The new Visma Ski Classics Challengers season starts tomorrow with Fossavatnsgangan in Ísafjördur, Iceland. The 50 km race in classic technique takes place following strict Covid-19 policies.  “When we received the information that we are allowed to have the event and opened the registration, it sold out within the shortest time,” says Kristbjörn R. Sigurjónsson,…

The new Visma Ski Classics Challengers season starts tomorrow with Fossavatnsgangan in Ísafjördur, Iceland. The 50 km race in classic technique takes place following strict Covid-19 policies. 

“When we received the information that we are allowed to have the event and opened the registration, it sold out within the shortest time,” says Kristbjörn R. Sigurjónsson, CEO of the event. 

550 participants will start on Saturday, 17th April 2021, and fight for the victory in the first Visma Ski Classics Challengers event of the season. 

The event demands very strict Covid-19 measures. International participants had to undergo a compulsory quarantine before the event. Skiers will be transported to the start area by buses, whereby they will be assigned a bus according to the start number. The start will be “floating” and spread out over the whole day in 10-minute-intervals starting at 10:00 CET with elite men and 10:10 CET with elite women. 

Live results can be checked in our Live center and can change continuously due to the floating start. Final standings can be found at the end of the day under Results on vismaskiclassics.com. 

Fossavatnsgangan has a long history and was first organized in 1936, being the oldest long-distance race in Iceland. It started out with a 20 km course. The 50 km race was added to the program in 2004. Today, the organizers offer an event program over four days with many different distances in both classic and skating techniques. The night race, which was planned two weeks before the main race weekend, had to be cancelled due to Covid-19. 

Participants of the 50 km classic event on Saturday collect points for their SC ranking, which can be seen on MyPages. 

A full list of Visma Ski Classics Challengers events with confirmed dates for season 2021/22 can be found here.