Press release from the Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run and World Mountain Running Association (WMRA). Our executive director Nancy Hobbs is the WMRA treasurer. Above photo by wisthaler.com.
On Tuesday, April 16 the organizers of one of the loveliest mountain runs of the world publicly announced the wonderful news: this year, the Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run, to be held on Saturday 14 September, will be race #6 in the World Mountain Running Association’s annual World Cup.
The president of the organizing committee Gottfried Hofer and his deputy Christoph Rainer announced the lovely news on Tuesday morning at the press conference held at the Eberle Hotel of Bolzano, together with Jonathan Wyatt, president of WMRA (World Mountain Running Association), the vice-president of the FIDAL provincial committee Edmund Lanziner and the “chamois from Sarentino” Hannes Perkmann. “Our inclusion in the World Cup calendar is a great honour for us, almost like being knighted. It is the recognition of the 21 years of fantastic work that we and our many volunteers have been accomplishing in Sesto. We look forward with great pleasure to welcoming here in the Dolomites, a UNESCO world heritage site, over 1000 amateur runners as well as the best mountain runners in the world”, Gottfried Hofer happily stated.
Photo by hkMedia.
Wyatt, who in the course of his career as an athlete has won the Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run six times and is the event’s course record holder, and Perkmann, who has already stepped three times on the podium, lavished praise on the event as such and especially on its excellent route. “The Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run has everything a mountain run should have. There’s a flat stretch for a good warm-up, challenging ascents and also a few descents. Obviously, on 14 September I would like to win again, but it will be demanding because, now that the race is part of the World Cup, the competition will be even fiercer”, Hannes Perkmann declared.
The World Cup consists in seven classic mountain running races
In the 2019 World Cup calendar, the Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run is the sixth of seven races. The world circuit starts on Friday 24 May with the Salomon Gore-Tex Maxi Race in Annecy, France. The other world races of the mountain running season, that continues into mid-October, will be held in the USA, in Austria, in Wales, in Switzerland and the last one in Slovenia. By summing up the routes of the seven races, the overall length of the circuit is 140 km, with an elevation gain of 9,300 m.
Photo by wisthaler.com
“As a mountain running federation, we do our best to include in the calendar the world’s best races. With the Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run we have definitely acquired one of the world’s most spectacular races, that has stood out in the last 21 years for its very high level of professionalism”, Jonathan Wyatt commented enthusiastically.
A wonderful race route with unrivaled views
As regards the route and the course of the Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run, the organizers – ALV Sextner Dolomiten – will propose the traditional solutions even for the World Cup, with just a few small changes. On Saturday 14 September, therefore, the competition will evolve once again as a classical Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run, i.e. 17.5 km long and with an elevation gain of 1,350 m.
Photo by wisthaler.com.
“As usual, the number of participants will be limited to 1,000. We plan to offer the runners something special, featuring our customary very high quality standards but also with a view to protecting the nature reserve as much as possible. As for the route, it will circle widely around the Locatelli Mountain Hut so as to give the runners a little more time to admire the fantastic panoramic view they will be presented with”, says Christoph Rainer.
Sunday 15 September will be dedicated to the younger generations participating in the 15th Mini Alpine Run.
Race website: www.dreizinnenlauf.com
Race Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AlpineRun/
Photo by wisthaler.com.
