The whitewashed Little Tibet of Italy hosts many international stars, so the countdown to the December event has begun.

“Winter is coming” is a famous motto of one of the most famous Houses in modern literature and looking at the calendar that is indeed the case. However, if winter is looming just about everywhere, in Livigno – thanks to its strategic location and unique microclimate – it has arrived well ahead of all other Italian resorts. Heavy snowfalls have changed the landscape of Little Tibet, whitening the valleys, the forests, and the town centre creating a magic atmosphere.

A boon not only for tourists but also for winter sports enthusiasts and above all for cross-country skiers since the track in the village plain is already open and available to everyone. A technical loop of several kilometres, which keeps being extended day by day and will reach its full length in the coming weeks. A real cross-country skier’s paradise made of 35 kilometres of forests, trees, and pristine snow.

A beauty and precociousness that has been noticed even by the great champions of the discipline, who choose Livigno en masse every year as a training location combining the benefits of altitude training with plenty of natural snow.

Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, king of the discipline and one of the most winning athletes ever, the whole male and female Norwegian national team, the Frenchman Lucas Chavanat, who stood 16 times on the World Cup podium, the male and female Swedish selection: these are just some of the stars you can meet going cross country skiing on the technical loop in Livigno as proof of the deep relationship that binds the town and this discipline. A bond that is best expressed through the event La Sgambeda, which has been bringing the whole community together for decades around this noble sport made up of hard work and participation. A unique moment of empathy with nature, with other, and with the snow.

Also in 2023, La Sgambeda will therefore be one of the most eagerly awaited events of the winter schedule thanks to its long tradition and deep connection with the inhabitants of Livigno. The 30-kilometre race is taking place on Sunday, 17 December preceded on Saturday by La MiniSgambeda an event that once again highlights Livigno’s focus on sport as an instrument of social wellbeing and collective growth.

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With the 32nd edition of the Sgambeda, scheduled for Sunday 18 December, Livigno confirms once again to be the favourite destination of cross-country skiing and of all its fans, professional and not.
After the recent awarding of the Sprint World Cup stage, scheduled for 21 and 22 January, the first in the centenary history of Livigno, it is in fact the turn of the traditional granfondo, which for more than three decades has characterised the winters of the resort.

The course, 35 kilometres, runs from the Livigno plain to the most beautiful mountain landscapes, and will test the competitors, who will be called to run it in free technique. Five categories are foreseen, subdivided according to the age of the participants: from 18 to 30, from 31 to 40, from 41 to 50, from 51 to 60, and finally the over 60s, testifying to the inclusive and participative nature of one of the most complete sports of all. In each category, registration is open until 15 December, by visiting lasgambeda.it

Great expectations, therefore, in Livigno for an event that over the years has been able to carve out a special place in the hearts of its visitors, always fascinated by the triangle of sport, culture and tradition proposed by the format. The start and finish near the town centre, in fact, give the event a unique setting, while maintaining the technical complexity of a circuit of absolute level. A circuit that, in part, is already available to the athletes, thanks to the opening of the cross-country ring, which took place on 28 October: the practice of snowfarming, also this year, allowed the skiers who came to Livigno to finish their preparation to put on their skis before everyone else.

In addition, for the 32nd edition of the Sgambeda, there was also the welcome return of the Pasta Party and the prize-giving ceremony, at the Centro Polifunzionale in Plaza Placheda, after two winters affected by Covid regulations.  The perfect way to reconnect with the traditional format of the event, which has always been the perfect meeting point between competitive and amateur sport. A not-to-be-missed appointment for all snow and cross-country skiing lovers, who will therefore meet in Little Tibet on 18 December to celebrate the arrival of winter with a day of fun, nature and competition.

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Beautiful day of sport in Livigno with Abram to sign the gold book.
Brigadoi chases and is second. On the podium also the Czech Srail.
En plein for the female athletes with Erkers, Donzallaz and Caminada.
The Sgambeda is a success and opens the long distance season.

