Sport
The premiere of the Gastein Classics has been celebrated. Since this year you have been part of a renowned cross-country competition series, which also includes the Wasa Run in Sweden. Hobby athletes run alongside former World Cup greats.
The Gastein Classic counted more than 1,000 registrations in the field of professionals and amateurs. Added to this were the deep wintry conditions during the first visit to the international ski classics in Pongau. The distance for the professionals in the team competition on the opening day at 15 kilometers was a fraction of the Wasa cross-country marathon. At 1,600 meters above sea level, the Bernhard Gruber Olympic route is challenging.
Gastein Classics
Lorenz Gruber from Hüttschlag was there: “I’m a beginner and this is my first season. For me it’s a bit of a sniff. The pace is very high and the level extremely high. So the top runners could easily run in the World Cup.” More than four million viewers followed the most-watched race of the previous season live on TV.
300,000 euros were invested in the event
Gastein has secured a permanent place in this elite cross-country skiing group for the next three years, up to 300,000 euros were invested this year, says Lisa Loferer, the organizer: “The special thing about this classic ski event is that we have a large camera team dahaben and it’s all going to be broadcast live today. To Norway, Sweden, Scandinavia, the Czech Republic, Poland and and and… And that’s actually the ultimate thing, that we can now take these wonderful winter pictures out into the whole world at the beginning of the season.”
A former Norwegian superstar attracted the most attention: Petter Northug, former Olympic champion and 13-time World Championships gold medalist, finished 64th when he performed in Sportgastein.
The Ski Classics combine wide-ranging with top-class sport, because the amateur starting field was able to compete with the Swiss cross-country skiing Olympic and overall World Cup winner, Dario Colognia, in the second race on Saturday. Victory in the women’s 30-kilometer event went to a local hero, Anna Seebacher from Radstadt.
There are still two mass start races on Sunday
On Sunday morning, the high-altitude cross-country ski run in Sportgastein continues with a men’s and women’s mass start race. For the organizers, this was a promising start to the Ski Classics adventure.
