ÖTILLÖ Swimrun Engadin
Ötillö Swimrun Engadin - Fourth Stop In Swimrun World Series
Press Release / 05.07.2018
The ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Series continues with the race that launched the whole international expansion of the Swimrun movement in 2014.
The Engadin Valley in Switzerland is one of the most beautiful race locations with fantastic trails, pristine mountain lakes and swiss cows. ÖTILLÖ Engadin had the purpose to give the Swimrun movement an international plattform and now with our fifth edition, ÖTILLÖ and swimrun has become one of the fastest growing endurance sports in the world.
The Engadin Valley in the Swiss Alps will host its fifth ÖTILLÖ Swimrun weekend and it is the fourth stop of the 2018 ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Series. It is also the last race where teams can qualify to the 2018 ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Championship. Close to 170 teams from 24 nations will take the start for Sundays World Series race (July 8th).
Some of the best teams in the world will chase the coveted GOLDEN BIB and take on the challenge of winning six ÖTILLÖ races in a row and the prize purse of 33 000€ per category. Two of the teams, Team Garmin (SWE) in Men and Team Thule Crew (SWE/ CZE) in mixed, have now won three in a row, will they manage the mountains?
Others are on-site to try to get one of the last eight qualification spots to the holy grail of Swimrun, the ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Championship. A majority of the teams will be racing to experience the magic of the race course.
These nearly hundred and seventy teams of two will be challenged by the hills, altitude and mountain lakes on this stunning course.
More information about ÖTILLÖ Swimrun Engadin: https://otilloswimrun.com/races/engadin
Sunday's World Series Race
The 170 teams of two start their Sunday morning with a brutal uphill run to the first and coldest lake swim in Lej Cavloc at 1910 metres above sea level.
In total, they will cover almost 40 km on foot and 6 km swimming with a total elevation gain of 1600 metres.
As the race is in the Alps the weather could be anything from snow to a beautiful, sunny day.. The water temperature is around 12 - 14 degrees C in the bigger lakes. The fastest teams are expected to complete the course in around five hours.
Will last year’s winners Lars Ekman & Jonas Ekman(SWE) be able to keep the Golden Bib holders George Bjälkemo & Pontus Lindberg (SWE) and the likes of Nicolas Remires (FRA) behind them? As seen in previous races this year the top 5 teams are battling until the very last kilometres.
In the mixed category we will see the current World Champions and ÖTILLÖ record holders Kristin Larsson & Daniel Hansson (SWE) who won the race overall in 2016 and in mixed in 2017. They will have a tough race against the current Golden bib holders Martin Flinta (SWE) & Elena Erbanova (CZE) who have won all three races this season.
Some of swimrun’s top teams will be chasing each other down the Engadin valley. Swimrun World Champions and winners of ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Series will be on the start line, as well as athletes from all over the world, some are veterans of swimrun and some are totally new to the sport, but eager to find out why so many people are so hooked to the unique experience of racing in swimrun. As in all races, it is only when the dust has settled that we know the outcome of the race.
Aita Rubi, Tourist Director of Silvaplana says: “In just four years this race has become a very popular classic in the valley and something we all look forward to as it always brings such good vibrations to the Engadin. A huge good luck to all the competitors over the weekend and make sure you have fun"!
Start list https://otilloswimrun.com/races/engadin/teams-2018/
SleepMonsters