A battalion is right composed by 500 men, as many as at the 31st Sgambeda of today in Livigno, a battalion defeated by… a luxury alpine guy, the Aosta Valley’s Mikael Abram of the CS Esercito, an authentic “strategist” who made the leading men exhausted, then in view of the arrival he left the train of the first ones winning the success over Mauro Brigadoi from Trentino and Jan Srail from Czech Republic.

The women’s race could have been sung to the tune of Simon & Garfunkel’s famous ‘Mrs Robinson’. First Frida Erkers, Team Robinson Trentino, second Nicole Donzallaz, Team Robinson Trentino, third Chiara Caminada, also a Team Robinson Trentino, with a podium all in blue, like the new color of the Trentino team’s suits.

First of all, a beautiful race, mild temperatures for Livigno, just below zero, grey and blue skies, wonderful tracks, 30 km of fascinating skating, a real paradise for cross-country skiers who come from all over the world to train in the mountains.

Departure at 11 am, two laps of the cross-country center, then up to Vago and towards Forcola, then back down on the parallel slope passing also next to the biathlon polygon, finally closing in the stadium after a short excursion in the Livigno plain.

A “tactical” deployment of Team Robinson, with the skimen able to conquer all the first positions with their skis on the starting rails, but outside the stadium it was above all the two bearers of Team Sottozero, Hollandt and Busin, who “commanded” the scene, then a small group of about ten was created with all the best. A continuous beat and beat until the final stretch with Abram who, after slyly controlling the situation, set fire to the powders, stretched solo and the effort of Brigadoi to hook the fugitive was useless, also because the Trentino is preparing the season in classic “Visma”. So Mikael Abram won, followed by Brigadoi. Just 6″ and on the podium jumped also the Czech Jan Srail, 3rd, in front of Saverio Zini, biathlete of CS Esercito.
Hollandt and Ferrari obviously paid dearly for the effort of the initial attack and placed behind Zini, but ahead of the expected Kristoffersen, although a classic specialist. In truth, Abram didn’t know that in the final the race stretched even beyond the stadium for a couple of kilometers, and so his sprint was really long, but he never risked being caught.

The women’s race didn’t have much history. The swedish woman of Team Robinson Trentino managed the challenge from the beginning to the end, and Erkers knew very well that her teammates Donzallaz and Caminada controlled the situation behind her. The race ended with a wide gap between the Swedish and the Swiss, more than 8′, a sign that Erkers really has a great engine in view of the Ski Classics season. And the everlasting Marianna Longa was also seen, who, even though short of training and with a pure amateur spirit, finished in tenth place.

All in all, a beautiful event, it’s a pity only that the anti-Covid limitations fixed the maximum number of participants at 500 and didn’t allow the usual pasta party, but the first granfondo of the season was very appreciated by “pros” and amateurs.

“The race went well – said Abram at the finish line – I had really top skis, I felt good despite my legs were a bit hard since yesterday. The snow was fast and really nice, I didn’t think there was any underneath, but it cut through, so the last mile I was a little bit on the pole, but I’d say it went well.”

Also happy and smiling Frida Erkers: “It was a lot of fun, it’s nice to be in Italy and start the season like this. The snow was very nice, during the week it was dry and slow, but today it was definitely better.” Satisfaction also from the APT of Livigno with president Luca Moretti: “The return to normality is also seen with sport. In Livigno sport is the engine of tourism, the Sgambeda for us is always the key to open the season. It is an event for champions and amateurs but above all wanted and realized by our special volunteers, to whom goes all the applause of the APT. The tradition has been respected. With the Sgambeda now all the cross-country ski runs are accessible, as well as the whole ski area. We are ready for a special season, everything will depend on the Italian and world situation of Covid. Our tourism has always been fed also by foreigners.”

The appointment for tomorrow is for the MiniSgambeda, a real festival of youth sport, will close the curtain on the long weekend of cross-country skiing in Livigno, which saw yesterday the Coppa Italia and today the historic Granfondo that opens the season of long distances.

