Skiers enjoyed the well-groomed trails at the third event of the ČEZ SkiTour at Horní Mísečky. Former national team member Knop won a double

The children’s races were divided into five categories. The youngest racers, under 6 years of age, went on the 300-meter course around the stadium. For the under-15s, there was a fair course of three kilometres of varied terrain. In contrast to the adults, the weather was quite favourable for the children, so they raced on well-groomed trails.

Saturday’s adult 20 km freestyle race started at 1 pm.  There were two very hilly circuits of 10 kilometres. The former national cross-country skiing team member Petr Knop (eD System Silvini Team) finished first. “They say I look like a dolphin on cross-country skis, so the wet conditions should suit me, but of course I don’t like it. Like almost everyone else, I prefer sunny weather. I broke away from my teammate Vojta in the first lap and then prayed he wouldn’t catch up with me again. My skis were slowing down and I was running out of energy,” said the satisfied winner.

Knop’s teammate from the eD System Silvini team Vojtech Prášil finished less than a minute later, while Jakub Pšenička from the Vltava Fund Ski Team finished third.

The women’s category was unusually balanced. Aneta Drobníková from Ski Klub Jilemnice led from the start, but Eva Stoklasová and Kristýna Kolínová were right behind her. Only one minute and eight seconds separated the first three women at the finish line.

On Sunday, the competitors set off on the classic technique courses. They could choose from three difficulty levels in the form of distances of 30, 17.5 and 10 km. After the heavy rains, the organisers took care with the preparation of the tracks, the Sunday cooling helped them a bit, and so the race was held on solidly groomed snow. Petr Knop again dominated the main 30 km route with ease. The other two platforms at the podium was occupied by Petr Knop’s teammates. Aleš Bohatý finished second and Jan Maryška third.

Just like in the Saturday skating race, there was a big tug of war among the women to see who would stand on the highest podium. Jolana Benešová managed to break away from her rival Martina Setunská in the last lap and finished 46 seconds ahead. “The challenging course here gave me a hard time, but once again we managed to wax well, so I am very happy with my performance. I just need to rest before the next race,” said the winner.

The ČEZ SkiTour will continue the following weekend with the Jesenický Ski Marathon. The races in the vicinity of the Paprsek mountain hut will take place on 25 and 26 February. The local trails at a high altitude of over 1000 metres promise good cross-country skiing conditions.

Dates for the 16^th ČEZ SkiTour

Orlický Marathon: 4–5 February 2023

ČEZ Jizerská 50: 9–12 February 2023

Horní Mísečky: 18–19 February 2023

JeLyMan: 25–26 February 2023

Bieg Piastów: 3–5 March 2023

Krušnohorská 30: 4–5 March 2023

Harrachov: 10–11 March 2023