A Gran Fondo is a type of long-distance

road cycling Road cycling is the most widespread form of cycling in which cyclists ride on paved roadways. It includes recreational, racing, commuting, and utility cycling. As users of the road, road cyclists are generally expected to obey the same laws a ...

ride originating in Italy in 1970, and roughly translates into English as "Big Ride". Italian Gran Fondos are officially defined and certified by the Italian Cycling Federation as a bicycle event at least long, and are individually chip-timed (start to finish) races with prizes for the fastest riders in each category. The starts are done en masse, and the format allows for riders of every level to participate, much like a marathon, where most participants are competing against the clock instead of other participants. Traditionally a large meal is served to the participants at the end of the event, and roads are shut down. Nowadays only a handful of the largest Italian Gran Fondos have full road closures, but laws requiring riders to obey all traffic signals are more lax in Italy compared to other western countries. The first few Gran Fondo events in the United States were organized in 2009, and there were over 200 events in North America. Although US Gran Fondos are independently owned and operated
Gran Fondo National Series
organizes the official USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championships. Gran Fondos in the US come in many different varieties with some adhering very strictly to the traditional definition (often going as far as to have a full road closure), and others treating it more like a century ride where riders only compete in short timed sections and enjoy a large elaborate banquet at the finish. Since 2016, the

Union Cycliste Internationale The Union Cycliste Internationale (; UCI; ) is the world governing body for sports cycling and oversees international competitive cycling events. The UCI is based in Aigle, Switzerland. The UCI issues racing licenses to riders and enforces di ...

(UCI) organizes
Gran Fondo World Series
incorporating some of the Gran Fondo events listed below as qualifier events, and a final race to award the

UCI Gran Fondo World Championships The UCI Gran Fondo World Championships are the culmination of a series of mass participation cycling events in the Gran Fondo/cyclosportive tradition. Unlike the UCI Road World Championships The UCI Road World Championships are the annual world ...

to elite and masters amateur riders in their respective age groups. Recent finals took place in Perth (Australia; 2016), Albi (France; 2017), Varese (Italy; 2018), Poznan (Poland; 2019), Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina; 2021), and Trento (Italy; 2022). Upcoming finals will be hosted by Glasgow (UK; 2023), Aalborg (Denmark; 2024), Melbourne (Australia; 2025), and Victoriaville (Canada; 2026).

History

The first Gran Fondo was th
Nove Colli
held on July 12, 1970, in

Cesenatico Cesenatico () is a port town with about 26,000 inhabitants on the Adriatic coast of Italy. It is located in the province of Forlì-Cesena in the region of Emilia-Romagna, about south of Ravenna. Cesenatico's port canal was surveyed and drawn by Le ...

, Italy. With chip timing becoming more popular in the 1990s, the number of Gran Fondo events grew rapidly in Italy. While many Gran Fondos came and went, a few have remained since the early years, such a
Gran Fondo CooperatoriGran Fondo 10 ColliGran Fondo Felice Gimondi
The Italian cycling federation "Federciclismo" provides rules of what makes an Italian Gran Fondo. Similar events were soon held in other countries, most notably France, where they are called “

Cyclosportive A cyclosportive, or often simply sportive, is a short to long distance, organised, mass-participation cycling event, typically held annually. The Italian term ''Gran Fondo'' is commonly used for these events in the United States, Australia and som ...

”.

