going downhill in the fast corners. I kept my rhythm and that was crucial.”

Daniele Braidot, 3rd place: “I am very tired because I have competed in a lot of races in the last few days and weeks. That’s part of my World Cup preparation, but in the second round this tiredness came out.”

Serena Calvetti, winner: "I'm very satisfied. This year I was often unlucky, so I wanted to win this race. This is also a small compensation for the chain break at the Italian Championships.”

Lisa Rabensteiner, 2nd place: “It was a very nice but tough route with long climbs. I tried to keep up with Serena and Anna Oberparleiter. I managed to do that at times; I was always able to catch up with them. “In the end, I had to complete the race alone for long stretches.”

Judith Pollinger, third place: “I'm satisfied: Serena and Lisa were simply better. I didn't expect things to go so well after the sprint."

Antonio Lazzarotto, President of the Italian Cycling Federation (FCI): “The mountain bike race weekend in Val Gardena was fantastic. We saw high-quality sporting performances from the athletes, the weather cooperated, the spectators were enthusiastic, the level of the events was very high: great advertising for our sport! And South Tyrol has once again set an example at the national level: Through the courage, determination and organizational talent of the Sellaronda HERO team, under the leadership of OK President Gerhard Vanzi, a milestone was set in the history of the cycling association, which provided impulses in the Italian mountain bike movement will set. The 1.XC Eliminator Italian Championship was spectacular and enjoyed a great audience response; The national XCO race on Monte Pana was held amidst a magnificent mountain backdrop on a course that was completely recreated with a lot of effort and imagination and still has great potential. This is all part of a project that is being driven forward with a lot of commitment, inventiveness and foresight and will show its fruits in the near future. It should also encourage other organizers. The South Tyrol Cup races, on the other hand, are a talent factory from which the best South Tyrolean athletes, such as Gerhard Kerschbaumer, Eva Lechner, Anna Oberparleiter and Greta Weithaler, have emerged.

Peter Runggaldier, race director and former ski racer: “Athletes and teams were thrilled. We are therefore very satisfied with how the two events went. There was definitely a lot of hard work involved, but it was worth it! I would like to thank all the employees who spared no effort to implement our ideas.”

Gerhard Vanzi, OC boss: “I would like to thank all institutions, employees and volunteers for the great contribution they have made. I'm also very happy that none of the athletes sustained serious injuries."

Results of the 8th South Tyrol Cup in Monte Pana:

Herren: 1. Gerhard Kerschbaumer (TX Active Bianchi) 1:15.39 2. Martino Fruet (Carraro Team Trentino) +1.49,3 3. Daniele Braidot (Gruppo Sportivo Forestale) +2.35,8

Damen: 1. Serena Calvetti (Torpado Surfing Shop) 1:21.31 2. Lisa Rabensteiner (Colnago color South Tyrol) +2.25,1 3. Judith Pollinger (Sunshine Racers Nals) +4.23,6 All results are listed in PDF in the appendix!

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South Tyrol Cup: Gerhard Kerschbaumer is ahead at Monte Pana

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