Racing anniversary, state championship, but above all a successful return of racing flair brought the granite marathon around Kleinzell at the weekend. The granite marathon was upgraded this year by the state championship status in the MTB marathon. The greats of Austrian bike sport pedaled in the granite country community. This was especially true for the three-time world champion and seven-time state champion Alban Lakata. In fact, the top favorites Alban Lakata, Daniel Geismayr and Karl Markt dictated the race on the Raiffeisen-X-Treme-Distance (90 km / 3,100 meters in altitude). In the end it was Daniel Geismayr who improved the old course record by 15 minutes in an impressive driving time of 3:44 hours and was able to celebrate his fourth national championship title.
Daughter kept mother at a distance
The women’s state championship race, in which Angelika Tazreiter beat Clara Sommer by four seconds, offered excitement right up to the end. Clara’s mother, Sabine Sommer, once again brought in third place with an outstanding performance. Bianca Morvillo had the upper hand over Verena Proell in the women’s 90 kilometers.
Although the starting field overall did not reach the size of previous years, OC boss Jürgen Scalet was quite satisfied with 600 starters: “After two years of Corona, it was difficult to assess whether the bikers still wanted to compete in the race. We are satisfied with the number, even if there is room for improvement.” That’s why they tried to put the brakes on the fixed costs when planning the race. The approximately 400 volunteers, on the other hand, performed with the usual strength. They, too, quickly had the usual processes back in their blood.
On Saturday, 120 highly motivated children and young people in the U7, U9 and U11 age groups tackled their laps in the Kleinzell mountain bike arena. For the U13, U15 and U17 starters, the “PopaFlo Technology Sprint” was about a good starting position for the subsequent cross-country race, where they demonstrated great technical ability and excellent physical condition.
Source: Nachrichten
