Racing in Paradise at Desafio Ecotrail

Press Release / 24.07.2022

The venue chosen for the second stage of the South American circuit of the ARWS was in ITACARE, BAHIA, BRAZIL.  It’s a summer town, where the winter at this time of the year on the rest of the continent does not exist.

“I chose Itacaré because it is one of the main tourist destinations in Bahia and Brazil. It is a place well known for its natural beauty, with exuberant landscapes and besides being a paradise for surfing, it has immense potential for adventure sports” said Prof. Fernando Tadeu organizer of the Ecotrail Challenge

The runners began to arrive on Friday and prepared their equipment, the competition started early on Saturday morning, after the MTBs were left at TA 1.

The competition bus took teams to the start where they began an 18km trek, on which the heat was the main factor.

AKSA arrived first at TA 1, but in less than 2 minutes they were joined by Brazil Multisport and Quasar Lontra.  From there, the race was led by Brazil Multisport, the #1ranked team in South America, and reigning champions captained by Camila Nicolau.

“The fantastic scenery reminded me a lot of the 2013 Ecomotion when we ran with Nick (Gracie) for the first time!  I had many flashbacks of our journey together since that first race!  And this race was the last “training” for our team before the World Champs, which we are preparing for like never before,” said Camila.

The highlight of the race was a rafting with level 3 rapids on the Rio de Contas, in a district of Itacaré called Taboquinhas and it is the 3rd best rafting in Brazil.  It also included a zip line over the river!

“It was a unique race, a perfect map, a challenging course and wonderful attention from the organizers”, commented Thiago Bonini who ran with the AKSA team that finished 2nd in the standings.

The organization of the race has sought to grow through the structure of the ARWS and without a doubt it has done so, becoming one of the most important races in Brazil and on the South American calendar.

“It was very difficult to organize this event in a way that could please all the athletes, with complicated logistics, but when the last team arrived, it occurred to me that all the difficulties were worth it.

“Even the athletes who gave up during the course came to say that everything was sensational and leaving these good memories for people is very important to us.” Fernando Tadeu added.

Next on the South American Regional calendar is Huairasinchi Aventura, and it will be the first time ever that an organization hosts an ARWS Qualifier and an ARWS Regional race at the same event.

https://www.facebook.com/desafioecotrail

https://desafioecotrail.com.br/