Today

Today, Gran Fondo events are held in many countries. However, not all of them follow the true Italian Gran Fondo model of a cycling marathon. Italy In Italy, Gran Fondos are held between February and October. A full list can be found on dalzero.it. “Dal zero” means “from zero” and refers to the way Gran Fondos are usually raced: “a tutta” or “all out”, from the start. In Italy, a "dilettante" is an Elite amateur under the age of 25 trying to turn professional. Only a handful of athletes have a chance to turn pro each year. Others either end their cycling career, have to continue racing small circuit races, or compete at Gran Fondos, which explains the competitiveness at Gran Fondos and their popularity. Argentina In Argentina, Gran Fondo cycling is still a rather new concept. In 2013, the first one was held in San Luis, which many consider the cycling capital of Argentina, given that the men’s professional race

Tour de San Luis Tour or Tours may refer to: Travel * Tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which ...

and the women’s professional race Tour Femenino are held there as well. Today, the Gran Fondo in San Luis is part of the GFNY World series and now calle
GFNY Argentina
The other notable event is Gran Fondo Buenos Aires, which was first held in 2015. It is a relatively short (100 km) but flat and fast race. Australia Despite the growth of cycling in Australia, Gran Fondo events are still relatively rare. Yet
Amy’s Gran Fondo
is one of the most notable globally, held along the Great Ocean Road, with 2,500 riders completing the Gran Fondo distance. On the west coast
Perth has been holding a successful Gran Fondo race that has featured as “UCI Granfondo World Championship”
In the north, Darwin's
Top End Gran Fondo
was the third Gran Fondo in Australia starting in 2012. The Top End event has become an annual event in the Australian cycling calendar, showcasing the unique NT landscape. In South East Queensland
Tour de Brisbane
hosts a Gran Fondo course starting in 2019. The July 2021 event had over 4,000 rider registrations. Austria In Austria, the generally used term for Gran Fondo is ''Radmarathon''. This can be confusing because events with that same term in Germany are non-timed bike tours. While not as competitive as the Italian counterpart, Radmarathons are true Gran Fondo-style races. The mother of them all is the Oetztaler Radmarathon, over 240 km with 5,200 m of climbing, one of the hardest Gran Fondo races in the world that attracts a sold-out field of 4,000 riders. Belgium In Belgium, local laws prevent Gran Fondo races. A lot of events have tried it but all that is left are bike tours. While thousands of riders get to experience events on the same courses like the pros – e.g. a
Ronde Van Vlaanderen
– they cannot race them. Brazil After a few hiccups with early events that were held and later got cancelled, Brasil is starting to embrace Gran Fondo races now that larger organizations have appeared. Under ASO license, the inaugura
L'Etape Brasil
was held in 2015. Starting in 2017, Gran Fondo New York grants a license to a race organizer in Brasil to host . Canada Owing to its French heritage, Quebec embraces the cyclosportive culture which is identical to Italian Gran Fondos. In the English-speaking part of the country, many events do not offer racing despite the Gran Fondo name. Gran Fondo Canada hosted the inaugural Gran Fondo Whistler in 2010. Gran Fondo Banff was held in Banff until 2016. There are increasingly new Gran Fondo events which are timed but attract recreational cyclists wanting to participate for personal challenge and celebrating cycling on this style of ride, such as the County Gran Fondo in Prince Edward County, Ontario. Chile In Chile, road cycling has to catch up in popularity with mountain biking and triathlon, but several Gran Fondo events are showing up on the scene, lik
Gran Fondo Giro del Lago
and set for 2017, GFNY Chile just outside Santiago. China Since 2014, a challenging multi-stage and multi-city event has been organised in the Southwestern province Yunnan. Th
Colourful Yunnan Granfondo Cycling Festival
is a popular event with an international field of participants. Also known simply as Granfondo Yunnan, it not only offers tough mountain courses but also focuses on the cultural, ethnic and culinary features of the province. Colombia Colombia is a country where enthusiasm for cycling is near Italian levels and bigger than in most other countries. Thanks to the new generation of cyclists in the 2010s, Gran Fondo races gained a lot of attention and became very popular, hosted by local stars like Rigoberto Urá
El Giro de Rigo
Nairo Quintan
Gran Fondo Nairo Quintana
and even old glories like Santiago Boter
La Ruta Colombia
as well as (first held in 2015). The popula
La Ruta Colombia
Gran Fondo series with two events in changing locations as well as the one-off Gran Fondo Hincapie are not Gran Fondo races but only bike tours with timed sections. Since 2016, th
Gran Fondo Boyaca Mundial
is being held inside the department of Boyaca. An updated list can be found o
Gran Fondo Guide
Denmark In Denmark, Gran Fondo Copenhagen was held in 2014 and 2015 until it got cancelled in 2016. Dubai The Dubai Gran Fondo was held for a few years but cancelled in 2016. The Dubai 92 cycle challenge is UCI Grand Fondo-approved for 2016. France Gran Fondos are called “

