Tartu Ski Marathon ( et, Tartu maraton) is a long-distance

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

competition, held annually in

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

, on third Sunday of February. It debuted in 1960 and has been a part of

Worldloppet The Worldloppet Ski Federation is a federation of long distance cross-country skiing events whose aim is to promote cross-country skiing through ski races. The federation was founded on 10 June 1978 in Uppsala, Sweden. Locations Only one and t ...

since 1994. Initially, the track stretched from

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after the Northern European country's political and financial capital, Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 91,407 (as of 2021). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of ...

to Kääriku, partially on the

Emajõgi Emajõgi (; meaning ''"Mother River"'') is a river in Estonia which flows from Lake Võrtsjärv through Tartu County into Lake Peipsi, crossing the city of Tartu for 10 km. It has a length of 100 km. The Emajõgi is sometimes called t ...

river ice. For years the marathon's start was given in Matu (in

Aakre Aakre is a village in Elva Parish, Tartu County in Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the w ...

) with the finish in

Elva Elva may refer to: Places *Elva, Estonia, town in Tartu County, Estonia *Elva Parish, municipality in Estonia *Elva (river), a river in Estonia *Elva, Illinois, unincorporated community in DeKalb County, Illinois, United States *Elva, Manitoba, u ...

. Nowadays, the full 63 km marathon track stretches from

Otepää Otepää (formerly Nuustaku) is a town in Valga County, southern Estonia, it is the administrative centre of Otepää Parish. Otepää is a popular skiing resort, popularly known as the "winter capital" of Estonia (in contrast to the "summer ca ...

. The event is part of the

events, and places itself among the biggest ski races in the world with nearly 12,000 participants in its peak years.

References

External links

Skiing in Estonia International sports competitions hosted by Estonia Cross-country skiing competitions 1960 establishments in Estonia Sport in Tartu Otepää Parish Elva Parish Recurring sporting events established in 1960 February sporting events Ski marathons Winter events in Estonia {{estonia-sport-stub