The next venue of the iXS European Downhill Cup will be Schladming and among the start list with 400 riders from 28 different nations will be some of the biggest names of the downhill elite.
The agenda of this year’s iXS European Downhill Cup is special: we can say that the series even edges out the World Cup with its venues and tracks in 2014! After the first round of the EDC in Maribor, the next round will lead us to Schladming in Austria and, thus, to one of the most popular tracks in the world. Just to give you some details – what is waiting for you is a 2.5 km track that with spectacular 600 meters of descending on offer. The race will be all about “Back to the World Cup Roots” as the track has been modified and now includes parts of the former World Cup course. Of course, this draws some attention, especially of the downhill elite.
Manon Carpenter
Therefore, the start list includes names like Brendan Fairclough (GBR – Gstaad-Scott), Sam Blenkinsop (NZL – Lapierre Gravity Republic), Loic Bruni (FRA – Lapierre Gravity Republic), Rémi Thirion (FRA – Commencal Riding Addiction), Markus Pekoll (AUT – MS Mondraker), Tracey Hannah (AUS – Hutchinson UR), Emmeline Ragot (FRA – Lapierre Gravity Republic) and Manon Carpenter (GBR – Madison Saracen).
Markus Pekoll
The race will be a part of this year’s Gravity Games Festival and it will be the one of three highlights of the weekend. In addition to the EDC, there are two more events on the agenda of the festival: On Friday, the Audi Whip Off Contest will take place in the Planai’s finish area and on Saturday, the crowd is invited to enjoy the show of some real pros at the Alpinestars Pumptrack Dual Race. All in all, Schladming in the Steiermark is definitely worth a trip!
Lapierre Gravity Republic pitstop
For more information, visit ixsdownhillcup.com or bikeparkplanai.at/category/events/.
Photos: © Thomas Dietze