UCI Downhill World cup Lošinj 2018 (bidding) - venue preview

LOCATION:
Island of Lošinj, Croatia

ORGANISERS:
The organisers are Athletic club Lošinj and Mountain bike club Trbovlje. This is an example of good cooperation between the two entities from neighboring countries – Croatia and Slovenia.
We organised three (3) DOWNHILL LOŠINJ UCI Class 1 events in years 2013, 2014 and 2016 in Veli Lošinj, however, MTB Trbovlje team has been organising downhill races since 1999, mainly national cup races, national championships and a UCI Class 1 race in 2012 with great success.

TRACK:
The track starts with sprint at the top of the hill Sv. Ivan (St. John) at 256m, and continues on gravel terrain beside the main road. There will be a couple of big jumps (10m) added for the world cup race. After this fast section track turns right (NEW rocky entrance) on the mountain path on the slopes of the Kalvarija hill. This part of the track starts with rough rocky part with mild incline, but soon continues with steeper section. There are several turns and also some small jumps in the pine tree forest. The surface is mostly rocky or mixture of rocks and dirt. The track then comes to the middle part where it leaves the mountain path and rocky surface and enters the forest park ‘’Podjavori” – the former winter residence of the Habsburg Archduke Charles Stephen. There are several fast turns, berms and compressions. After this section the track crosses the wall (NEW jump/drop) and then crosses the main road, where the last part of the track begins with a jump into the narrow street and then continues towards the finish in the centre of the town Veli Lošinj at 0m. The track is 1.900 meters long and with provisonal changes and features for the World cup it is estimated to be around the 2 min 40 sec mark for the fastest downhill racers in the world.

VENUE:
The venue is located in VELI LOŠINJ, a medevial town with 1.000 inhabitants. Bigger town MALI LOŠINJ (8.000 inhabitants) is located 3km NW and connected with a regional road. Veli Lošinj is situated in a small narrow sheltered bay on the southeast side of Lošinj island at the foot of St. John's hill. Several luxurious villas with beautiful gardens create a picturesque backdrop for this pretty town. The track starts at the top of the St. John (Sveti Ivan) hill above Veli Lošinj, and finishes right by the sea in the center of town.
ONBOARD TRACK PREVIEW 2016:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBBKqbUwqEs
ONBOARD TRACK PREVIEW 2014:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tD6ja6HPtok
LINKS:
https://www.dhlosinj.net
https://www.mtbtrbovlje.si
https://www.papyrum.hr
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdXTnGRj3L9c-20zaiwvCKw
http://www.losinj-hotels.com/en

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