2024 Istria300 | Highlights & Report
Under the motto “Ride your Limits”, over 3,600 participants from 40 nations set out from Poreč on September 28, 2024, in late summer temperatures to explore the Istrian peninsula on their road bikes. Three winners come from Austria, two from Germany and one from Slovenia.
The Istria300 route concept
The event, which took place for the first time in 2021, is fast becoming a road bike classic. One of the many unique features is that participants can only decide on the final route after the start. In addition to the 300 kilometres, there are also 209 and 134 kilometres to choose from.
The victory of the Istria300 guests of Honor 2023 and 2024
After Paris-Roubaix winner Sonny Colbrelli and German amateur cycling icon Catherine Rossmann, Alban Lakata was the Istria300 Guest of Honor in 2024 and started the race with the number 300. For the Austrian-born three-time mountain bike world champion, who has been training in the Poreč region for years, it was only a matter of time before he made his first appearance. The fact that he celebrated a victory on the 300-kilometer course on his first attempt made him all the more pleased: “It was a very demanding race with a beautiful route. I have been training in Poreč for years and thought I knew all the streets, but now I know even more,” said the winner.
Catherine Rossman from Germany won the women’s 300-kilometer race. “Last year I fell in love with the region and was thrilled with the organisation. I returned to win this year, and I’m glad I did it,” she says proudly.
The winners of the shorter distances
On the 209-kilometer route, the Slovenian Marko Emeršić was the fastest participant, while the Austrian Gerald Grundner mastered the shortest route of 134 kilometers. In the women’s race, Astrid Schartmuller (209 km) from Germany and Valerie Rupitsch (134 km) from Austria took the victory.
The season finale with many celebrities in Istria
“There is nothing better than to end the summer with friends at the seaside and on a racing bike,” said one of the 1,700 Austrians at the finish line. This time, there were also countless active and former top athletes from other sports. Among those at the starting line were ski jumpers Martin Koch (AUT) and Robert Kranjec (SLO), Austrian record holder Felix Gottwald, former World Tour pro Reto Hollenstein (SUI), ex-biathletes Christoph Sumann (AUT), Julian Eberhard (AUT) and Klemen Bauer (SLO), and snowboarders Sabine and Alexander Payer (AUT).
The 2025 event will take place on September 26. Registration will open soon. “We expect the event to sell out very quickly. The feedback from the participants was again extremely good,” says event director Julius Rupitsch.
Valamar, as the development partner
The most important partner of the Istria300 is Valamar Riviera. “Valamar has been driving the development of cycle tourism in its destinations for many years,” says Toni Hrvatin, head of destination product development. “Investments in bike hotels and bike centers, as well as improvements to the cycling infrastructure, have created perfect conditions for cycle tourism. The Istria300 is a great help in positioning Istria even more strongly on the global map of cycling destinations.”
Text Credits: ISTRIA 300 | Photo Credits: © Sport-IT | Video Credits: ISTRIA 300