10.2.2020

Jizerská 50 Flooded in Sunshine. Excellent Norwegians and 8,141 Skiers

This year’s ČEZ Jizerská 50 will definitely stay in our memory for a long time. Not only did the two-time Olympic winner Norwegian Petter Northug take part in it and there were record 8.141 skiers, but primarily the weather was kind to the organisers. The sunshine-flooded races showed how beautiful Jizerská 50 can be.

“An incredible experience, I’ve really enjoyed it here. There were people along most of the trail cheering me on. In the middle of the race, I was pleasantly surprised by live music. I’ve got a great feeling from Jizerská 50 and I’ll be happy to come back again,” said Northug who was in the starting block among the first 50 skiers.

Another Norwegian dominated the race, Andreas Nygaard who finished with a lead before Oskar Kardin. A lot was expected from Czech Kateřina Smutná. Her rivals spoiled her hopes and their great results moved her to the fifth position. The race was won by Swedish Britta Norgren.

“It’s a pity, at the end of the race I had my strength back and I felt I could catch up with them. I was really close to third place. If the race was a few kilometres longer, I would have made up for the lost time,” Smutná said in the finish line. The Czech skier with the best finish time was Jirka Pliska, who overtook even the Czech legend Stanislav Řezáč. 

There were 8,141 participants during the three race days at the 53rd ČEZ Jizerská 50, which means last year’s record was broken by incredible 434 skiers. Is there any room left for Jizerská to grow? “We are constantly thinking about how to make the programme more accessible for beginners. At the moment, we don’t offer the shortest race in free style. Maybe we will get to see this opportunity in the near future,” says the spokesperson of the race Richard Valoušek.

For more information, results and photos go to www.jiz50.cz.