In the early hours of May 4, 2024, the annual highlight of the FSA Bike Festival Riva del Garda, the Specialized Bike Marathon, kicked off with approximately 1,400 participants. Athletes from 43 nations took part in total. With its diverse and challenging terrain, the Specialized Bike Marathon is designed specifically for cross-country mountain bikes. Various distances are available for XC riders, differing in length, elevation gain, and technical difficulty.
Ronda Extrema
In the Ronda Extrema, the race with UCI status, numerous well-known faces started in the front rows, including the winners of 2023 and 2022, Leon Hector Paez and Andreas Seewald, as well as last year's female winner Adelheid Morath. The race started at 7:30 AM local time amidst the old town of Riva del Garda. Licensed riders could once again earn valuable UCI points for the world ranking on the Ronda Extrema of the Specialized Bike Marathon, as the marathon was listed again in the highest racing category of the UCI, the "Hors Category". Participants faced numerous steep uphill sections and technical trails on the longest distance, which extended over Monte Biaina and Monte Brento, covering 82.77 km and 3,484 m of elevation gain.
In a fierce battle for the men's podium, Fabian Rabensteiner from South Tyrol emerged victorious after an exciting sprint finish, narrowly defeating Austrian Marc Stutzmann by only three hundredths of a second. Rabensteiner crossed the finish line in a time of 4:01:27.5, with Simon Stiebjahn from Germany taking third place. Last year's winner, Leon Hector Paez, finished fourth. "This morning, I didn't really know where I stood after five weeks without racing, so it was difficult to get back into the racing action. At the beginning, I tried not to push too hard and was able to play my cards well in the end", said Fabian Rabensteiner, thoroughly satisfied with his victory after several weeks of racing hiatus.
Three Italian women claimed the podium spots in the women's category. Sandra Maierhofer secured victory with a time of 5:03:21.5, with a strong lead of over three minutes ahead of Mara Fumagalli, followed by Claudia Peretti in third place. "The bike marathon was a real top race, I really enjoyed it. It was extremely tough, but I liked the course and I am super happy to have won here in Riva", said Sandra Maierhofer from South Tyrol, delighted with her first victory of the racing season.
Ronda Grande
Christoph Wachter from Germany clinched victory in the Ronda Grande. Covering a challenging route of 59.56 km and 2,406 m of elevation gain, this route in the northern mountain region of Riva del Garda featured several tough ascents followed by equally demanding descents. With a narrow lead of one minute over the chasers, the German crossed the finish line as the winner after 2:57:36.4 hours. Second place went to Austrian Uwe Hochenwarter, followed by Noah Laschewski from Germany. In the women's category, Theresia Schwenk from Germany led the rankings with a time of 3:43:13.9 and a lead of over 20 minutes, followed by Austrian Silke Mair in second place and Noelle Werner from Germany in third place.
Ronda Piccola
Daniele Rossi from Italy emerged victorious in the Ronda Piccola, the shortest route of this year's Specialized Bike Marathon. Athletes tackled a fast but diverse course covering 30.67 km and 1,065 m of elevation gain. After almost exclusively uphill for about 16 km, participants could showcase their skills on the long descent. For the Italian, victory was a secure affair, crossing the finish line with a time of 1:24:14.8 hours and a lead of over one and a half minutes. Following Rossi were Hannes Spahn from Germany and Austrian Patrick Föger in second and third place, respectively. In the women's category, Austrian Lea Krempl secured first place with a time of 1:43:37.9 and a lead of almost three minutes. Second place went to German Melina Vogt, followed by Isabel Speer from Austria in third place.
All results of the Specialized Bike Marathon 2024 of the FSA Bike Festival Riva del Garda can be found at datasport.com.
To celebrate the third day of the festival, the popular Open Night will take place in the evening, where visitors can celebrate together at the expo. Afterwards, the party for the 30th anniversary of the Bike Festival will take place at Spiaggia degli Olivi, following the motto "Bikes, Beers, and Bike Festival". On Sunday, the final day of the festival, the youngest bikers will compete in the Scott Junior Trophy at Parco Miralago. There, they can experience their first race and showcase their skills. Each participant will receive a finisher medal at the finish line and will be celebrated accordingly, as fun is the primary focus of the Scott Junior Trophy.
