Birkebeinerrennet
Birkebeinerrennet (lit. The Birkebeiner run/race) is a long-distance cross-country ski race (ski marathon) held annually in Norway. It is Norway's race in the Worldloppet Ski Federation. It is one of three races held under the Birkebeiner moniker, the other two being Birkebeinerrittet (bicycling) and Birkebeinerløpet (cross-country running).
Race
The race starts at Rena and ends at Lillehammer, a distance of 54 km. The number of participants is limited to 12,000 and is usually fully subscribed.
History
The run has been held since 1932, and commemorates a trip made by the Birkebeiner loyalists to save the heir to the Norwegian throne, Håkon Håkonsson, in 1206. All participants carry a backpack weighing at least 3.5 kg, symbolizing the weight of the then one-year old heir.
In 2007, the race was cancelled due to extremely high winds (90 km/h or 55 mph). However, at the time of cancellation, the event had been under way for nearly an hour, with roughly a quarter of the 13,000 competitors already on course. Despite the efforts of officials to send everyone back to the start, 55 hard-nosed Norwegians eventually reached the finish in Lillehammer, and upon being interviewed, blasted the decision to cancel the event [1].
Past Winners
Men
Women
Special 2002 FIS World-Cup Race
In 2002, the race was included as the last event in the FIS world-cup. The world-cup class was won by Thomas Alsgaard and Anita Moen Guidon finishing in 2:24:08.7[1] and 2:43:39.1[2], respectively, faster than both Rezac's and Hilde GP's records as of 2008. The participants in the world-cup class were, however, not required to carry the 3.5 kg backpack.
External links
- 3D animation of race Requires Google Earth software.
- 2D View in Google Maps.
- Official homepage (in Norwegian)
- English version of the official homepage
- German version of the official homepage