Cyprus organized with great success on the 11th of April 2005 the first ever MTB Marathon World Cup. Expectations were high for this event and Cyprus delivered! The organization committee designed a beautiful course which started a few meters from the beach and headed to the mountains through the main streets of Limasol.
According to mr Beat Wabel, the delegate of the UCI technical Committee It is a great course, with singletrack, nice climbs and beautiful view! The course is hard and the cyclists will have to work very hard on some climbs. The descents are very technical with some hard parts and some easier. For all the cyclists it will be hard but not impossible to finish. Many teams are impressed with the course and have a good feeling for the race
After 96 hard kilometers of dirt roads with great view and thrilling singletrack and after passing from some of Cyprus many monuments the route returned for the finish to the beach of Germasogia.
Many of the top athletes of the Marathon discipline including the Defending World Champion Massimo De Bartolis, took the opportunity of the World Cup to enjoy the great weather, the challenging country trails and the ideal infrastructure which make Cyprus a perfect destination for Mountain Bikers.
The start was just a few meters away from the Mediterranean sea. The athletes passed through the main roads of Limassol and headed for the mountains. The view was excellent as they were passing from monuments and through the beautiful nature, but the burning sun and the hard surface made their work very difficult.
The day of the main event the bike race turned out to be a domination of Italy. Massimo De Bertolis, Roland Stauder and Dario Acquaroli took all the places on the podium in Cyprus.
It took some hard work on the rocky mountains of Limassol under hot weather. De Bertolis completed the 94.6 kilometers in 3 hours, 34 minutes and 13 seconds.
The girls from Switzerland tried to dominate the womens race. Petra Henzi won the race and Daniela Louis was second, making it 1-2 for Switzerland. Anna Enocsson of Sweden took the third place, just a few seconds ahead of the third Swiss woman, Esther Suss.