The Maratona dles Dolomites (Ladin for "Dolomites Marathon"; ), is an annual single-day road bicycle race covering seven mountain passes in the Dolomites. Open to amateur cyclists, the Maratona—with 9,000 riders chosen from 30,000 applicants, from over 70 nations—is one of the biggest Italian Granfondo bicycle races.http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/rides/CycloSportive_Maratona_dles_Dolomites_2008_article_262725.html Cycling Weekly; July 3, 2008 National Geographic described it as "one of the biggest, most passionate, and most chaotic bike races on Earth."National Geographic, Italy's Cycle of Life .
History
1987 - 1993 : The pioneers of Pedraces 1987 The first Maratona dles Dolomites was run on 12 July 1987. This was a celebration of the first ten years of the cycling club Societá Ciclistica Alta Badia-Raiffeisen. The route was unique and snaked through seven Dolomite passes: Gardena, Sella, Fedaia, Duran, Forcella Staulanza, Falzarego and Valparola over . It started and ended in Pedraces. There were 166 participants. The first to pass the finish line was the Austrian Wolfgang Steinmayr who rode for over ten hours. There was also a single woman: Trui Beemsterboern from Holland, who arrived one hour after the winner.
1988 There were two routes: the first was long and mainly followed the roads of the first edition. The second was shorter. The cold, rainy day created quite a few problems for the 440 competitors. 417 people started the race. At the Duran Pass they stopped to decide what to do. The competition times were cancelled, but the race continued. The last competitor arrived at 21:00 hours, virtually frozen to death. A tub of boiling water awaited him in the hotel.
1989 It was also very cold the following year, which featured the Maratona pennant for the first time. The number of competitors continued to increase to 541. The starter was an exceptional professional, Flavio Giupponi, who had come second in the Giro d’Italia the year before. The day was so cold that the organisers decided to end the race at the Giau Pass.
1990 The route changed, and the Maratona was long and included the Valparola Pass, descended to Cortina, the Tre Croci Pass, Misurina Lake, the Cimabanche watershed, Cortina, the Giau Pass, Colle Santa Lucia, Caprile, the Fedaia Pass, Canazei, the Pordoi Pass, Arabba and the Campolongo Pass. There were of difference in altitude. There was also a shorter, more manageable route. There were 951 participants, including the first American. It was also the year of the first Maratona jersey that was given to all competitors.
1991 There were 1,292 participants of whom 32 were women and the Maratona finish line became electronic. The passages and times of competitors were recorded by a sign on the rear numbers and registered by IT systems. The weather was bad once again: it poured down from Lake Misurina to Cortina. The hail was painful. Then the sun returned to shine on the winner, Rainer Emerich of Dobbiaco on the short route and Pasquale Fiscato, from Veneto, on the long route.
1992 In the saddest year in the history of the Maratona, 2583 signed up but only 1897 took part. The cold was biting and it rained heavily. A serious road accident cost Luigi Nagler his life and injured Giovanni Fedrizzi.
1993 The Maratona's success continued to grow exponentially. With 3,095 participants including 138 women, for logistical reasons it was the last Maratona that left from Pedraces. It was the end of the pioneering era and a new modern era began for the most fascinating race in the world. This edition's route was 160 km long, without the Giau Pass.
1994 - 1999 : The modern age 1994 There was such an increase in participants that the organisers decided to move the start of the race to Corvara. 5,031 people took part – almost 2,000 more than the previous year. There was a start time difference of over 16 minutes between the front of the group and the rear. It was a lovely day and the competitors felt the heat. 111 riders were caught without a helmet and were disqualified.
1995 The Maratona continued to grow as 6,674 people signed up - 1,500 more than the year before. There weren't enough numbers (6,500 had been ordered) or jerseys: the former were printed hurriedly on a computer, while the latter were posted to competitors’ homes. There were starting grids, with three groups of riders starting at different times.
1996 The Maratona dles Dolomites Committee was formed and substituted the Rodes Alta Badia, with the arduous task of organising and foreseeing the ‘future’ of what was becoming a special event as part of a gran fondo cycle race. 6,463 people signed up. There was bad weather; it rained and was cold on the Sella.
1997 The first decision of the Maratona dles Dolomites Committee was to combine the race, on 28 September the same year, with the first edition of The Terrific Alta Badia Race, named after local champion Maria Canins. A brochure was printed for the first time and the week before the competition was filled with many events – not only linked to cycling.
1998 The growing success of the Maratona led the new committee to think of limiting numbers, although the competition retained the same format.
1999 The introduction of the Datasport precision timing system, with Datachips that took readings in real time from start to finish. The formula of a cyclists’ week gained even more ground, thanks to sports and entertainment events, as well as collateral events to the Maratona, including the Tenerific Maria Canins, a cycle race for children aged 4 to 12.
