At the Dolomites Vertical Kilometer® today only the racing was hot. A stacked field pushed the runners hard while a cold front with temperatures around 5° at the race start made for fast times all round. Italian Philip Goetsch broke his own race record by an incredible 1’04” to close in 31’34”. Spain’s VK World Champion Laura Orgué was unable to beat her own record but summited in a fast 38’31”.
One of the world’s toughest VK’s with an average 50% incline over 2.4 kilometres, the race was timed in waves. With the elite men and women leaving last, anticipation mounted at the finish line of the Crepa Neigra summit, topping out at 2,465m altitude.
Nejc Kuhar was second and Hannes Perkmann was third. In the women’s field the second and third steps of the podium were all Italian with Valentina Bellotti second and Francesca Rossi third.
Since the creation of the Vertical Kilometer® in 1996, although not always heading the top ranking slots, the Italians have consistently shown that the VK is in their DNA and today was no different with seven in the top ten men’s field.
A field of 228 runners from 21 countries took part in the race.
Look out for Sunday’s Dolomites SkyRace® celebrating 19 years with an all-star line up.
Dolomites Vertical Kilometer® Results
Men
- Philip Goetsch (ITA) – 31’34”
- Nejc Kuhar (SLO) La Sportiva – 32’41”
- Hannes Perkmann (ITA) La Sportiva – 33’02”
- Manuel Da Col (ITA) Scott Running – 33’11”
- Patrik Facchini (ITA) La Sportiva – 33’48”
Women
- Laura Orguè (ESP) Salomon 38’31”
- Valentina Bellotti (ITA) La Sportiva – 39’06”
- Francesca Rossi (ITA) La Sportiva – 40’00”
- Beatrice Deflorian (ITA) La Sportiva – 40’52”
- Maite Maiora (ESP) La Sportiva – 41’36”
Vertical Series ranking
Men
- Ferran Teixido (AND) – 255 points
- Philip Goetsch (ITA) – 200 points
- Marco Moletto (ITA) – 180 points
Women
- Christel Dewalle (FRA) – 288 points
- Laura Orgué (ESP) – 188 points
- Emily Collinge (GBR) – 178 points
Skyrunner® Vertical Series ranking
Follow all the action on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram