'WITCHES' WAITING FOR MARCIALONGA LOVERS

50th Marcialonga with many protagonists on Sunday from Moena to Cavalese
Easy bets on paper, not on…snow, the best do not wax
Emil Persson and Ida Dahl with yellow bib, but many suitors

Marcialonga is a great event tight to amateurs since the beginning, once called “bisonti” and still (wrongly). Participants are now flying over 7000 for this year and all over the editions registered participants count to 263.889. And Sunday it’s time for the awaited 50th edition!
Marcialonga is an important race for professional athletes because, since it represents a Ski Classics’ stage, it brings along the 70 km from Moena to Cavalese the strongest athletes, specialised on (not only) long distances. Ski Classics is a long distances World Cup to which 35 Pro Teams take part. Their athletes might come from the traditional World Cup, World Championships and Olympic games to confront with the double poling ‘festival’.
The ski-marathon of Valli di Fiemme and Fassa is a firmed date of Ski Classics, one of the toughest race, not for its 70 km yet for how the track develops. From Moena, it climbs to Canazei, then a long and endless downhill to Molina and last, the final hard uphill to Cavalese, this year with the ‘Mur de la Stria’ (wall of the witch), athletes have to use all their energies along its 583 meters.
After Diagonela, Marcialonga represents Ski Classics’ 7th stage, that currently seems a ‘Scandinavian Cup’, looking at its ranking. The first non-Scandinavian athlete found through men general ranking, is the French Jeremy Royer, 23rd! The recurrent name is Emil Persson this year, the Swedish won the whole five individual stage and surprised everyone at “Prato Piazza Mountain Challenge” in Dobbiaco, when he literally knocked out his “climber” opponents.
There are many suitors for Marcialonga, even far from the general ranking first positions. Watch out for the yellow bib Persson, but stay close to his followers (not for points, 1110 p. Persson), because the second Max Novak (599 p.) and the third Kaspar Stadaas (595 p.) aim, with many possibilities of succeeding, to victory. There is also the “climber” Morten Eide Pedersen (596 p.), or the strong Andreas Nygaard, far in the ranking but dangerous. Thomas Ødegaarden showed great climbing performances, as for his team captain Tord Asle Gjerdalen, the man with the RayBan.
Italy, who plays at home, is a little late in this championship. Team Robinson Trentino covers the 9th position in the Pro Team ranking, but his best results came with Scandinavian and American athletes, it represents the most international team of the circuit.
Among women, it is a different story, but likely difficult to bet. Ida Dahl conquered third out of five individual stages and she is the current leader. She was absent in Diagonela, where Astrid Øyre Slind won, which was also first at Prato Piazza. Slind can be one of the probable winners in Cavalese, but she is now deciding whether to come or not, since there is also the World Cup and she might be called after her 7th place at Tour de Ski. Sceneries are wider among women: there are also Emilie Fleten, Jenny Larsson and Magni Smedås.
Yet, Marcialonga is complex and due to important participation and personal goals, bets can be done only on papers. It’s hard that someone might run away from the head group before Molina, it’s hard that someone can light a fire under the final climb. We can only be certain on Sunday, at 11 am more or less, looking at the brand new finish line in Cavalese.
Does Mur de la Stria make any difference? Big champions say no, but someone is probably seeing some ‘witches’ in those turns.
Marcialonga’s track is ready for the big challenges of the snow-covered white 50th edition. Do not miss the opening ceremony, this year exceptionally in Trento on Thursday January 26th in Piazza Duomo.

© Newspower