Judenburg launches new season with ATSX500 event, Mont-du-Lac returns!
INNSBRUCK, Austria – The winter season on fast skates is about to start: on December 28 in Judenburg, Austrian fans will be able to cheer their local heroes, the Dallago Brothers, as obvious favorites on home soil for a brand new ATSX 500 event in the country where Ice Cross was invented 20 years ago. After four editions in Wagrain, near Salzburg, now Judenburg, north-west of Graz, is holding the torch. The race was a success last year and is logically promoted to the ATSX 500 level. “The basic layout is the same, but we added a few obstacles, such as waves and a wall rise comparable to the one in Boston last year”, says David Reinisch, of the local organizing committee. The 300-meter track is nestled at 1,700 m of height, in an area committed to outdoor activities on snow and ice (luge, ski touring, cross-country skiing, etc.).
The Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, where F1 drivers and MotoGP riders come every year, is only 20 minutes away.
The entry list was almost full, two weeks before the event, with 96 male riders (5 of them Japanese) and 24 Juniors already registered. Only a few spots were still left for female riders willing to compete with Canadian Jacqueline Légère and Swiss Anaïs Morand, two of the major contenders last winter.
In an avalanche of good news, ice crossers learnt recently that the next year will start on a high, when they discover a brand-new track set up at an altitude of 2,000 m and only reachable by cable-car in Pra-Loup (Southern Alps, close to the Italian border). There, on January 11, France will organize an ATSX 500 event, two years after a superb Red Bull Crashed Ice event in Marseilles harbour.
Reigning World Champions Cameron Naasz and Amanda Trunzo can also rejoice: they will again have a home race this winter, in the heart of the USA. Mont-du-Lac is again on the calendar, for an ATSX 500 event scheduled on January 18 on the selective track of this very friendly Wisconsin resort. Where Naasz and Trunzo triumphed, last February, on their way to a well-deserved world title. This announcement makes for a 13th race on the winter calendar, now spread over 8 countries and 3 continents (America, Europe, Asia), for the very exciting 20th season of the world’s fastest sport on ice.
Another minor amendment has been decided: the ATSX 250 race in Ekaterinburg (Russia) has been moved to March 7, on the same weekend as the ATSX 500 event scheduled in the province of Quebec.
About Ice Cross
In Ice Cross races, fearless skaters hurtle down courses of up to 700 meters in length, filled with obstacles such as bumps, turns, hairpins and waves. The ice can be natural, in ski resorts, or artificial, at city centre locations. Riders go 4-at-a-time, at speeds of up to 80 km/h. The fastest two advance to the next round until there is a 4-rider final, in each category (Men, Women, Junior). Depending on the difficulty of the track and the amount of World Championship/Ranking points available for the athletes, race week-ends are labelled ATSX 250, 500 or 1000. Over the past two decades, 1,000 athletes from 51 countries and 5 continents have taken part in races that have become so popular that they draw enormous and enthusiastic crowds.
Full Calendar, Red Bull Ice Cross World Championship, Winter 2019/2020 (updated on Dec 12) :
December 28: Judenburg, AUT – ATSX 500
January 11: Pra-Loup, FRA – ATSX 500
January 18: Mont du Lac (Wisconsin), USA – ATSX 500
January 25: Igora, RUS – ATSX 500
February 1: Percé, CAN – ATSX 250
February 1: TBA, JAP – ATSX 250
February 8: Rautalampi, FIN – ATSX 500
February 15: Yokohama, JAP – ATSX 1000
February 22: Almaty, KAZ – ATSX 250 - TBC
February 29: Nur Sultan, KAZ – ATSX 1000 - TBC
March 7: Québec, CAN – ATSX 500
March 7 : : Ekaterinburg, RUS – ATSX 250
March 21: Moscow, RUS – ATSX 1000
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