For many athletes, bicycles are an integral part of summer training, regardless of whether they are racing bikes or mountain bikes. The Summer Challenge 2020 is about finding out what kind of vehicle the athletes can use to reach the finish line faster: on a luge in winter or on a mountain bike in summer?

Evelin Lanthaler Summer Challenge 2020

Happy faces after the Summer Challenge 2020 with Evelin Lanthaler (2nd from left)

On her home track in Moos (ITA), we challenged the reigning World Champion and overall World Cup winner in women’s single, Evelin Lanthaler (ITA), at the end of August. The serial winner first had to master the 870 meters on the “Bergkristall”-track uphill on a mountain bike. Lanthaler was accompanied by the youth lugers Jenny, Maxi and Raffaele from the sports school in Mals (ITA). “It was exciting for the students to meet a superstar of the scene. At the same time, it was also a welcome change from everyday training“, explained coach Renate Kasslatter. “I usually prefer to ride a racing bike, but mountain biking was also really fun with the kids. However, apparentely I was far away from the competition line when going downhill“, Lanthaler analyzed after the Summer Challenge 2020.
The comparison shows: On her victory run at the World Cup in Moos in January, the World Champion finished in 55.48 seconds, on the mountain bike she crossed the finish line in 1.38.08 minutes. “I really wouldn't have thought that we are so much faster on the luge,” said Lanthaler, who is already looking forward to her home race in the coming World Championship season.