cyclists passing under an inflatable arch

Granfondo Les Deux Alpes 2016

A weekend of cycling races in 2 Alpes

featured in Activity reviews Author Ian Huyton, Les 2 Alpes Reporter Updated 9 February 2017

This weekend saw Les Deux Alpes taken over by cyclists, with not only the Granfondo Les Deux Alpes but also the Belgian organised Climbing for Life event taking place in the resort.

The Granfondo Les Deux Alpes, formerly known as the Marco Pantani Sportive, was created to celebrate Pantani’s famous victory on the Deux Alpes stage of the 1998 Tour de France. That year, he finished the stage nine minutes ahead of Jan Ullrich in bad weather, giving him a six-minute advantage which he held to win the Tour overall.

The 2016 event consisted of the 172km, 4,000m of ascent Granfondo and a 66km, 2,400m Mediofondo, both run concurrently on the Saturday. A Sunday time trial up the final ascent to Les Deux Alpes from the Lac Chambon dam completed the weekend.

At the same time, Climbing for Life brought around 2,500 Belgian cyclists to Les Deux Alpes to raise money for diabetes. This long weekend of cycling included several organised rides, a trail run, and the opportunity to race in the Granfondo events. A pasta party was laid on after the Saturday races, as well as an after party later on for those with enough energy left to party.

The weather turned out to be pleasant and sunny for the warm up rides on Friday and for the time trial on Sunday. Unfortunately, the main events on Saturday took place in a heavy downpour with rain continuing throughout the day. The bad weather did not stop the many hardy cyclists who took part nonetheless, making for a successful event in difficult conditions.

The Granfondo Deux Alpes has something of a reputation for attracting older cyclists. Perhaps it is not surprising then that two out of the first three men were in the 40-49 age group and four out of the first five women were aged 35-49. The men’s race was won by the Italian Stefano Sala (M40-49) in a time of 5:18:59, while Linda Stuurman from the Netherlands won the women’s race in 6:41:19. All age groups were represented up to and including the 67 years and over category.

The French dominated the shorter Mediofondo, making up 80% of the field and taking nine out of the top ten places in the men’s race with Guillaume Clotre coming first. Victoria Alpen from Switzerland won the women’s race.

Sundays’ time trial saw some of the same names appearing with Guillaume Clotre coming second to another Frenchman; Sebastian Biau who finished in 26 minutes and 11 seconds. Linda Stuurman gained a second win, completing the women’s time trial in 33:27.

Results:

Granfondo

Men