Cheered on by a frenzied crowd, local hero Luca Dallago proved to be unbeatable at the first Riders Cup race of the season at home in the Austrian Alps, winning an exciting Ice Cross Downhill World Championship race in the world's fastest sport on skates at the Wagrain-Kleinarl winter sports resort. There were athletes from 20 nations taking part in the race down the ice track.
Canada's Dylan Moriarity took second place on an unseasonably warm winter evening while Tristan Dugerdil of France was third and Canada's Shayne Renaud was fourth. It was a strong comeback for Europeans after North American racers from the United States and Canada dominated the Ice Cross Downhill opener last month in Quebec City. American Cameron Naasz, who did not race in Austria, leads the championship with 1,000 points from his win in Quebec City.
"I can't believe it," said Luca Dallago. "My brother won it last year and it was great to defend our family's name on home turf. It was a great race at a great venue. There was a lot of pressure on me but once the rest started I felt good and it all worked out."
Marco Dallago, the 2014 Ice Cross Downhill World Champion who won last year's Riders Cup stop in Wagrain-Kleinarl, organized this year's race once again and built the challenging 310-meter long track filled with jumps, bumps and obstacles with help from volunteers. But he was unable to race this year due to a lingering injury suffering in the Red Bull Crashed Ice race in Quebec City. "This year's event was so much better than last year and I'm really happy about that," said Marco Dallago, referring to the improved spectator-friendly track and venue. There were 220 participants this year, up from 115 last year. "It was a great crowd and there was a lot of action."
In the women's Riders Cup race, Michelle Noe of the Netherlands took first place with Sandrine Rangeron of France in second place and Austrian Veronika Windisch taking third.
Watch the highlights from Wagrain-Kleinarl
The Riders Cup was created as a new feeder event to open the sport to even more competitors in more locations and the atmosphere at the race in Austria was once again phenomenal. The six Riders Cup races this season are part of the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship alongside the four Red Bull Crashed Ice races, where winners earn 1,000 championship points. Whoever wins the most points from the three of the four Red Bull Crashed Ice events and from three of the six Riders Cup races will be crowned Ice Cross Downhill World Champion.
The next Ice Cross Downhill World Championship race will be held on Jan. 8-9 in Munich, Germany.
Results Wagrain-Kleinarl Men: 1. Luca Dallago (AUT), 2. Dylan Moriarity (CAN), 3. Tristan Dugerdil (FRA), 4. Shayne Renaud (CAN), 5. Maxwell Dunne (USA). 6. Mark Taru (EST), 7. Lukas Kolc (CZE), 8. Dean Moriarity (CAN), 9. Richard Van Wijhe (SWE), 10. Fabian Mels (GER).
Results Women: 1. Michelle Noe (NED), 2. Sandrine Rangeon (FRA), 3. Veronika Windisch (AUT);