Day four saw some big moves and amazing flights from all athletes. Christian Maurer (SUI1) maintains his lead but the likes of Gaspard Petiot (FRA2) and Nelson De Freeman (FRA3) were hot on his tail. Pal Takats (HUN) makes a huge leap up the rankings too. Follow the action live at win.gs/LiveTracking
Red Bull X-Alps 2017 Paragliding TV Race Salzburg to Monaco
ABOUT RED BULL X-ALPS
Red Bull X-Alps 2017 will start on July 2 and will be the eighth edition of the world’s toughest adventure race. The combination of trekking and paragliding is one of the most exciting hybrids to emerge from the ongoing convergence of mountain sports. During the race, athletes must hike or fly as fast as possible a straight-line distance of more than 1,000km across the Alps via a currently undisclosed number of turnpoints.
To bring fans even closer to the action, a one-day race – the Leatherman Prologue – will be held in Fuschl am See, Austria during which spectators can watch up close as the athletes race for one of three additional Ledlenser Nightpasses and a five-minute headstart on the main race. In 2015 this one-day race was won by Austrian Paul Guschlbauer.
Red Bull X-Alps 2015 saw 19 of the 32 competing athletes make the goal – a record number since the first race in 2003. Incredibly, 12 rookies crossed the finish line, including athletes from the US, Korea, New Zealand and elsewhere for the first time in history.
Swiss athlete Christian Maurer, however, won the Red Bull X-Alps 2015 race in the time of 8 days, 4 hours and 37 minutes. It was his fourth successive win – and a new record. Could 2017 see athletes like Sebastian Huber or Paul Guschlbauer end Maurer’s reign as Red Bull X-Alps champion? Only one thing is certain – anything could happen!
Eine Gruppe von Athleten bezwingt die Nordalpen gemeinsam.
Die Athleten der Verfolgergruppe schlossen sich heute zusammen, um gemeinsam die Zugspitze zu überqueren und „Chrigel“ Maurer (SUI1), dem aktuell Führenden, auf den Fersen zu bleiben. Die Aufgabe ist keine einfache: Maurer genießt eine komfortable 100km-Führung und ist mittlerweile in Italien angekommen. Doch der Ausgang des Rennens ist nach wie vor offen. Die ersten 14 Athleten des Rennens haben nach wie vor realistische Chancen auf einen Platz auf dem Podest.
Heute wurden Allianzen geschlossen, um den schwierigen Weg von Turnpoint 3, Aschau am Chiemsee, zu Turnpoint 4, die Tiroler
Zugspitz Arena in Lermoos, gemeinsam in Angriff zu nehmen.
Pal Takats (HUN) sagt: „Wir stecken uns hohe Ziele und unser Wille ist stark. Wir sind eine starke Gruppe, die gemeinsam alles dafür tun wird, so schnell wie möglich nach Lermoos zu gelangen.“
Auch mit dabei sind Benoit Outters (FRA4), Ferdinand van Schelven (NLD) und Manuel Nübel (GER2). Knapp hinter ihnen hatte sich jedoch bereits eine zweite Gruppe mit Pascal Purin (AUT3), Sebastian Huber (GER1) und Stanislav Mayer (CZE) geformt, die ähnliche Ziele verfolgt. „Der Plan ist einfach: Weit fliegen“, erklärt Purin, kurz bevor er abhebt.
Auch am fünften Tag musste sich ein Athlet aus dem Bewerb verabschieden: Aaron Durogati (ITA1) gab aufgrund einer Knieverletzung, die ihm seit dem ersten Tag zu schaffen machte, auf. Nach langem Kampf traf er diese Entscheidung, um keine weiteren Schäden am Meniskus zu riskieren.
Zwei Athleten zogen ihren Ledlenser Night Pass: Gaspard Petiot (FRA2) und Duncan Kotze (RSA) dürfen ihren Weg nach Monaco heute auch in der Nacht fortsetzen.
Petiots Entscheidung, den Night Pass einzusetzen, ist ein klares Signal: Er möchte die Lücke zwischen sich und Spitzenreiter Chrigel Maurer schließen. Man darf annehmen, dass Petiot die Zeit nutzen wird, um sich in eine gute Position für einen Flug früh am Freitagmorgen zu bringen.
