1.1.2017

Celebrate the 50 th Anniversary of the Legendary ČEZ Jizerská 50 Race

The fiftieth anniversary of the famous cross-country ski race; a new date of the event in February; the celebrations connected with the history of the race; and commemoration of mountaineers who died tragically during an expedition to Peru and in whose honour the race is held annually. These are the biggest crowd-pullers of the forthcoming edition of the legendary ČEZ Jizerská 50, an event entered by close to 7,000 competitors from more than thirty countries every year. Come and celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the event and enjoy a busy weekend at Bedřichov in the Jizera Mountains, North Bohemia during celebrations of the anniversary edition. Apart from the races, the Jizera Mountains offer plenty of other activities.

The ČEZ Jizerská 50 langlauf belongs to the legends not only among cross-country ski races but also among major sporting events. The legendary race, which is part of the Worldloppet and SkiClassics series, will celebrate the 50th anniversary in its new date from 17–19 February 2017. In celebration of the round anniversary, the organisers are preparing plenty of new features and a more varied supporting programme that will recall not only the fifty years of the race history but also the expedition to Peru in 1970 and fifteen Czechoslovak mountaineers who died tragically there and in whose honour the race is held every year.

But the ČEZ Jizerská 50 is not only the 50-kilometre feature race. Short course, classical and freestyle cross-country ski technique race enthusiasts as well as families with children or companies at relay races will also have their fun during the entire race weekend..

Traditionally, the Mini Jizerská Pojišťovny VZP kids race will be held on Friday morning while the Volkswagen Bedřichovská 30 will start at one o’clock in the afternoon followed by a 1.5-kilometre double-pole push sprint early in the evening. The Saturday morning is reserved for the Hervis Jizerská 25 and the ČT Jizerská 10 while the afternoon, for company relay races. The feature race, the ČEZ Jizerská 50, will start on Sunday 19 February 2017.

THE FAMOUS RACE WILL CELEBRATE ITS 50TH ANNIVERSARY IN FEBRUARY

The legendary cross-country ski race has been through an eventful history. The beginning of the Jizerská 50 dates back to 1968 when its first edition was held. The inaugural race was run under the title “50 kilometres through the Jizera Mountains” with the participation of only 52 contestants. But the fifth edition was entered by an incredible number of 2,010 competitors in 1972, and the Jizera race became more and more popular.

Throughout its fifty-year history, the race almost has not changed its route. That is why the langlaufer can look forward to places such as Smědava, Kristiánov, Hřebínek, Nová Louka or Jizerka year after year. Every year, the race is run as an Expedition to Peru Memorial commemorating the fate of fifteen Czechoslovak mountaineers who died tragically in an avalanche of stones in an earthquake in Peru on 31 May 1970. Coincidentally, that is, some of them were co-founders of the Jizera race.

In 1977, the anniversary tenth edition was entered by most entrants in the history of the Jizerská 50: about 7,800 cross-country skiers. Throughout the Jizerská 50 history, there is just one man who has taken part in all of the editions of the race: 74 years old Ladislav Míka.

WHAT YOU CAN LOOK FORWARD TO IN THE JIZERA MOUNTAINS

The Jizera Mountains belong to the oldest protected landscape areas in the Czech Republic and to the cleanest mountains in the country. There are more than twenty protected areas there. It is particularly mountain meadows, areas with rare species, vast peat bogs, and autochthonous beech stands that are protected.

From the point of view of general nature, the Jizera Mountains closely resemble the Nordic nature. In the summertime, the Jizera Mountains turn into a summer resort full of cycle routes and hiking trails. The mountains offer a variety of trips to nature and through the mountain culture or Czech history. There are fascinating deep woods, numerous waterfalls and mountain meadows there.

THE JIZERA MOUNTAINS ARE ATTRACTIVE ESPECIALLY IN THE WINTERTIME

All the same, the Jizera Mountains are better-known and mostly visited during the wintertime, above all because of skiing, which has kept a tradition alive since 1950s. That was when skiing enthusiast Zdeněk Vokatý built the first ski tow there. A lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then. Today, the Jizera Mountains belong to the top ski resorts. Regardless of whether you are a fledgling skier or an experienced downhill skier or a devotee of cross-country trails, you will meet with perfect service and facilities ideal for the pursuit of winter sports in the Jizera Mountains ski resorts.

The cross-country skiing enthusiasts are familiar with the so-called Jizera Highway that offers as many as 180 kilometres of cross-country skiing trails. These loipes lead not only from well-known resorts such as Bedřichov and Jizerka, but also from other starting points, for example Oldřichov v Hájích, Nové Město pod Smrkem, Desná, Horní Polubný or Martinské údolí v Kořenově. Thanks to close cooperation with more ski area operators, cross-country skiers can even go across to routes located in the Giant Mountains or to groomed trails on the Polish side.

The best-known resorts in the Jizera Mountains include a settlement called Jizerka, which is situated roughly at the halfway point of the Jizerská 50 race route. Another important place is Kristiánov, a former glass-making hamlet featuring a museum of glass-making. The racers will reach Kristiánov at about the sixth kilometre of the route from where an uphill section leads to the highest point of the route, Rozmezí, lying 1,000 metres above sea level. The most beautiful Jizera Mountains resorts also include the Šámal Chalet at Nová Louka, lying about 2.5 kilometres from the finish, or Smědava, an area named after a chalet of the same name situated at an altitude of 847 metres.

RECOMMENDED PLACES TO VISIT IN THE VICINITY

Besides the beautiful countryside, one of the main crowd-pullers in the Jizera Mountains is the Ještěd mountain with its TV tower overlooking the entire Jizera Mountains, the city of Liberec and the Giant Mountains with the Sněžka mountain, the highest peak in the Czech Republic. You can enjoy an equally picturesque view from the Královka look-out tower. The tower is 24 metres high and has an observation platform. There are 102 steps up to the observation deck. Královka offers a beautiful view of the Jizera Mountains, the Giant Mountains, the Bohemian Paradise, the Ještěd mountain, the city of Jablonec nad Nisou, Poland, and Germany.

You can also visit the city of Liberec with the Babylon entertainment centre where you have a chance to relax in a wellness centre or have a good time in an indoor water park. Together with the whole family, it is worth visiting the nearby iQLandia science centre, the Labyrint mirror maze or the first Czech zoological garden, which is well-known for white tigers in particular.

If you prefer gastronomic experiences, you should not miss the renowned Black Horse restaurant in the Neruda Square in Liberec. You can have superb burgers and steaks in the Chicago Bar & Grill restaurant or sit for a while drinking a nice cup of coffee in a pleasant environment of the Bez Konceptu coffee bar.

If you wish to stick with sport, don’t miss a match played by defending national club ice-hockey champions, the team of Bílí tygři (“White Tigers”) Liberec. Football fans should watch the Slovan Liberec soccer club. If you want to replace your cross-country skis by downhill skis or a snowboard for a while, visit the Ski Resort Ještěd. You can go to the nearby town of Janov nad Nisou for an adrenaline experience from the local bobsleigh track. Or you may visit the Makak climbing arena in the city of Jablonec nad Nisou where more than 88 routes are installed on the indoor climbing wall designed for both beginners and professionals.