Int. Ganghoferlauf Leutasch – AUT European Ski Marathon Championships 2025

25 km or 50 km classic

The 25/50 km classic course really offers everything a trained classic runner could wish for. Tough climbs and descents, charming forest passages and the magnificent panorama of the Wetterstein and Karwendel mountains. The heart of the trail is the unique Plaikloipe, which rewards the runner after a challenging ascent with beautiful descents and magnificent views. The passages on the Panorama Trail and the Forest Trail are also a worthwhile insider tip for classic skiing enthusiasts.

The demanding classic course can be mastered either once or twice (50km) and is thus the supreme discipline of the biggest cross-country skiing classic in Austria.

20 km Skating

The 20 km skating course combines the most beautiful and sunniest skating sections of the Leutasch valley. Shortly after the start, you turn back towards Oberleutasch via the slightly ascending Lehnerschleife, run past the many spectators at the start and finish to the turnaround at the climbs in the Moos skating center and back to the finish via the Alpenbadloipe.

42 km Skating

On the 42 km skating course you run through the entire Leutasch high valley at 1130m above sea level. After the start, the field spreads out on the short climb to Lehner and the runners then pass the start/finish again in groups before heading down the valley to the head of the valley in Unterleutasch. From the lowest point of the course, the route now climbs steadily past the start/finish to the highest point in Moos, where there are two more short climbs to conquer with the skating centre before heading back down the valley via the new Alpenbadloipe to the finish.

The Seefeld region with its 5 villages Seefeld, Leutasch, Mösern-Buchen, Reith and Scharnitz is one of the cross-country skiing hotspots in the Tyrolean Alps with its unique location. Framed by the Wetterstein Mountains and the Karwendel, Tyrol’s high plateau offers very special cross-country skiing conditions: From the very first step, you can enjoy breathtaking wide and deep views in the expansive valley, and without any constricting valleys, plenty of sunshine is also guaranteed up here. Thanks to the altitude of around 1,200 metres, the snow conditions here are also excellent.

245 kilometres of cross-country skiing connect the five villages in the region. Instead of running in and out of a valley, you can do varied laps across the entire plateau. The extra-wide trails are groomed for both styles and offer cross-country skiing pleasure for all demands: from demanding trails, on which world champions have already competed for the title in 2019 and are still regular guests for training, to simple pleasure rounds through the sunny Leutasch valley. Due to the outstanding quality of the trails, the region has been the annual venue for the World Cup Nordic Combined Triple since 2014 and serves as a meeting point for the season preparation of many professional athletes and teams from all over the world.

A real classic. Also for Skaters

If you say Leutasch, you also have to say Ganghofer: for more than half a century, the Ganghoferlauf, Austria’s largest, oldest and most popular public race, has commemorated the adopted home of the Bavarian literary legend. With over five decades of success and more than 50 impressive events, the cross-country race has long been known far beyond the Tyrolean borders: 25 or 50 kilometres in the classic style or 20 or 42 kilometres in the skating technique measure the traditional competition distances.

The Ganghoferlauf is held as an official Euroloppet race and is also part of the Visma Ski Classics Challenger race series on both long distances.