” in France and they are just as popular as the ones in Italy. Not quite as competitive, the scene is easily the second strongest globally with a solid calendar of racing from March to September. Popular races includ
La MarmotteEtape du TourLes Trois BallonsGFNY Mont VentouxKohnse.com/en/ L'Ariegiose
an
L'Ardechoise
Germany Gran Fondos in Germany are usually called “Jedermann” races. These events are generally only open to non-race license holders or those with the lowest-level license (C). As a consequence, many riders no longer obtain racing licenses but rather race Jedermann races. Some riders are organized in teams that are no less professional than elite amateur teams. Indonesia For the first time in 2016, a Gran Fondo was held in Indonesia on the island of Lombok
GFNY Indonesia
took place on October 2, 2016, and drew 600 riders from over 30 countries. Ireland Long-distance bike tours like th
Wicklow 200
have been popular in Ireland for many years. In recent years, some Gran Fondo events have appeared, but most of them are non-timed bike tours. Israel The first Israeli Gran Fondo the "Clal Health Gran Fondo", took place in April 2012. Since then it has taken place in the north and the south of Israel. In 2015 the Dead Sea Gran Fondo joined forces with the Israel Cycling Federation, the organizers of the Tour of Arad, to create the largest international road cycling event in Israel th
Gran Fondo Arad Dead Sea
It takes place in the lowest point on the earth and 1,000 riders from 30 countries are expected to take part in the two day three stage 155K km / 96.3 mile race in 2018. Luxembourg Th
Charly Gaul Cyclosportive
is the oldest gran fondo format race in Luxembourg. In 2019, it celebrated its 30th edition. It is typically held on a hilly course through the northeastern part of Luxembourg known as the

Mullerthal Little Switzerland (, , ) is a nickname for a region in the east of Luxembourg, bestowed upon the region on account of its reputed geographical Little Switzerland (landscape), similarities to Switzerland. It is roughly contiguous with the Cantons ...

, towards the

Ardennes The Ardennes ( ; ; ; ; ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, extending into Germany and France. Geological ...

low mountain range in the north of the country. Since 2008, the race has a start and finish in

Echternach Echternach (, ; or locally ) is a commune with town status in the canton of Echternach, in eastern Luxembourg. Echternach lies near the border with Germany, and is the oldest town in Luxembourg. History The town grew around the Abbey of Echt ...

and takes place in early September. The 2018 edition gathered about 1200 riders for one of the two parcours lengths, 153 km and 89 km. Since 2017, th
Schleck Gran Fondo
is organized with the race starting and finishing in

Mondorf-les-Bains Mondorf-les-Bains (; ; ) is a Communes of Luxembourg, commune and town in south-eastern Luxembourg. It is part of the Remich (canton), canton of Remich. Mondorf-les-Bains is a spa town (hence its name), and has the only casino in Luxembourg. , ...

and taking the riders along the scenic

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; ; ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A sm ...

river towards the hilly Little Switzerland region in the eastern parts of the country. In the 3rd edition on May 25, 2019, about 3000 riders participated in one of two parcours lengths, 155 km and 100 km. Malaysia A total of 400 riders from 31 countries took on the first ever GFNY Malaysia which took place on April 23, 201