Men’s results
1 Abram Mikael Cs Esercito 1:12:46; 2 Brigadoi Mauro Sottozero Nordic Team Asd 1:13:00; 3 Srail Jan Sport Club Plzen 1:13:06; 4 Zini Saverio Cs. Esercito- Fsn 1:13:11; 5 Hollandt Florian Sottozero Nordic Team Asd 1:13:15; 6 Ferrari Francesco Sottozero Nordic Team Asd 1:13:15; 7 Kristoffersen Patrick Fossum Gjerdrum III 1:14:46; 8 Stocek Fabian CZE 1:15:01; 9 Schmuck Dominic ITA 1:15:01; 10 Busin Lorenzo Sottozero Nordic Team Asd 1:15:19

Women’s results
1 Erkers Frida Team Robinson Trentino 1:20:15; 2 Donzallaz Nicole Team Robinson Trentino 1:28:50; 3 Caminada Chiara Team Robinson Trentino 1:29:33; 4 Bonaldi Cassandra Ubi Banca Goggi 1:30:55; 5 Sadovskaya Аleksandra RUS 1:31:15; 6 Mayer Melina SUI 1:34:00; 7 Schwingshackl Thea Team Futura 1:34:56; 8 Piller Caterina Team Robinson Trentino 1:34:56; 9 Gentile Marta Team Robinson Trentino 1:35:54; 10 Longa Marianna ITA 1:36:07

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Saturday the 31th edition with closed number and sold out.
The Sgambeda is the first long distance race of the season.
At the start also the Italian Pro Teams, there will be a lot of fun!
Yesterday’s champions, today’s cross-country skiers: Marianna Longa and Nikolaj Pankratov

Long-distance runners are in a hurry, skating fans even more so, because Saturday 4 December in Livigno officially opens the granfondo season with the 31st edition of the Sgambeda. It is a “classic” in Livigno, because in the “Piccolo Tibet” the snow always comes early. A snow-covered Livigno in view of the Christmas festivities is a good occasion for the first skiing of the amateurs, with the suggestion to spend the Sunday between shopping and some time on the slopes with friends and family. For this edition, the organisers from Livigno have set a limit of 500 participants, in compliance with the anti-Covid regulations. A number already reached, of course, and so on Saturday the usual multicoloured wave of cross-country skiers will start from the Centro Fondo. There are 30 km of skating races in a single loop starting and finishing at the Nordik Skill Center. 

Among the registered athletes we can also notice the athletes of the Italian Pro Teams who usually participate in the Visma Ski Classics long-distance championship. So we will find in the front row the strongest athletes of Robinson Trentino, Futura Alta Quota Trentino and Internorm Trentino and, despite the different technique, you can understand the different states of form. Bruno Debertolis, team manager of Robinson Trentino, has called the foreigners of the Pro Team with the exception of Gifstad and Russian Bagrashov, so we will see at the start Frida Erkers, Nicole Donzallaz, Patrick Fossum Kristoffersen and Chiara Caminada. Not from the Pro Team, but from Team Talent, is the world rollerski champion Matteo Tanel, who knows his stuff in skating. Also with him are Cappello, Klettenhammer, Schwingshackl and the women’s Piller and Gentile. Team Futura is counting on Stefano Mich, Manuel Amhof and Julian Brunner, as well as the up-and-coming Thea Schwingshackl. Team Internorm also has an eye on the best Italian in the Ski Classics last season, Mauro Brigadoi, together with Ferrari, Busin and Lorenzi.

Outside the teams there are other names that bring prestige to the Sgambeda, like Marianna Longa, the ex Italian champion who has enchanted many fans and there will be also her brother Mattia, perhaps more known with the mtb (Team Scott Italia) than with the cross-country skis. Scrolling down the long list of participants, one comes across Nikolaj Pankratov, silver and bronze world champion in the 2000s, and Diego Ruiz, the Spaniard who has also starred in the Marcialonga in the past.