Währenddessen kämpft Duncan Kotze (RSA) darum, im Rennen zu bleiben. Als Vorletzter wird er versuchen, den Abstand zu Claudio Heidel Schemberger (ARG), dem aktuellen Schlusslicht, über Nacht zu vergrößern.
Verfolgt das Geschehen via Live Tracking auf redbullxalps.com.
Red Bull X-Alps 2017, das härteste Adventure Rennen der Welt, befindet sich in seiner achten Ausgabe. Von Salzburg aus werden 31 Athleten aus 20 Nationen die 1.138km lange Strecke quer über die Alpen nur zu Fuß oder mit dem Gleitschirm überqueren und darum kämpfen, als Erster im Ziel in Monaco zu landen. Dabei müssen sie 7 Turnpoints in 7 verschiedenen Ländern passieren.
Jeder ihrer Schritte wird dabei von fortschrittlicher Live Tracking Technologie erfasst und für Millionen von Fans zugänglich gemacht. Aufgrund der ständig wechselnden Wetterbedingungen ist eine gute taktische Planung ebenso wichtig wie die extreme Ausdauer, welche den Athleten abverlangt wird. Darum wird jeder der 31 Abenteurer von einem Supporter begleitet, der ihm Tag und Nacht bei Strategie, Versorgung und vielem mehr zur Seite steht.
Eine Liste mit Steckbriefen und weiteren Informationen zu allen 31 Athleten findet ihr unter redbullxalps.com/athletes.
Reference/Quelle with thanks to redbullxalps.com
#ParaglidingTV #ParaglidingEU #RedBullXAlps2017
Red Bull X-Alps 2017 Paragliding TV Race Salzburg to Monaco
Day four saw some big moves and amazing flights from all athletes. Christian Maurer (SUI1) maintains his lead but the likes of Gaspard Petiot (FRA2) and Nelson De Freeman (FRA3) were hot on his tail. Pal Takats (HUN) makes a huge leap up the rankings too. Follow the action live at win.gs/LiveTracking
Day 3 was action packed! From big flights to sore limbs, the adventure continues with Christian Maurer (SUI1) reaching Turnpoint 3 – Aschau Chiemsee in first place! Follow the athletes live at win.gs/LiveTracking
Christian Maurer (SUI1) arrived at Turnpoint 4, Lermoos Tiroler Zugspitz Arena, just after 2pm this afternoon, once again touching down on Austrian soil. Lermoos is in the shadow of the famous Zugspitze (2,962m), Germany’s highest peak, which he flew around on his way towards the turnpoint.
En route to Lermoos, Chrigel had to battle a strong west wind and spent much of the time flying in the lee. He sped up on the approach, however, reaching over 60km/h on his final glide. After landing, he said: ‘It was the most difficult flight of my Red Bull X-Alps career.’ When asked how he controlled his glider in such tough conditions, he joked in high spirits: ‘I pull this line for right and this line for left.’
He is now flying again, just south of Lermoos, and is 76km ahead of his nearest rival, Gaspard Petiot (FRA2).
He is being chased by the French pairing of Gaspard and Nelson de Freyman (FRA3). Petiot is 74km away from Turnpoint 4, while Nelson is 95km away, with a ground speed of 35km/h. Paul Guschlbauer (AUT1) is also on his way to Turnpoint 4 with 105km to go.
This follows the elimination of last place athlete David Liano Gonzalez (MEX) at 6am this morning.
The next elimination will take place at 6am on Friday, adding pressure to the athletes at the back.
Duncan Kotze (RSA) is battling with the Argentinian at the back. Duncan has 995km to go to Monaco, while Claudio Heidel Schemberger (ARG), who used his Ledlenser Night Pass last night, is 8km behind.
Race officials have announced that Stephan Gruber (AUT2) is out.
He has hurt his ankle through wear and tear. He was in 23rd position before he was forced to withdraw, 8km from Turnpoint 2.
Gruber said: ‘It’s both my ankles. I can’t walk and I can’t fly with them. It’s really hurting and has been hurting since Monday morning. I’ve never had it before, and I put it down to the cold, wet weather.’
Day 3 of the race ends with Maurer back where he’s happiest – up in front with the wolf pack desperately chasing him down.
