With the 2018 UCI Gran Fondo World Championships in nearby Varese, many riders took the opportunity in the last qualifier of the season in Trento to grab their ticket for Worlds.
The northern island of Hokkaido is the place for the Japanese qualifier event in the UCI Gran Fondo World Series. Niseko is a very wellknown place for skiing but also wants to profile its sportive character in the summer.
With a neutralized start until Muxia, more than 1400 riders took a flying start for a tough and challenging Granfondo Ezaro. The peloton split up quickly with a large leading group over the first climb, Alto de FerroAtlantico (384m) to pass halfway over the startline in Ezaro for a second loop.
The third edition of the Niseko Classic as UCI qualifying event has been sold out with 1000 riders at the start.
With the World Championships in 8 weeks in their home-country, Italian riders get a final chance to qualify in Trento this weekend.
The 2018 UCI Gran Fondo qualifier season will end this weekend with the last four qualifier events. UCI San Luis Potosi is the exclusive Mexican event in the series, a second edition after the first one in Campeche last season.