By Teemu Virtanen
Toblach-Cortina is the second biggest ski race in Italy and one of the oldest long distance cross-country ski events in the country as its history dates back to 1977. The race is the 7th stage in the Visma Ski Classics Pro Tour in Season X. This year’s edition comes with a special treat for the winners as they are awarded with two living Scottish highland cattle bulls whose names are Giovanni and Ferdinando.
As the transportation to the race location is too stressful for the animals, the bulls will not be physically present at the award ceremony. However, their pictures are printed on the award placards, and the winners can later decide whether they want to sell the bulls or bring them home.
The race course partially follows the original Tour de Ski track, run in the opposite direction, from Toblach to Cortina. The whole course lies in the Unesco Natural World Heritage, and it goes on an old railroad, the so-called Dolomites Railway (“Ferrovia delle Dolomiti”).
The race starts at the military airport in Toblach and goes towards Innichen and then continues to the famous Nordic Arena where the sprint competition point is located at 11 km. After the arena, the course passes the Lake of Toblach, War Cemetary and the viewpoint of the Three Peaks, and finally reaches the highest point of the course at Cimabanche (1,534 m a.s.l.). This location at 30 km also serves as the Climb competition check point. From there, the course goes downward to Cortina d’Ampezzo where the finish is located in the heart of the town.
”We are ready for the race and looking forward to a nice weekend,” Stephanie Santer, the event manager, says confidently. “There will be a party on Saturday night in Grandhotel from 5.30 pm to 11.00 pm with DJ Alex. Everybody gets a free drink and a buff, and there will be time to relive the race and talk with other people aboute the experience. We will have a new participant record, around 2,500 skiers, and snow conditions are perfect and the weather should also be great!”
Cortina is a very famous winter sports resort, and it is best known as the host city for the Olympic Winter Games in 1956, and it will host the Winter Olympics for the second time in 2026 together with Milan. The town will also host the 2021 Alpine World Championships. The main shopping promenade and the historical center are great sightseeing destinations. Cortina has been used for several Hollywood films such as The Pink Panther (1963), Ash Wednesday with Elizabeth Taylor (1973), For Your Eyes Only (Bond film, 1981) and Cliffhanger (1993).
Toblach is a regular host location of FIS Cross-Country World Cup events, and many Tour de Ski stages has taken place there. The town has cozy cafés, idyllic restaurants and great shops, and the start of the race is right in the middle of the town. Additionally, the town is known for the fact that the famous composer Gustaf Mahler completed his ninth symphony in a tiny wooden cabin close to Toblach in the summers of 1918-10.
