By Teemu Virtanen
Visma Ski Classics continues this Saturday, January 12, when 60 km Kaiser Maximilian Lauf takes place in Seefeld, Austria. This race is also the first one in the Visma Alp Trophy tour that has four consecutive events altogether ending with Toblach-Cortina on February 2, the other two races are La Diagonela in Switzerland and Marcialonga in Italy, respectively.
The preparations for Kaiser Maximilian Lauf are well under way, but the Olympic region has been hit by some heavy snowfalls, perhaps the heaviest in 50 years. There is perhaps too much snow in the area, but the organizers are working day and night to make sure that the race can take place in perfect conditions.
“A big challenge this year is the heavy snowfall during the last week and it keeps snowing throughout the week,” says Kari Kraus representing the tourist office of Seefeld. “This means a lot of manpower for the preparation team. This is our fourth Kaiser Maximilian Lauf and we have more participants than ever before. It’s good news for us! We also have more than 1.2 million TV viewers, and of course, a big part of them are from Scandinavia. We are happy to serve these cross-country ski lovers, and we believe that this weekend will be a great success.”
All Nordic ski fans know that Seefeld will also host the upcoming FIS Nordic World Championships in February, and the organizers feel that Kaiser Maximilian Lauf works as a great showcase for the big games.
“Naturally, our focus is on the upcoming World Championships starting on the 19th of February,” Kari continues enthusiastically. “So, it is a real challenge organising such a big project, and Kaiser Maximilian Lauf is a perfect preparation for the event. We will use the new arena and a part of the tracks of the future Championship Games. In addition, a big part of the Kaiser Maximilian team will work again during the Games. Many members of this team will have important roles during the event due to their knowledge, their experience and their enthusiasm for this sport.”
On Saturday, January 12, the elite women start at 8:45 am CET followed by the elite men at 9 am CET. More information about the event can be found at
https://vismaskiclassics.com/the-tour/events/kaiser-maximilian-lauf/