Well, he hung with the pack while it was not possible to fly. But as soon as those warm pockets of air started to materialise, everyone knew he’d do what he does best. And that’s a talent for finding himself at the right place at the right time and flying epic lines.
As of 20:00, Maurer had reached Turnpoint 3, Aschau-Chiemsee and had his sights on Lermoos Tiroler Zugspitz Arena, Turnpoint 4.
He spiralled down from a clear blue sky and landed next to the sign-in board where he was greeted by crowds of cheering fans. He started early this morning on the southern side of the Alps, and had hiked and flown for 12 hours, landing shortly before 7pm.
Meanwhile, behind him the French athletes Gaspard Petiot (FRA2) and Nelson de Freyman (FRA3) are enjoying the race of their lives, both completing epic flights over the main alpine chain.
For Petiot, his day began with an 1,300m ascent up Mangart’s northern flanks with Toma Coconea (ROU) to bag Triglav, Turnpoint 2. They arrived with time to spare before the thermals started. While Coconea signed t-shirts and agreed to fans’ requests for selfies, Petiot was swapping base layers and towelling himself off. “I feel like a tennis player,” he joked.
And the mental pressure was not far off a centre court either. As he agonised at the take-off over whether to fly, he confided to feeling the pressure with everyone watching. Both he and Coconea were playing the waiting game hoping for clouds to clear. In the end, they could wait no longer and launched into the mist. Unfortunately for Coconea, his flight did not last so long and his time at the front is most likely now over.
Throughout the day, most of the pack cleared the turnpoint. Of particular note was Aaron Durogati’s (ITA) rise through the rankings. Yesterday it looked as though he might be forced to retire with a painful knee, but then he got into the air and also showed what he is capable of. He was lying in fifth place with still an hour of flying left in the day, an heroic comeback from the back of the field.
Unfortunately it was not such a happy ending for Stephan Gruber (AUT2) who has retired with severe pain in both ankles. “I can’t walk and I can’t fly with them,” he said.
Meanwhile at the back, Claudio Heidel Schemberger (ARG) must take the award for dogged determination. He spent a very uncomfortable and cold night in the mountains and was close to hypothermia and in a bad state by the time his supporter found him at 2am.
But he’s determined not to be eliminated when the axeman comes down tomorrow and has pulled his Ledlenser Night Pass to fight on through the night – even though he only got three hours sleep last night.
The battle at the back is now between him, David Liano Gonzalez and Duncan Kotze. One of them will be out tomorrow.
The axeman has arrived and the eliminations have begun.
This morning has seen the first elimination of the race. David Liano Gonzalez (MEX) was officially cut from the back at 6am. From now until the end of the race one team will be cut every 48 hours.
Gonzalez has been suffering from a leg injury sustained in an ultramarathon a month ago and knew yesterday he couldn’t continue.
However, with the elimination looming he elected to sit and wait it out rather than retire from the race. ‘I knew if I quit then the next athlete in front of me would be eliminated, I didn’t want that’ he said this morning.
‘As part of my training for the Red Bull X-Alps I did ultra races, including a 250km race in South Africa. From that I got tibial tendonitis. I thought I was recovered but after the Leatherman Prologue I felt it was not quite right.
‘Then with the first day all walking I could feel it being aggravated. On Day Two we walked again and by that afternoon I had decided to stop and take care of it.
‘Yesterday I had two flights, with 2,500m ascent. Even in the air pushing the harness with my leg was painful. I landed and I knew I couldn’t continue.’
He could have retired then, but he knew if he did the athlete in front of him would be eliminated instead. ‘I would like to think if I had been in that position the person behind would do the same thing,’ he said.
Being eliminated was definitely disappointing he said. ‘But I have been around adventure races and racing all my life, so I know injury is part of the game. Sometimes you make it through, sometimes not.’
He said he would head to Monaco in a few days and meet the race at the end.
Gonzalez has climbed Everest, the highest mountain in the world, six times. How does that compare with the Red Bull X-Alps?
‘It’s definitely been very, very tough with all the running and movement on the ground. I think both are big challenges. They are both physically and mentally demanding.’
He added. ‘Pilots who come back year after year have my full respect.’
Reference/Quelle with thanks to redbullxalps.com
#ParaglidingTV #ParaglidingEU #RedBullXAlps2017
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