XVIII MEZZALAMA TROPHY

The French-Spanish team Burgada-Bon Mardion-Blanc won 'in a sprint' a severe Mezzalama, preceding the Italians Pedrini-Lanfranchi Seletto. More than a thousand competitors, a record, but also many retired due to the great cold on the four-thousand-metre Monte Rosa. No accidents, perfect organisation, lots of spectators. The French-Spanish team Burgada-Bon Mardion-Blanc won 'in a sprint' a severe Mezzalama, preceding the Italians Pedrini-Lanfranchi Seletto. More than a thousand competitors, a record, but also many retired due to the great cold on the four-thousand-metre Monte Rosa. No accidents, perfect organisation, lots of spectators. Never have there been so many competitors at the start of the Mezzalama Trophy, 18th edition run today, 1 May 2011: no less than 1080, like Garibaldi's red shirts, i.e. 360 roped parties of three elements each, but also never as many withdrawn and disqualified for being late at the time gates, a sign of severe conditions, harsher than usual. Of eight editions of the 'modern' glacier marathon, which since 1997 has been run every two years from Cervinia to Gressoney via the summit of the Castor and the Lyskamm Nose above four thousand metres on the Monte Rosa massif, this was probably the most demanding edition, both for the athletes and for the organising staff. Nothing unusual for the historic 'glacier marathon' of ski mountaineering founded in 1933, already famous as the highest race in the Alps, which requires every athlete to have solid experience as an alpinist and just as much as a skier. But this time the climatic factor made itself felt more than usual, in the form of polar cold, exacerbated by the north wind. "I would say that at high altitude we had 15 to 20 degrees below zero of perceived cold," says mountain guide Adriano Favre, technical director who coordinates the complex Mezzalama machine. - A fairly normal condition in the high mountains in mid-spring, but undoubtedly more severe than other editions. Perhaps similar to that of 2003." The French-Spanish team of Kilian Jornet Burgada, William Bon Mardion and Didier Blanc won in 4h 33' 58", beating the trio of Lombardy's Daniele Pedrini, Pietro Lanfranchi and Alain Seletto from Valle d'Aosta almost in a sprint, by a mere 18 seconds in the last short section without snow. Surprising third, at their first Mezzalama, were the young Michele Boscacci, from Valtellina and 'son of art', Robert Antonioli with the Spaniard Marc Pinsach Rubirola. And then six other teams under five hours, confirming a very hard-fought race. Big disappointment for the Alpine team of Matteo Eydallin, Damiano Lenzi, and Dennis Trento, among the big favourites, who were forced to retire due to a cold snap even before the Castore. Clear and surprising victory among the women was achieved by Gloriana Pellissier, a mountaineer from Valle d'Aosta, a corporal of the alpine troops who returned to the races after her second maternity leave, with the close-knit Valtellina women Francesca Martinelli and Roberta Pedranzini in a time of 5h 28' 36". The Italians were 3 minutes and 25 seconds ahead of the international team of Frenchwoman Laetitia Roux, with Spanish revelation Mireia Miro and Swiss Nathalie Enzensperger. Tatiana Locatelli, Laura Besseghini and Raffella Rossi came third with a time of 6h 33' 50". About half an hour more than the record set in 2009 by the alpine team of Eydallin and Trento with Reichegger, it should be noted that the route underwent a significant variant on the Naso del Lyskamm, decided by Favre, to cope with the worsened conditions of the traditional passage, which had now become a wall of ice. The mountaineering variant ensured safety at a key point and was warmly welcomed by the athletes. Also thanks to the free facilities of Cervinia and Gressoney, the race was followed by an unprecedented large audience: almost two thousand spectators between Plateau Rosa and the Breithorn Pass in the initial phase and many skiers in the area of the Capanna Gnifetti to follow the final phase. Final ranking