The iconic Final Climb is the queen of the Tour de Ski with its steep slopes Record-hunting cross-country history is made on the sprints of the Olimpia III track Rampa con i Campioni, Coop Mini World Cup and lots of entertainment
It will be an Epiphany by name and by nature the one in the company of the Tour de Ski 2023/2024, with the prestigious competition making a stop in Val di Fiemme for the 18th time in 18 years. The races of the final stage of the travelling Tour will be staged the 6th and 7th January at the Lago di Tesero cross-country skiing stadium and on the Olimpia III track on the Alpe Cermis, with the 15 km classic on Saturday to set the tone for the sporting spectacle and precede the iconic 10 km free technique race on Sunday.
The “Final Climb” is not a simple Mass Start over the medium distance, but it represents a real symbol in the panorama of world cross-country skiing. Winning it means entering the Olympus of the great champions by right, as well as bringing home many points in view of the World Cup and significant money prizes. The first 6/7 kilometres of the course run quite smoothly and allow to warm up the muscles in preparation of the real ascent on the Alpe Cermis, which begins at the bottom of the valley and in just over 3600 meters makes the cross-country skiers climb 420 m in altitude. The start of the ascent is firm but regular and maintains an average gradient of 12,2%, but already after the first kilometre, one faces the deadly "Jump of Skiri", a 26.5% climb, which is followed by the demanding Pallua climb (14.3% average). Another 24% segment is followed by two long sections that never drop below an average of 10% and put the athletes' muscles to the test. They will have to resist and climb up "the deer's den", which with a dizzying 28% gradient is the most hostile point of the climb. Tight teeth to tackle another 12% section and the long 'direttissima del Cermis' before reaching the final 11% sprint and being able to reach the finish line at the middle station of the Doss dei Laresi cableway.
According to a particular time recording (climb time) that timed only the final section of the Cermis climb until 2019, that is until the race format included the pursuit start, the fastest cross-country skiers to climb the last section were the Norwegian Heidi Weng, in 2018, with a time of 18:02.1, and the French Maurice Manificat, who stopped the clock in 2015 at 15:52.0. The most successful in the Tour de Ski overall standings, on the other hand, are the Polish Justyna Kowalczyk and the Swiss Dario Cologna, both with four wins overall.
In this season’s edition, the men will be ahead the women in the climb scheduled for early Sunday afternoon, and who knows if anyone will be able to trim the records of their predecessors by stopping the stopwatch in record time. In any case, the Olimpia III track will be crowded already in the morning thanks to the “Rampa con i Campioni”, initiative reserved to amateurs and former champions. Registrations for the race are open at the cost of € 30.
The “Monster Bakken”, the name the Norwegians use to define the Final Climb, will be the highlight of an exciting weekend in the company of the Tour de Ski, with the Nordic Ski Val di Fiemme organising committee doing a great job in proposing numerous side events: from the Coop Mini World Cup to the Tour del Gusto, passing through the Apres-ski and the Nordic Ski Dj Party.
With little more than a week to go before the start of the new edition of the Tour, which kicks off in Toblach on 30th December, the enthusiasm is already sky-high and Val di Fiemme is only waiting for the arrival of the great cross-country skiers.
© Newspower