2000 - 2005 : The Maratona begins to speak 2000 Some new features included that each edition would have a motto, a key word, theme or special dedication. It began with ‘Living is an Art’. The start was moved to La Villa and the Fedaia Pass was no longer part of the route. The committee established a fixed number of 6,000 participants. Over thirty nationalities took part. However, the edition was marked by a terrible accident: a competitor died while coming down the Giau Pass.
2001 The theme was ‘Magic Lives in Us‘. The fixed number of participants was raised to 7,000.
2002 The edition was dedicated to women and was broadcast live for the first time on RAI3. It was an unexpected success: millions of people discovered the wonders of the route wedged between the Dolomites. All future editions of the Maratona dles Dolomites would be broadcast live on T.V.
2003 The Maratona was dedicated to the disabled and was twinned with the New York Marathon. Organisers introduced anti-doping tests.
2004 The family was the focus of the edition. All three routes were closed to traffic for the first time. The maximum number of participants was increased to 8,000 and registration ended in one week.
2005 The edition of the Maratona was dedicated to ‘angels’. There was also another new feature: given the growing number of participants and requests to take part, the committee introduced a draw system, so participants could only take part if their name was drawn.
2006 - 2010 : The modern age 2006 The edition took place over three routes that would now become the usual ones. The Maratona was dedicated to ‘colours’ and had a special guest: Jetsum Pema, the sister of the Dalai Lama, representing the Tibetan Children's Village Association. The maximum number of participants was increased to 8,500 competitors, but requests to take part were almost double that.
2007 ‘Gotes’- ‘drops’, was the theme. There were 8,500 participants from 39 countries. As in previous years there were famous names from the sports and business world at the starting line. The children's cycle race changed its name and became the "Maratona for Kids", still organised by Maria Canins.
2008 The success of the Maratona continued, known as ‘Fostüs’, ‘traces’. The race was broadcast live from the start and for the first time there was a YouTube film contest dedicated to the Maratona.
2009 Energy was the theme. A shuttle service was set up to avoid polluting roads in Alta Badia. The number of requests to take part increased continually, but the maximum number remained fixed. There was a surprise at the finish line: one of the first competitors to arrive was disqualified because he was caught throwing waste away during the race.
2010 The ecological focus of the Maratona is increasingly central and evident, and edition was entitled ‘Eco?Logical!’. The event boasted 70% carbon neutral certification. The idea was to gain international recognition for the event that managed to reduce all kinds of pollution. Closing the race routes to cars made an important contribution to this.
2011 - 2022 : An aware Maratona 2011 ‘Giulan’ – ‘thanks’ was the title of the edition, now in its 25th year. 9,131 days had passed since 1987 when the first Maratona was staged with 166 cyclists over . Some of these, like Giorgio Apolloni with bib no. 1 and Roberto Della Noce, no. 2, still race today with the same enthusiasm as in the past. Olympic champions, Italian and international managers and famous people, also ride the race. ENEL became a title sponsor of the event.
2012 The year of the ‘Smile’, 8,703 cyclists competed, 746 of whom were women. There were many well-known figures and it was a marvellous day. New features in 2012 included: official jerseys no longer wrapped individually in plastic packages (eliminating a ton of useless waste – around of plastic), the eco-pocket on the side of the jersey, the use of completely recyclable propylene cups and plates at the finish line refreshment point and a 60% reduction in paper inside the race packs, thanks to the help of partners and sponsors. Numbered slips were also given out to all riders at the finish line who, once they had received a drink, gave the plastic bottle back for collection in a recycling bin. Among the slips given out, some were chosen for free registration in the next Maratona dles Dolomites. There was once again a free shuttle bus to take cyclists to the expo and bib distribution area. Finally, the cleaning staff saw a 50% reduction in waste on the Maratona roads. The event's "Carbon Neutrality" index in 2012 was 80%.
2013 Cold, snow, sun and dedication followed in perfect ‘Harmony’ - the theme of the edition. There were 9,143 cyclists of the 9,339 selected by lottery, from 52 countries. The race started at 6:30 am with an air temperature of . Michil Costa, the event organiser, described the day after six hours of live TV broadcasting as "…an important page in a book of wonders, the ideal combination of nature, culture and plenty of heart".
2014 ‘Time’ was the main theme. 8,969 riders left La Villa in a 36-minute long train, the time it took the cyclists to enter the competition to the rhythm of live music and encouragement. There were large numbers and a huge demand for participation (32,600 people), with the usual formula: a fixed number of participants, car-free Dolomite passes, charity initiatives and eco-sustainability, with the use of electric cars and motorbikes to transport the jury and the race organisers. The "mür dl giat" was the great new feature. All cyclists on the medium and long route, during the second passage through La Villa, were asked to face a final tough challenge: after the turn for Corvara, then had to climb the "mür dl giat" (the cat's wall), as the inhabitants of La Villa are known as ‘cats’. This was a deviation with a 19% grade that crossed La Villa. At the top it re-joined the main route to the finish line in Corvara.
2015 9,302 athletes from 64 countries participated in the 2015 event. The theme of the race ‘Forgiveness’, demonstrated that it was a far-ranging event with features beyond cycling. 2016