Riders were treated to a scenic course and cultural experience in host city Ipoh, capital of Perak which is just 200 km outside of Kuala Lumpur. Mexico
GFNY Cozumel
was the first Gran Fondo in 2014, followed b
La Etapa Mexico
was also a true Gran Fondo, whil
Gran Fondo Giro d'Italia Mexico
only featured timed climbs. The so-called "Gran Fondo Mexico" is a 50 km non-timed bike tour. Netherlands Like Belgium, the Netherlands suffer from strict laws that have so far prevented amateur mass-participation cycling races. Panama
Gran Fondo Panama
is Central America's most popular Gran Fondo, reaching from the Pacific to the Atlantic oceans. Philippines Gran Fondo debuted in the Philippines in July 2014 as the "Misamisnon Gran Fondo". Since then, every July, cyclists flock to Misamis Occidental in southern Philippines and participate in a festive sporting event celebrating cycling and enjoying the legendary hospitality of Filipinos. Poland With the growing popularity of cycling in Eastern Europe, Poland is at the forefront of hosting Gran Fondo-type events. Portugal There was a boom of Granfondos (around 20 in 2019) in Portugal in the last years. We can select among them the three major Granfondo Organizeres
GranFondo Premium
the first´s,
Cabreira Solutions
most recent and the most popula
Bike Service
''List of 2019 Granfondo Events in Portugal'': Almodôvar Cycling Challenge 2019, Algarve Granfondo, Arrábida Granfondo, Aveiro Spring Classic, Lisboa Granfondo, Montemuro Granfondo, Granfondo Raiano, Granfondo Açores (Ilha Terceira), Douro Granfondo, Lousã Granfondo, Madeira Granfondo, Gerês Granfondo, Granfondo Srª da Graça, São Mamede Granfondo (Castelo de Vide), Granfondo Serra da Estrela, Bragança Granfondo, Monção e Melgaço Granfondo, GFNY Portugal, Granfondo Aldeias do Xisto, Granfondo Tavira Russia Th
Grand Fondo Russia
has debuted in 2016. In 2017 it had three distances - 30, 60 and 100 km. Slovenia Th

is one of the oldest mass-participation cycling events in the world and as such, it is a true Italian-style Gran Fondo. South Africa One of the world's biggest Gran Fondos is the

Cape Town Cycle Tour The Cape Town Cycle Tour, formerly known as the Cape Argus Cycle Tour, is an annual cycle race hosted in Cape Town, South Africa, usually long. It is the first event outside Europe to be included in the Union Cycliste Internationale's Golden ...

(formerly Cape Argus). The 105 km race has over 30,000 riders. Johannesburg hosts th
947 RideJoburg
every year, over 94.7Km and 1400m elevation gain (the sponsor is a local radio station, hence the distance close to 95Km). Entries peaked at 25k (all individually timed with full road closure. Durban hosts th
Amashova
(106Km) which was a qualifier for the Gran Fondo World Champs. Other popular events includ
Ride for Sight
(116Km)
Macsteel National Classic
(103Km) an
Race for Victory
(110Km). South Korea Th
Seorak Granfondo
is oldest granfondo in South Korea. Seorak Grandfondo is originated from the riding which 10 riders depart from the east side of Baek Bok-ryeong in the Donghae city of Gangwon Province at 5:00 am on June 5, 2010, and ride 265 km over seven hills to reach Sokcho. Nowaday, there are Granfondo course of 208 km and Mediofondo course of 105 km. Spain Spanish laws require full road closures to organize a fully timed Gran Fondo. Hence, many so-called Gran Fondos lik
Gran Fondo La Mussara
are non-timed events. One of the country's classics i
La Quebrantahuesos
in the Pyrenees. Switzerland Being a hotbed for cycling, Switzerland has always had its fair share of mass-participation cycling events. A very popular one has always been the "Radmarathon", which is a non-competitive but sometimes timed long-distance cycling event. One of the longest-standing and toughest is th
Alpenbrevet
feuturing a series of events over the passes around Andermatt. Meanwhile, competitive races have been more rare due to strict Swiss laws. The former legendary pro race Zuri Metzgete used to have an all-comers race attached to the event. Since the pro race has become defunct, the mass-participation event has also struggled to survive
Gran Fondo San Gottardo
is the only event with the name "Gran Fondo" in it. While it is held in the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland (Ticino), it does not follow the rules of the Italian cycling federation for Gran Fondos because only the climbs are timed. Other noticable cycling races that attract a large number of amateur cyclists include th
Säntis Classic
in Weinfelden, th
Alpen Challenge
in Lenzerheide or th
Bodensee Radmarathon
which circumnavigates

