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The Sea Otter Europe Costa Brava-Girona Bike Show 2021, taking place from 24th-26th September, presented its sporting programme last week at the Hotel Carlemany in Girona.
Information on the 15 races in all disciplines, which will take place over the weekend, was announced at the presentation, with some 4,000 cyclists expected to take part. The figure is down by 30%, allowing for the implementation of strict health and safety measures across the whole Sea Otter Europe site.
For the different events that make up the sports programme, these are the ones to look out for:
The World Cup for e-bikes, the World E-Bike Series
One of the main new features is the arrival in Girona of the World E-Bike Series, the electric MTB World Cup organised by the UCI. The international circuit began in 2019 in Monaco and this year will consist of six races, one of which will be held in Girona as part of Sea Otter Europe, featuring elimination rounds and hotly-contested races.
Continental Super Cup Massi
The high-level Olympic Cross Country (XCO) circuit is made up of four races in different categories. The Girona event will be C1 category and will see riders compete in the surroundings of Fontajau pavilion in the highest UCI-point-scoring event in southern Europe.
The three distances of the Continental CicloBrava
The great cycling tour, the festival’s main event, which is part of the Gran Fondo World Tour circuit, this year comes with three distances (70km, 100km and 140km) running through Les Gavarres, the Costa Brava, the La Ganga mountain pass and Monells, with David Millar as the event’s ambassador.
In terms of amateur mountain biking, these are the main attractions of Sea Otter Europe:
Scott Marathon MTB UCI Series by Continental
A race with UCI points up for grabs for professionals as well as boasting open categories with two circuits spanning 67km and 42km. The event features routes through the Llémena Valley, trails and a route suitable for all mountain biking enthusiasts.
Canyon E-MTB Experience
E-bikes are one of the most popular trends in cycling, which is why Sea Otter Europe presents this race as part of the cycle tour category with a 30km route.
MTB Classic Sea Otter Europe
One of the most popular events of the festival, this nostalgic race is an opportunity to enjoy a ride with friends over a few kilometres on bikes made prior to the 1990s.
Another discipline that is gaining more and more fans each year is gravel, a discipline for which Sea Otter Europe will host two options, allowing riders to enjoy Girona’s landscape on dirt tracks:
Canyon Pirinexus Challenge
A challenge of the highest order, this 340km circular route through the Girona region starts at sunrise with riders trying to complete the route in less than 20 hours.
Girona Gravel Ride
A 78km route through the heart of Les Gavarres, the event follows the course of the river Ter, combining top-quality forest tracks with quiet B roads.
And for the little ones, Sea Otter Europe has planned a selection of races both for those who want to compete and those for whom cycling is more of a recreational activity:
Enduro MTB La Selva
Making a return to Sea Otter Europe, this event takes place in Riudarenes with spectacular descents on a 30km circuit that has been designed to surprise participants.
Children’s MTB Open
This Catalan Cup is an opportunity for young professionals to enjoy an MTB experience right in the heart of the cycling festival.
Sea Otter Europe’s ‘most explosive’ exhibitions and races include the Eliminator and the Short Track Sea Otter Europe, featuring laps of the festival’s gravity circuit, next to Fontajau pavilion.
Sea Otter Europe is also hosting the Demobike programme, which will have over 500 bikes available for test riding.
The presentation of the sports programme was attended by representatives from Girona Provincial Council and the Costa Brava Girona Tourist Board, Girona City Council, the Catalan Government and the Catalan Cycling Federation, as well as sponsors, cycling clubs, shops and cycling-related establishments.
More information at www.seaottereurope.com
Register for races at www.ticketoci.net
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