The fact remains that the Sgambeda represents the event of the amateurs par excellence, appreciated for the hospitality of the locality and for all the surroundings that the event offers. And there will be, on Sunday 5, also the moment dedicated to the young people with the Minisgambeda (start at 11 am), whose registrations are possible until 2 pm tomorrow, Friday.On Saturday until 10 a.m. the bibs for the Sgambeda can be picked up, while the start will be at 11 a.m.

Info: www.lasgambeda.it

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In Livigno lights are turned on for the next festivities and for the cross-country skiers.
Last 50 places available for the race of 4 December.
At the start also Pankratov (RUS) and the top skiers of Team Robinson Trentino.
Confirmed the Minisgambeda for the future champions on Sunday 5 December.

Is there the Sgambeda? There is! Is there the Minisgambeda? There is! ..and what about Livigno? Is ready, obviously!

As it has been happening for more than 30 years, at the beginning of December there is an unmissable appointment for cross-country skiing lovers, who can give themselves the classic Christmas present in advance: putting on their skis for the first race of the season in Livigno. It will happen soon, on 4 December, and there is not too much time to wait for the fans because there are less than 50 bibs available for this long-awaited 31st edition of the Sgambeda, whose starting ribbon will be raised on Saturday 4, for a 35 km challenge of pure passion in skating.

There are not only amateurs and athletes with a glorious past like the Piccolo Tibet champion Marianna Longa, but also people of the caliber of the Russian Nikolaj Pankratov, an authentic champion of a few years ago, who has a silver and a bronze medal around his neck in the relay race and who boasts three victories, six second and three third places in the World Cup. He was born in 1982, certainly no longer very young but with a physique sculpted almost specifically for granfondo races. He could be one of the favourites, but scrolling through the entry list we discover that the Sgambeda will be the first appointment of the season for the Team Robinson Trentino, which gathers the Pro Team of Ski Classics for a test in the mountains. The two Norwegians Patrick Fossum Kristoffersen and Thomas Gifstad and the Russian Dmitry Bagrashov have booked a pectoral, but also the girls of the team led by Bruno Debertolis aspire to more than just an appearance: Nicole Donzallaz (SUI), Frida Erkers (SWE) and Chiara Caminada: it’s true, they are all experts in classic, but they know how to slide well also in skating.
The home champion Marianna Longa doesn’t want to hear about ranking, for her as for hundreds of fans the Sgambeda remains a great opportunity to ski in a real paradise of cross-country skiing for pure fun.

On the following day, Sunday 5, the event dedicated to the youngest cross-country skiers is confirmed with the Minisgambeda for the categories Under10, Under12, Under14 and Under16/18 in the Cross-Country Stadium of Livigno. The course will be of different lengths according to the age of the participants, from 1 km for the youngest to a maximum of 6 km for the higher categories. The starting time of the Minisgambeda is fixed at 11.00 a.m., followed by the prize giving in the arrival area. Last call for entries is on Friday 3 December at 19.00 at the Apt of Livigno, while the fee of 10 euros can be paid at the bibs’ collection.
Regarding the Sgambeda, the registration fee for the amateurs is 60 euros. You have to hurry because, as anticipated, the bibs are very few!

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First snowfall in Livigno that makes us hope for a “white” winter.
The slope, initially realized with snow-farming, is now longer.
Still 100 bibs for the La Sgambeda of 4 December.
Marianna Longa has registered a place in the grid for the 35 Km.

No snowflake ever falls in the wrong place.” It is a Zen proverb that fits perfectly. The first snow has already arrived in Livigno and it did so in exactly the right place. The snowfall seems to have been made on purpose to extend the cross-country track, which has been open since October 23rd thanks to snow-farming. This snowfall has allowed the technicians to prepare a ring of about three kilometers in the area of the Biathlon Arena.

An extension of the track that the many athletes, champions and simple cross-country skiers, were waiting for, because there is a real crowd. Livigno is one of the few and privileged places where the cross-country skiers, without climbing on the glacier but still remaining in the high altitude in a welcoming and pleasant location, can switch from rollerskis to cross-country skis and prepare for the upcoming season, the World Cup season with the classic appointment in Ruka in Finland and the popular race season, coincidentally starting in Livigno with the 31st edition of La Sgambeda scheduled for Saturday, December 4.

