The Dutch son of art among the many protagonists who will light up the 18th edition of the Marlene Südtirol Sunshine Race on Sunday 15th April. The World Cup holder Yana Belomoina, the Under 23 world champion Sina Frei and the defending champions Marco Aurelio Fontana and Gunn-Rita Dahle are also at the start.
Source: press release
The Marlene Südtirol Sunshine Race is celebrating its coming of age, and it wants to do it in style. The traditional event with the Cross Country Mountain Bike of Nalles will celebrate its first 14 years on Saturday 15 and Sunday 18 April, and the organizers of Sunshine Racers Nals have presented today, Wednesday 4 April, the themes and protagonists of an edition that promises to be one to remember, also valid as the first round of the Internazionali d'Italia Series 2018.
The press conference held at the Birra Forst headquarters in Lagundo (BZ) was attended, among others, by the President of Sunshine Racers Nals, Florian Pallweber, the President of the Alto Adige Committee of the Italian Cycling Federation, Nino Lazzarotto, and the current Italian Cross Country Mountain Bike Champion, Gerhard Kerschbaumer from Alto Adige, and the athlete Lisa Rabensteiner.
JUMP OF CATEGORY
The first important novelty of 2018 for the Marlene Südtirol Sunshine Race concerns the return to the UCI Hors Categorie level, which makes it the most important event in the Italian Cross Country calendar with the exception of the World Cup stage in Val di Sole. A category jump strongly desired by the organizers of Sunshine Racers Nals, as explained by President Florian Pallweber: “In eighteen years of history, we have managed to affirm our race from a technical and organizational point of view, and there are many athletes who choose to compete in this event every year. However, the HC category represents an important additional motivation for the athletes, especially at this time of the season, and the confirmations we have already received from many top protagonists promise a high-level race.”
THE PROGRAM
The show of the Marlene Südtirol Sunshine Race starts already on Saturday 14 April, when Esordienti (11.00-15.00) and Allievi (13.00-17.00) will compete, giving life to a technical competition that will be the prelude to the next day's races.
Sunday 15 April starts at 8.15 with the departure of Debutants Women and Students, Allevi Men (10.00), Juniors Men - UCI Junior Series (11.15), Women Open and Juniors Women - UCI Junior Series (13.00) and finally the challenge of the Open Men category (15.00). The awards will take place at the end of each race.
Another very important novelty of the 2018 season is represented by the live streaming that Internazionali d'Italia Series will offer on its official channels. It will be possible to follow the Men's Open round live in full, with extensive highlights and interviews of all the races of the day.
