Maratona dles Dolomites, 8000 cyclists seek illumination on Alpine passes

Lüm. And light be on the 38th Maratona dles Dolomites. Italy's best-loved (and most feared) Granfondo raises the curtain once again on the incomparable scenery of the peaks and passes of the Dolomites, a Unesco World Heritage Site. And to challenge each other along the hairpin bends, the climbs and the equally challenging descents will be again this year over 8,000 cycling enthusiasts, more than half of them at their first experience with the now classic and coveted early summer event.

All in search of light - Lüm in fact, the theme of the 2026 edition - as an element capable of transforming every effort into energy and every emotion into memory. And also from a meteorological point of view, given the uncertain forecasts after the long heat wave that hit Italy and the whole of Europe, mountains included. As usual, half of the fans will arrive from across the border, from 81 different countries, confirming the cosmopolitan nature of the event and its ability to attract attention from all latitudes.

Awaiting them are the now three classic routes, often the subject of difficult choices among aspiring 'marathon runners': the Sella Ronda, with its 55 kilometres in length and 1,780 metres of altitude difference (don't call it 'short', for goodness sake!), the Medio of 106 km and 3,130 metres, and finally the actual Maratona, 138 km long and with 4,230 metres to overcome. Campolongo, Pordoi, Sella, Gardena, Giau, Falzarego and Valparola, on the other hand, are the famous passes to be climbed, all of them strictly closed to the nagging traffic of cars and motorbikes.

Many will have the opportunity to approach and perhaps even surpass many cycling champions of the more or less recent past. If Peter Sagan, for the first time at the start in Badia on Sunday 6 July at 6.30 a.m., takes the title of 'super-host', ex-professionals of the calibre of Miguel Indurain, Vincenzo Nibali, Paolo Bettini, Gianni Bugno, Filippo Pozzato, Daniel Oss, Fabio Aru and Alan Marangoni are certainly not to be outdone. Just as there will be no shortage of exceptional athletes 'lent' from other disciplines such as Fabio Cannavaro, Fabrizio Ravanelli, Mattia Casse, Manfred Mölgg, Hervé Barmasse and Cristian Zorzi.

Equally customary is the meeting-contest between the big names of Italian finance, which this year will see a patrol of entrepreneurs ideally led by Matteo Del Fante (CEO of Poste Italiane), Nicola Lanzetta (Enel), Rodolfo De Benedetti (Cir), Matteo Arcese (Arcese Trasporti) and Pierluigi Alessandri (Technogym) challenge each other not so much on profits as on pedals. For one day, everyone will be on the hunt for a sporting feat.