The mountain bike season has officially started and downhillers will be storming the Bikepark Leogang again from tomorrow. The trails are in top form, including the "Speedster" World Cup course, which will be the centre of attention at the Out of Bounds Festival from 8 to 11 June, with the Mountain Bike World Cup and 26 TRIX. With a length of 2.3 kilometres and an average gradient of 20.7%, the most challenging course in the bike park is a combination of steep sections in the fall line, rough root carpets, tight bends and fast passages - in short: a World Cup course as it is written in the book.
While Saalfelden Leogang is preparing for the appearance of the world's best downhillers, the downhill World Cup season has already got off to a successful start in Lourdes, France. A start that went well for Markus Pekoll, Austria's figurehead in this discipline, with 12th place in the final: "To start the season with such a good result is great for me. I skied well throughout the weekend and the final run in particular really worked out for me. I'm happy to continue like this," explains Pekoll.
At the Out of Bounds Festival in Leogang in just under four weeks' time, the Styrian will try to impress at the only World Cup stop on home soil. In addition to action-packed downhill sport, there will also be plenty on offer at the bike festival in Leogang: The Bunny Hop and Pump Track Contest on Thursday, 8th June and Friday, 9th June will kick things off with two competitions for everyone. But even the little ones will get their money's worth at the Kids Pumptrack Challenge on Saturday morning. The final day of the Downhill World Cup also has a lot to offer in terms of side events: Tom Öhler, the world champion on the trial bike, will be just as impressive as the spectacular Flying Bulls air show or the large expo area, where you can get up close and personal with the stars of the scene.
Highlights UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Leogang:
Saturday, 10 June 2017
12:15 pm, World Cup Downhill - Qualifying round - Junior Women
12:30 pm, World Cup Downhill - Qualifying Round - Junior Men
13:30, World Cup Downhill - Qualifying Round - Women
14:00, World Cup Downhill - Qualification Round - Men
Sunday, 11 June 2017
10:00 am, World Cup Downhill - Final - Junior Women
10:30 am, World Cup Downhill - Final - Juniors, followed by the award ceremony
13:00, World Cup Downhill - Final - Women
14:00, World Cup Downhill Final - Men, followed by the award ceremony
Visiting times for the team and expo area are
Friday, 9 June: 12:00 - 20:00
Saturday, 10 June: 10:00 - 20:00
Sunday, 11 June: 10:00 - 17:00
