13th Hero MTB Himalaya
King and Queen Return to the Himalayas to Defend Their Titles
Press Release / 21.09.2017
The 13th Edition of Asia’s biggest MTB stage race annual race- Hero MTB Himalaya organised by HASTPA (Himalayan Adventure Sports and Tourism Promotion Association) will witness the return of it’s former champion Cory Wallace and Current Queen of Himalayas - Catherine Williamson to the race yet again this season.
The race scheduled to take place from 28th September to 7th October, starts next week in Shimla and travels to Dharamshala covering a distance of 650 kms. The race has been increasingly popular amongst many foreign riders over the past couple of years. With Cory Wallace returning to attempt to claim the King of Himalaya title once again, the competitiveness of the race has gone up a notch.
33 year old Cory Wallace is current World Solo 24Hour champion and will be participating in Open Men Solo category. The 3 time Canadian Champion is sponsored by Kona bikes and loves riding Indian trails.
Cory was crowned the King of Himalayas in 2014 with his exceptional performance at the annual MTB stage race. The Canadian participated last year in the race but failed to defend his title from German Andi Seewald, who is the current 'King of the Himalayas'. The race witnessed a very close battle between Cory, Seewald and 7 times world champion- Jason English last year. Cory led the first stage of the race last year but ultimately lost out to Seewald by the end of last stage in a well fought battle. Cory was followed by Australian Jason English on the overall podium.
Other top riders this season include Thomas Turner from USA who finished 4th in 2016, Spanish Pao Zamora - Team Manager for Buff Scott MTB Team having a riding experience of 20 years and more than 40 stage races and the Winner of Glacier 360, Iceland - Thomas Engelsgjerd. Other teams from over 14 countries including Portugal, Spain, United States of America, Australia and The Indian defence forces will also be participating.
The current 'Queen of Himalayas' - Catherine Williamson will also be returning this year to defend her title. Catherine completed a hattrick of wins in the Women Solo category last year. She was followed by Portuguese rider Ilda Periera and Naima Medlen from Germany on the podium last year.
35 year old Catherine describes Hero MTB Himalaya as her favourite expedition! “It feels amazing to sit back and stuff different Indian curries after peddling on bumpy Indian trails"
Shimla based Ankush Arya who rides for Hero Action team is a sponsored rider for Hero Cycles. He got an opportunity to compete against both Catherine and Cory last season. Ankush describes his experience as truly mesmerising! He said “It was very exciting to share the start line with a World Champions like Cory and Catherine! It is a great exposure for Indian riders to be competing against top International riders!"
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