European downhill talents send it in Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis

European downhill talents had their eyes set on winning today at the MTB-Festival Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis! After 8-year-old Jakob Samek had opened the “Kona Rookie Games” with a full throttle 25.1 second run on the pump track on Friday, it was time to get serious. For the third consecutive year the region had sent out the invitation for the rookie festival and nearly 200 up-and-coming downhillers answered the call. It was time for high-speed racing on the downhill track during the “iXS Rookies Cup” on Saturday and each and every one of the participants gave everything they had in hope of winning glory in the Austrian Alps.


Rising stars from 17 European countries met for the “iXS Rookies Cup”, which is a main event of the “Kona Rookie Games”. Beside local heroes such as Moritz Netzer und Marcel Siess, who both started for the team „Dirty Devils“ from Ladis, numerous talents from countries such as Norway, Slovakia and Ireland sent it big time down the 1.480 meter / 4.856 ft. long track. After the weather had played up on Friday, the weather god showed some understanding for the first iXS event of the weekend. The participants were able to enjoy dry weather conditions. The track however proved to be an even bigger challenge than usual, after the heavy rain the day before.



Hometown boy Moritz Netzer didn’t seem to flinch whatsoever though and made the home crowd get loud for the first time, when he pushed into the lead being only the third rider to hit the track in the U13 male/female category. Netzer manoeuvred his bike through the slippery root carpets, withstood the test of courage at the “Puinz Jump” and left his opponents behind him. His time of 4:00,220 min was not to be beaten, which left the local fans with nothing else to do but to cheer and celebrate the first successful heat of the day. “It was just rad, but also extremely difficult to get through the ‘Sautrog’. I nearly lost it there”, said the young Tyrolean describing a very sticky and tricky section of the course covered in roots and mud.


After Gabriel Wibmer (AUT) had sealed the second Austrian win in the U15 male/female category, everyone was anticipating the first-time encounter between the best female prodigies in Europe. At first it was Kona athlete Leah Maunsell (IRL), who set the bar. It took until the highly skilled Norwegian Mille Johnset, starting for the Atherton Racing Academy, raced over the finish line, before the young Irish athlete had to clear her spot on the hot seat. The suspense mounted with the appearance of Valentina Höll (AUT) on the big screen. The 14-year-old is already a star in her home country and did herself justice with her run. The young Austrian sped over the root carpets and smashed the leading time by over 15 seconds to take the lead and already secure the third Austrian win of the competition.


„Everything went really well in training, but when I rode into the woods today, I wondered, where all the roots had suddenly come from over night! It all worked out though.” Höll even managed to improve her time (3:35,495) to the year before significantly even though the conditions were far worse this time around – this being another indication for the progression she has made in the past months. “There are no World Cup races for us young girls. Events like today are just great, because it gives 13- and 14-year-olds the chance to compete against athletes from many different countries. We do not usually get the chance, so it is pretty cool”, acknowledged Höll.


Last but not least it was up to the “Pro Youth” riders to show what they had in them. In the U17 category it was Jan Flohr, who belted down the track to raise the bar for the fastest time up to that point. 3:23,259 min was enough to secure the win for the young German. Two Slovakians proved their strength in the U19 category. Benjamin Filip and Simon Rus, who scored the fastest time of the “iXS Rookies Cup” in 3:21,317 min, were only separated by another young Austrian Sandro Partell. The predominantly home crowd was ecstatic about another great result and the young Austrian made clear how proud he was: “To reach the podium is just sensational. I’m so stoked! This is the only race series for us young guns and I’m thrilled, that there is so much support. I can only hope, that this will carry on.”


After all the exciting race action the gravity fun was not over yet. Peter Kaiser and his team of slopestylers put on a great show and made the fans gasp and shake their heads in disbelieve of the tricks they saw. After the prize giving ceremonies for all the winners of the “iXS Rookies Cup” the organizers still had one surprise left up their sleeves. The round about 200 athletes gathered around the big LED live screen in the finishing area to watch the pros send it during the UCI Downhill Mountain Bike World Cup in Mont-Sainte-Anne.

Whether they picked up a few tricks from the likes of Rachel Atherton or Aaron Gwin, will be seen tomorrow, when they will send it for one last time during the “MTB-Festival Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis”. The „iXS International Rookies Championships“ will be streamed live on Sunday from 12.30pm CEST on www.pinkbike.com.



All results from the “Kona Rookie Games” can be found here: http://www.bikepark-sfl.at/en/latest/events/mtb-festival2016/start-result-lists

For more information about Bikepark Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis visit our website:
www.bikepark-sfl.at/en or: www.facebook.com/bikepark.serfaus.fiss.ladis

Find more information on the region Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis visit:
www.serfaus-fiss-ladis.at/en or www.facebook.com/serfausfissladis