With the strongest cycling squad in ten years of history, mountain bike lovers are already getting into the mood of Brasil Ride 2019. In a few days, the district of Arraial d'Ajuda, in Porto Seguro (BA), will be full of cyclists from around the world. They arrive in search of the challenge of completing what many point to as the toughest ultramarathon on the planet between October 20 and 26. Two Czech cyclists, Kristian Hynek and Martin Stosek, will land in the far south of Bahia with favorite credentials, especially given recent results.

Kristian Hynek and Martin Stosek were both featured at the last edition of the UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships held in Grachen, Switzerland, on September 22nd. While Hynek fought for the title until the final minutes, completing just 26 seconds behind champion Leonardo Paéz (COL), Stosek also played a great role, finishing seventh, just over four minutes after the Colombian athlete. Other riders confirmed in the tenth edition did well at the event, such as Alexey Medvedev (RUS) in fourth place and Ole Hem (NOR) and Tiago Ferreira (POR) in 13th and 20th respectively.

If the excellent result two weeks ago is not enough, Hynek arrives in Bahia with an extra weight please alongside Stosek. That's because he won the first two editions of the event, in 2010 and 2011, with his compatriot Robert Novotny. Robert will also be in the tenth edition of Brasil Ride, however, acting on the staff of the two Czechs, accumulating roles as team leader and mechanic.

"Sure I remember that years, that was a very intensive experience in 2010. We had quite a lot of rain and also many days with super high temperatures with high humidity. Was difficult for us racing in such conditions and it was basically my very first experience with long stage race. Me and Robert managed to win both of the first years, but sure one thing that stays in my mind is Robert’s crash in the last stage about 1km to go in 2010. That was very bad, but he recovered from that and next year (2011) we came again", says Kristian.

In addition to thanking his mate at the two championships won, Hynek also praises his current partner in the race. "Robert has been for a long time a huge support for me and very important person in my cycling career. He has proven himself as a great universal guy and perfect and precise mechanic, so we will have the best support possible in him", tells Kristian. "Martin is a rising star. This year is his first marathon season and he already showed some amazing results - winning UCI series in ELBA, winning Dolomiti Superbike and coming on a fantastic 7th place at the World Championship in Swiss. So I believe if we can keep our shape until the Brasil Ride starts, we should be ready to fight for the top spots".

Debutante eager for the challenge - Racing a competition for the first time always has a special taste. In the case of Brasil Ride, it is to know that the motto: "more than a race, a stage in your life", will surely make sense after seven days. "I know that its a hard race full of good riders and that is important to be well prepared for it. I'm looking forward for some adventure. I hope we will enjoy the race and also see part of the beautiful nature. It is very special to race with Kristian. Its a big pleasure to ride this famous race with him. For me it will be advantage to have him by my side becouse he won that race! Also it will be good training for ours next stage races", says Martin.

Special mechanic for Brasil Ride - Robert Novotny will be important to the duo not only for what he can do technically, as a team mechanic, but also for his knowledge of the race. Unlike Hynek and Stosek, Novotny has competed in the current stage of Brasil Ride, in the far south of Bahia. "I know brasil ride from side: racer, physio, mechanic. I raced in Bahia, I know the track, so I know anything can happen. Hot, rain, steep climbs. I believe in Kristian's hatrick. Brasil Ride is a wonderful heart race for me", comments Robert.

Star cycling squad - Winning the third championship will not be an easy task for Hynek alongside Stosek. At least six other teams must fight for the title: Henrique Avancini and Manuel Fumic of Cannondale Factory Racing, defending the position of current champions of the event; Jaroslav Kulhavy and his compatriot Matous Ulman, heavyweight debutants of Specialized Racing; Tiago Ferreira and Hans Becking, both champions in previous editions, forming the DMT Racing Team; 2016 champion Alexey Medvedev, again with Italian Francesco Failli; CST Sand American Eagle MTB Racing Team duo Sebastian Fini and Ole Hem (NOR); and from South America, the current champions of La Leyenda del Dorado, Colombians Johan and Johnatan Cañaveral.