Lake Constance Lake Constance (, ) refers to three bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein (). These ...

through Switzerland, Germany and Austria as well as th
Cyclotour du Léman
which circumnavigates

Lake Geneva Lake Geneva is a deep lake on the north side of the Alps, shared between Switzerland and France. It is one of the List of largest lakes of Europe, largest lakes in Western Europe and the largest on the course of the Rhône. Sixty percent () ...

through Switzerland and France. The Marmotte Valais - organised b
Tour des Stations
features races with the highest one day height differences. Ukraine The first "Gran Fondo Ukraine" was organized in 2017 year by Lviv Bicycle Club. Race has two distance 90 and 120 km and starts from

Staryi Sambir Staryi Sambir (, ; ) is a city in Sambir Raion, Lviv Oblast of western Ukraine, close to the border with Poland. Staryi Sambir hosts the administration of Staryi Sambir urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Its population is approximat ...

town at the West of Ukraine. United Kingdom The concept of Gran Fondo is still relatively new in the UK. Most endurance cycling events are timed bike events called "Sportive", and rarely exclude vehicle traffic. Held across the UK, they continue to be very popular and attract large numbers of cyclists. Many keen UK cyclists have often preferred to travel to France or Italy for their Gran Fondo experience. However, there are now a number of cycle events that feature roads closed to traffic and chip timing. They include th
Tour of CambridgeshireRide LondonVelothon Wales
Etape Caledoni

and L'Etape Wales by Le Tour de Franc

United States In the United States, the term “Gran Fondo” refers to both traditional Italian Gran Fondo events where the course is closed and timed from start to finish, such as Gran Fondo New York, as well as numerous modified Gran Fondo events that take place on open roads where riders must adhere to traffic rules, some with timed sections rather than fully timed courses. Examples of these Gran Fondos include th
Gran Fondo National Series
(GFNS), and Gran Fondo New Jersey. The popularity of Gran Fondos has increased rapidly in the U.S. with large numbers of cyclists at several of the top events. While many of these are not cycling marathons in the Italian tradition but are rather modified Gran Fondos, these events are designed to provide competitive and experiential elements for both professional and recreational cyclists. In most Gran Fondo series, participants do not need a USA cycling license to ride. US Gran Fondo riders can compete for an official USA Cyclin
Gran Fondo National Championship
A full list of all US Gran Fondos can be foun
here
Uruguay The first-ever Gran Fondo in Uruguay wa
GFNY Uruguay
held in 2016 in Punta del Este. Later that year, Gran Fondo Schneck near Montevideo was a mere bike tour. Vietnam The first ever Gran Fondo in Vietnam is th
Coupe De Hue Gran Fondo
held for the first time in August 2018 and will feature on the UCI World Cycling For All Calendar in September 2019.

Courses

Gran Fondos are run on challenging courses that are usually between 120 km and 200 km, and have between 2,000 m and 4,000 m of vertical climbing. Most events also offer a shorter and easier version.

Organization

Gran Fondos are run like bike races. They have lead and follow cars, judges, safety escort, police escort, as well as technical and medical assistance. Aid stations along the course replace team cars.

Records

The current 100 mile Gran Fondo course record is held by Kyle Perry with a time of 3:42.55 at the Rollfast Gran Fondo in Indianapolis, IN held on September 15, 2019.

References

External links

''DalZero''

Gran Fondo National Series
{{Cycling Road bicycle racing