In a gripping race covering 3,121 vertical meters on 45.2 kilometer leading from Innsbruck to Neustift im Stubaital, Norwegian Stian Angermund defended his title with a time of 4:19 hours, coming in first before Briton Thomas Roach and Italian Luca del Pero. As the best Austrian, Dominik Matt comes in 29., 27:08 minutes behind the winner.
Angermund and Roach took the lead soon after the start in the center of Innsbruck, running the first 14, 15 kilometers in a trio with Roach's compatriot Jonathan Albon before Angermund was able to pull away. The route to the Kalkkögel leads over slippery fields of snow, and Angermund managed to extend his lead to more than 1.5 minutes. For a brief moment, it seemed that the race could get close again as Angermund slowed down to a walking pace just before reaching the route’s highest point at the Starkenberger hut.
On the downhill, weaving through the avalanche barriers down to Neustift, Angermund accelerated again and was able to keep his competitors at bay, allowing him to run down the final switchbacks to Neustift without pressure and to successfully defend his title from Thailand. Crossing the finish line 2:18 minutes later, Roach came in second ahead of Luca del Pero, with a 3:04-minute deficit.
The race started off well for the Austrians; Hans-Peter Innerhofer was able to stay among the top ten for more than 90 minutes, but then fell back significantly on the climb to the Mutterer Alm, finishing with a deficit of 30:28 minutes in 32nd place. Best Austrian is Dominik Matt coming in 29. (+ 27:08 minutes)
