The Dolomitenmann is an

extreme sports Action sports, adventure sports or extreme sports are activities perceived as involving a high degree of risk. These activities often involve speed, height, a high level of physical exertion and highly specialized gear. Extreme tourism overl ...

relay race A relay race is a racing competition where members of a team take turns completing parts of racecourse or performing a certain action. Relay races take the form of professional races and amateur games. Relay races are common in running, oriente ...

held in September in the East Tyrolean, or so-called Dolomite Mountains of

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, near the city of Lienz. The founder and organiser is Werner Grissmann, a former World Cup skier. The Dolomitenmann relay race has been run annually since 1988. In recent years the race has been sponsored by the manufacturers of Red Bull energy drink and is now known as ''Red Bull Dolomitenmann''. The race is billed by its organizers as "the world's toughest team relay race". The competition is only open to male athletes. Race organizer Werner Grissmann justifies this with the statement that he wishes to protect women, since the competition is only meant for the "hardest athletes", he does not want "to see women suffer" and that it would be "incompatible with their aesthetics". In 2017 for the first time there was a side competition that was also open to female athletes.

Disciplines

mountain running Mountain running is a sports discipline which takes place mainly off-road in mountainous terrain, but if there is significant elevation gain on the route, surfaced roads may be used. In this it differs from fell running; also its courses are more ...

paragliding Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a harness or lies supine in a cocoon-like 'p ...

mountainbiking * Canoeing_(slalom)_pictogram

whitewater kayaking Whitewater kayaking is an adventure sport where a river is navigated in a decked kayak. Whitewater kayaking includes several styles. River running; where the paddler follows a river and paddles rapids as they travel. Creeking usually involving s ...

Course

The race is started by the ''mountain runner'' on the town square of Lienz at above sea level. who then runs a distance of around up to ''Kühbodentörl'' at . When the runner makes the hand-off to the team's ''paraglider'', he must also run, this time with his whole equipment to the first take-off point. After descending by air to Moosalm, the paraglider runs to a second take-off point, descending to Leisach where the ''mountain biker'' is ready and waiting. The ''mountain biker'' typically climbs or more, over a distance of about . After the climb, the mountain biker must ride a downhill track to the finish. The teams ''kayaker'' swims across the river Drau where his boat is stationed. His first maneuver is an "alpine-start", or a drop off a ramp into the river. After the jump the ''kayaker'' must navigate a difficult white water track on the river Isel before a last sprint back to the main square of Lienz.

Winning teams and tracks

The fastest athlete of each discipline receives a trophy and the title ''Dolomitenmann''. Until 2019 the trophies were designed by Jos Pirkner.

Dolomitenmen

As of September 2020, there are 58 Dolomitenmen from 10 nations.

Top 10 Dolomitenmen (as of September 2021)

References

External links

Dolomitenmann official website
{{Red Bull Endurance games Red Bull sports events Relay races Sport in Tyrol (state)