The champions are hurrying to refine their form, while those who want to participate in the historic and fascinating 35 km long-distance race in free technique still have a chance of 100 available bibs, numbers that are… dissolving like snow in the sun. Quantities are limited for this edition, by decision of the organizers to fully respect the rules of containment of Covid, a closed number that will probably leave on foot, and not only in a metaphorical sense, who will hesitate to decide.

Marianna Longa, Livigno’s skierss champion, knows it well and doesn’t want to miss Saturday 4 December. World silver and bronze medals, 10 podiums in the World Cup with two victories, Marianna Longa remains one of the most beloved Italian cross-country skiers, a discipline that she has never abandoned and that she often practices on Livigno’s tracks as an amateur.

Those who are getting serious on the track in Livigno at the beginning of this season are the many athletes of the different national teams who have chosen the ‘Little Tibet’ for their training, and among them several famous faces of the world cross-country skiing with Johannes Klæbo to show off, because he is preparing the Olympic season meticulously and especially in Livigno, openly declaring on his social channels his love for the Italian town.

Among the flakes falling and the slope getting longer, Livigno is coloring itself with the thousand lights that in the approach to the Christmas holidays embellish even more the ‘Little Tibet’, land of sport, fun and shopping.

Info: www.lasgambeda.it

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More and more people are signing up for the first cross-country skiing competition of the yearLivigno’s organizer set a limit of 500 people. From Saturday 23, participants can train on the snow farming ring.
The superstar Klaebo is back in Livigno to prepare his Olympic season on high ground.

From Pauli Siitonen – the Finnish with the intuition – to Bill Kock – the American who developed the new technique in the 1970s. Skating is a very loved, bubbly and explosive discipline.The Sgambeda is the first chance of the season to put on your narrow skis and race against the clock with a free technique; it will raise the curtain on its 31st edition on December 4. This year, the organizers of the Livigno competition set some boundaries, because the pandemic – although currently contained – is still to be feared. Therefore, they set a limit of 500 participants, and, as always, the imperative is crossing the finish line. Many international athletes have already booked a race-bib: five hundred, cinq cents, fünfhundert, with a maximum of 500 participants.

Although there is still time before December 4, you should start polishing your skis, because from Saturday (23 October) onward, you can start training on the first ring section obtained in Livigno with the snow farming technique. Amateurs who want to challenge their passion on narrow skis will have the ring at their disposal between noon and 6:30 pm, after getting a ticket at the cross-country ski centre.

Livigno’s “plateau” is favourite place for altitude training for many athletes, and for cross-country national teams in particular, at this time of the year; with the opening of the training track, the members of the Finnish national team – guided by superstar Johannes Høsflot Klæbo – and of the German biathlon team – familiar faces in Little Tibet – have already been announced.

Training and spending a few nice days in Livigno is an enticing idea, without though losing sight of the Sgambeda’s 500 participant limit, which is quickly reaching its target.

Until 31 October, the participation fee will be €50,00 and on December 1 it will increase to €60,00.

Although it is true that the tendency is to wait the last second to enter a competition, the saying “There is no time like the present” rings very true in Livigno; so, in order not to be out of the group of 500 lucky skating participants, you better hurry.

The race track is the traditional 35 km one, with start and arrival at Livigno’s cross-country ski centre, the climb toward the Forcola pass in the shadow of the Vago Alps, and then downhill toward Livigno’s centre. As always, the Sgambeda starter package will be top quality, and it will be revealed soon; the true “prize” is the chance to ski at the beginning of December in a place where usually snow holds sway, and where elsewhere it is very hard to find any centres open.

In Livigno, altitude skiing is a pleasure and a qualifying way to open the cross-country ski race season, which will continue in January in Italy. At the beginning of December, Livigno sparkles with lights and colours, the Christmas atmosphere is everywhere and the time of giving is anticipated – like the skiing season.

Info: www.lasgambeda.it

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