51st Ganghofer Run Leutasch

FINALLY TOGETHER AGAIN! The joy of finally celebrating a common sports festival was evident on the faces of the participants, organizers, and many volunteers. With great enthusiasm and much excitement, the large and small athletes were welcomed and cheered on during the 51st Ganghoferlauf on March 5th and 6th.

The legendary Ganghoferlauf was not only the last race before the first lockdown but also the first public run that was held in Austria since the beginning of the pandemic. As if that wasn't reason enough for a truly spectacular sports festival, the 51st Ganghoferlauf thrilled everyone with perfect conditions, impressive sports moments and outstanding performances from young to old.

On Saturday morning, the long-awaited moment finally arrived: At exactly 9:00 AM, under bright sunshine, the eagerly awaited starting gun for the 51st Ganghoferlauf in classical style over 25 and 50 km was fired. Max Olex won the men's race for the 25 km distance with a time of 01:02:05.7, and Charlotta Sophie De Buhr won the women's race with 01:11:14.2. In the 50 km distance, Jakob Milz finished with a time of 01:57:36.3, and Franziska Müller with 02:16:02.8.

At the Special and Mini-Ganghoferlauf, the youngest celebrated the greatest sporting moments, and a multitude of junior runners participated with real sportsmanship and great motivation right at the front.

Traditionally, on Sunday, the skating events followed, with highly motivated hobby runners and ambitious professionals at the starting line. At 9:30 AM sharp, the first runners of the 20 km distance opened the race day, and half an hour later, the long distance followed as usual. Noe Näff crossed the finish line in just 47:09.9, while Lisa Zinecker won the 20 km race for the women with a fantastic time of 49:44.1. In the long distance of 42 km, Max Olex triumphed with 1:33:57.6 and Sigrid Mutscheller with 1:37:50.6.

All runners who competed the 50 km classic on Saturday and the 42 km skating on Sunday faced an extraordinary challenge. In a special Combined Ranking, these outstanding performances were recognized accordingly. Jakob Milz completed both distances in an impressive time of 3:31:35 and Anna Schmidhofer in 4:07:40.

Overall, around 1,500 participants engaged in a challenging yet fair cross-country race during the 51st Ganghoferlauf. And even though the timing ultimately had to crown the best times, there were only happy winners in the Leutaschtal that weekend. Following the Flower Ceremony in the finish area, the major sports successes were celebrated more privately for safety reasons: with gastro vouchers for a favorite meal in an excellent local business of choice.
 
BEST CONDITIONS – ENTHUSIASTIC FEEDBACK
Once again, Leutasch lived up to its Nordic premium image: As one of the most snow-sure places in Tyrol, the impressive Leutaschtal did not disappoint its participants. Under perfect conditions with expertly groomed, fast trails and plenty of sunshine, the race was conducted on the traditional course and received enthusiastic feedback from all participants.

TRULY SUCCESSFUL COOPERATION
The popular Ganghoferlauf was organized and conducted for the 51st time in Leutasch with the active support of over 100 volunteers and more than 10 Leutascher clubs. Thanks to the excellent cooperation, approximately 1,500 participants could finally be welcomed back at Austria's largest, oldest, and most popular public run after a year-long hiatus!

SAVE THE DATE
After this truly successful Ganghoferlauf 2022, we are already looking forward to the next one! The 52nd Euroloppet Ganghoferlauf will take place from March 4th to 5th, 2023.