The Other Brazilian Stars - If Henrique Avancini is the only Brazilian in the duos considered favorites to win the title, the intermediate squad has renowned cyclists from Brazil who can fight for a place on the podium of the stages, as well as for the America's Jersey.  These are the cases of: Mario Verissimo and Bruno Lemes, from Squadra Oggi; Sherman Trezza and Guilherme Muller, from Cannondale Brasil Racing; Swiss naturalized Brazilian Lukas Kaufmann with his partner Konny Looser (SUI) from FKS Factory Racing; Halysson Ferreira and Nicolas Machado of the Tropix Factory Racing Team; Daniel Zoia and José Gabriel Almeida, by Corinthians Audax Bike Team; Ricardo Pscheidt and Gilberto Goes, from Orbea Team Brasil; Edson Rezende and Nicolas Sessler of the Caloi Avancini Team.

Brazilians looking for a place in Tokyo 2020 - With Brazil scrambling for points to secure a place in Tokyo 2020 in women's mountain biking, the ultramarathon becomes even more important as it offers 120 points to its Olympic ranking to the champions. Cyclists are confirmed in the race as the three-time Brazilian champion in 2019, Letícia Cândido, alongside Hercília Najara, the two-time Brasil Ride champion, Raiza Goulão racing with experienced Colombian Angelita Parra, and Venezuelan Katherine Lindo and Florangela Rodriguez. The young revelation of the national MTB, Karen Olimpio, in partnership with the experienced Portuguese Ilda Pereira, and Viviane Favery, with Tânia Clair Pickler, are also among the favorites on the podium. Country leader in the Olympic ranking, Jaqueline Mourão awaits confirmation from her partner to join the ultramarathon squad.

About Brasil Ride - Considered the Giro d'Italia of Mountain Biking, the ultramarathon scheduled for October 20-26 offers a strong challenge for 570 participating athletes from 24 countries. For seven days, they will face about 600 km and almost 11,000 m of accumulated altitude, between trails and dirt roads that connect Arraial d'Ajuda, in Porto Seguro, to Brasil Ride Village, built annually in Guaratinga. On the last day of the competition, Saturday (26), more than 1,500 cyclists from all over the country join the stars of the international mountain bike, for the Marathon of the Discoveries race. A unique opportunity to ride and see the world's best mountain bikers in action.

Live streaming - The tenth edition of Brasil Ride will follow the schedule of the last three editions, with live streaming for eight days, in the official fan page: www.facebook.com/BRASILRIDE; and also on YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/BrasiRide/videos.

Press Images - As of this season, Brasil Ride has an image bank specifically for press use: https://brasilride.photoshelter.com/index. In this space, there are photos of all the races performed in the year by the agency. To access them, simply register with the Photoshelter site system and download the chosen files. Any questions, just contact redacao@zdl.com.br.

The Brasil Ride ultramarathon is sponsored by the Government of Bahia, Land Rover, Shimano, Specialized and Unidas. Coca-Cola, Conect Car, Full Gas, Garmin, LAF Insurance Broker, La Maglia, Oakley, Red Bull, Shop2gether, Squirt, Vittoria and Thule are supporting companies, as are the municipalities of Porto Seguro and Guaratinga, as well as the Pau Brasil National Park are the institutional supporters of the event.

Brasil Ride: More than a race, a stage in your life.

Website: http://www.BRASILRIDE.COM.BR
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BRASILRIDE
Twitter: https://twitter.com/brasil_ride
Instagram: https://instagram.com/brasilride

Gustavo Coelho / Doro Jr. - Mtb 13209
E-mail: gustavo@zdl.com.br / dorojr@zdl.com.br
Phone: +55 11 32855911 / Cell phone: + 55 11 9.8457-9699

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