Dolomitenmann
Extreme sports relay race held in Austria
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The Dolomitenmann is an extreme sports relay race held in September in the East Tyrolean, or so-called Dolomite Mountains of Austria, 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.[1][2] 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".[3][4][5] In 2017 for the first time there was a side competition that was also open to female athletes.[6]
Disciplines
Course
The race is started by the mountain runner on the town square of Lienz at 674 metres (2,211 ft) above sea level. who then runs a distance of around 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) up to Kühbodentörl at 2,441 metres (8,009 ft).[7]
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.[8]
The mountain biker typically climbs 1,600 metres (5,200 ft) or more, over a distance of about 27 kilometres (17 mi). After the climb, the mountain biker must ride a downhill track to the finish.[9]
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 7 metres (23 ft) 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.[10]
Winning teams and tracks
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The fastest athlete of each discipline receives a trophy and the title Dolomitenmann. Until 2019 the trophies were designed by Jos Pirkner.
Dolomitenmen
| Year |  Mountain running |
 Paragliding |
 Mountainbike |
 Whitewater kayak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 |  Florian Stern (AUT) |
André Bucher (AUT) |
Ernst Denifl (AUT) |
Alexander Schimansky (AUT) |
| 1989 | Peter Pfitscher (AUT) |
Peter Geg (AUT) |
Dörschlag Ekkehard (AUT) |
Kurt Pock (AUT) |
| 1990 | Hansjörg Randl (AUT) |
Walter Holzmüller (AUT) |
Uli Mattersberger (AUT) |
Kurt Pock (AUT) |
| 1991 | Peter Schatz (AUT) |
Hansjörg Bachmayr (AUT) |
Manfred Kornelson (AUT) |
Kurt Pock (AUT) |
| 1992 | Helmut Schmuck (AUT) |
Andre Pucher (AUT) |
 Hubert Pallhuber (ITA) |
Alexander Kirn (AUT) |
| 1993 | Peter Schatz (AUT) |
David Perathoner (ITA) |
Gerhard Zadrobilek (AUT) |
Kurt Pock (AUT) |
| 1994 | Helmut Schmuck (AUT) |
Wendelin Ortner (AUT) |
Dörschlag Ekkehard (AUT) |
 Markus Gickler (GER) |
| 1995 | Pio Tomasselli (ITA) |
Alfons Hörhager (AUT) |
Thomas Ilg (AUT) |
Thomas Becker (GER) |
| 1996 | Helmut Schmuck (AUT) |
– (cancelled) | Roland Stauder (ITA) |
Thomas Hilger (GER) |
| 1997 | Helmut Schmuck (AUT) |
Wendelin Ortner (AUT) |
Roland Stauder (ITA) |
Thomas Hilger (GER) |
| 1998 | Helmut Schmuck (AUT) |
– (cancelled) | Roland Stauder (ITA) |
Thomas Hilger (GER) |
| 1999 | Peter Schatz (AUT) |
Alfons Hörhager (AUT) |
Roland Stauder (ITA) |
Thomas Hilger (GER) |
| 2000 |  Robert Krupicka (CZE) |
Alfons Hörhager (AUT) |
Hannes Pallhuber (ITA) |
Thomas Hilger (GER) |
| 2001 | Roman Skalsky (CZE) |
Wendelin Ortner (AUT) |
