CEO Alexander Pittl and Simon von Hubatius, Head of Routing, take stock. Conclusion: The WMTRC in Innsbruck-Stubai were a success on every level.
The 2nd World Mountain and Trail Running Championships (WMTRC), are history - and they were a success on every level. The barriers in Neustift and Innsbruck have disappeared, the Expo tents have been dismantled, and the athletes, numbering 1,300 in total, have left, taking with them impressions to last a lifetime. “The fans were amazing and everyone was extremely friendly. But the trails in the mountains were the real highlight,” says Benjamin Roubiol. The 23-year-old Frenchman has won the Trail Long, the WMTRC’s supreme discipline, which led over 86.9 kilometers from Neustift past the peaks of the Kalkkögel to Innsbruck. Alexander Pittl, WMTRC CEO, and Simon von Hubatius, Head of Routing, are pleased by this praise. “It was a perfect event on every level,” says a satisfied Alexander Pittl, “and this was confirmed by the majority of athletes, functionaries and associations.”
Pittl is unable to pick a single highlight. “It is impossible to name just one, as every race day was a highlight in itself, starting with Andrea Mayr’s Gold medal to the trail races to the trail races and the Mountain Classic. The musical performances by Gregor Meyle and Tim Bendzko were spectacular too. If you combine all of what happened you get the best possible marketing effect for both our region and the sport we all love.” The spectators played their own part in making these World Championships special by providing a truly festive atmosphere. “Over the course of the entire event, we counted about 50,000 spectators in Innsbruck-Stubai,” Pittl says. “I am ecstatic about having achieved our goal and about having surpassed the bar we set for ourselves.”
Simon von Hubatius, who was in charge of planning all the routes for the World Championships in Innsbruck-Stubai, concurs. “Every single race was suspenseful - perfect to promote mountain and trail running. The routes were extremely demanding, keeping the athletes on their toes throughout; if they wanted to make it through the finish line, they had to give it their all.” The Head of Routing seems extremely pleased. “Having been able to implement large parts of the original concept is something that makes me really happy. All the route details and things we came up with worked out really well” - a fact that was highlighted by the live stream, which provided viewers across the world with spectacular footage; the official timekeeper’s results page registered 16 million single hits on the final day of the WMTRC. Markus Kröll, a retired Austrian mountain runner, even thinks that “this WC will change the sport.” In other words, mission accomplished. “We don’t only want to organize great World Championships,” Alexander Pittl said about a year ago. “We want to organize World Championships that cause a bang.” And that’s exactly what they did: They came and went with a bang.