Roland Stauder (ITA) |
Thomas Hilger (GER) |
| 2002 | Markus Kröll (AUT) |
Christian Amon (AUT) |
Roland Stauder (ITA) |
Gerhard Schmid (AUT) |
| 2003 |  John Maluni (KEN) |
Wendelin Ortner (AUT) |
 Juri Golcer (SLO) |
Gerhard Schmid (AUT) |
| 2004 |  Jonathan Wyatt (NZL) |
Wendelin Ortner (AUT) |
Hannes Pallhuber (ITA) |
Harald Hudetz (AUT) |
| 2005 | Jonathan Wyatt (NZL) |
Christian Amon (AUT) |
Roland Stauder (ITA) |
Gerhard Schmid (AUT) |
| 2006 | Jiri Magal (CZE) |
Wendelin Ortner (AUT) |
Hannes Pallhuber (ITA) |
Harald Hudetz (AUT) |
| 2007 | Jiri Magal (CZE) |
– (cancelled) | Alban Lakata (AUT) |
Kamil Mruzek (CZE) |
| 2008 | Jonathan Wyatt (NZL) |
Markus Prantl (ITA) (short track) |
Hannes Pallhuber (ITA) |
Harald Hudetz (AUT) |
| 2009 | Jonathan Wyatt (NZL) |
Markus Prantl (ITA) |
Alban Lakata (AUT) |
Harald Hudetz (AUT) |
| 2010 | Jonathan Wyatt (NZL) |
Paul Guschlbauer (AUT) |
Tony Longo (ITA) |
Harald Hudetz (AUT) |
| 2011 |  Azarya Weldemariam (ERI) |
Markus Prantl (ITA) |
Hynek Kristian (CZE) |
Harald Hudetz (AUT) |
| 2012 | Azarya Weldemariam (ERI) |
Markus Prantl (ITA) |
Hynek Kristian (CZE) |
Harald Hudetz (AUT) |
| 2013 | Petro Mamu (ERI) |
Paul Guschlbauer (AUT) |
Hynek Kristian (CZE) |
Herwig Natmessnig (AUT) |
| 2014 | Petro Mamu (ERI) |
Paul Guschlbauer (AUT) |
 Lukas Buchli (SUI) |
Herwig Natmessnig (AUT) |
| 2015 | Petro Mamu (ERI) |
Markus Prantl (ITA) |
Hynek Kristian (CZE) |
Gerhard Schmid (AUT) |
| 2016 | Petro Mamu (ERI) |
Christian Maurer (SUI) |
Hynek Kristian (CZE) |
Lukáš Kubričan (CZE) |
| 2017 | Philip Götsch (ITA)[45] |
Aaron Durogati (ITA) (short track) |
Hynek Kristian (CZE) |
Lukáš Kubričan (CZE) |
| 2018 |  Joseph Gray (USA) |
Aaron Durogati (ITA) |
Daniel Geismayr (AUT) |
Lukáš Kubričan (CZE) |
| 2019 | Joseph Gray (USA) |
Lukas Rifesser (ITA) (alternate track) |
Daniel Geismayr (AUT) |
Lukáš Kubričan (CZE) |
| 2020 | Francesco Puppi (ITA) |
Christian Maurer (SUI) |
Andreas Seewald (GER) |
Lukáš Kubričan (CZE) |
| 2021 | Joseph Gray (USA) |
Christian Maurer (SUI) |
 Hector-Leonardo Paez-Leon (COL) |
Lukáš Kubričan (CZE) |
As of September 2020, there are 58 Dolomitenmen from 10 nations.
Top 10 Dolomitenmen (as of September 2021)
| # | Name | # of wins |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Roland Stauder (ITA) | 7 |
| 1 | Harald Hudetz (AUT) | 7 |
| 3 | Thomas Hilger (GER) | 6 |
| 3 | Wendelin Ortner (AUT) | 6 |
| 3 | Kristian Hynek (CZE) | 6 |
| 6 | Helmut Schmuck (AUT) | 5 |
| 6 | Jonathan Wyatt (NZL) | 5 |
| 6 | Markus Prantl (ITA) | 5 |
| 6 | Lukáš Kubričan (CZE) | 5 |
| 10 | Christian Maurer (SUI) | 4 |
| 10 | Kurt Pock (AUT) | 4 |
| 10 | Hannes Pallhuber (ITA) | 4 |
| 10 | Gerhard Schmid (AUT) | 4 |
| 10 | Petro Mamu (ERI)[45] | 4 |
| 14 | Peter Schatz (AUT) | 3 |
| 14 | Alfons Hörhager (AUT) | 3 |
| 14 | Paul Guschlbauer (AUT) | 3 |