In four months, the Südtirol Ultra Skyrace (121 km/7554 altitude differential) will begin on Friday, 26 July. At the seventh edition of the extreme mountain run along the horseshoe shaped Hufeisen tour in the Sarntal Alps Austrian top athlete Gerald “Sancho” Fister will also be at the start. The 41-year old Carinthian triumphed in previous years several times in runs such as the Großglockner Ultra-Trail, the Hochkönigmann and the Pitz Alpine Glacier Trail. Now Fister is aiming for a top result in the South Tyrolean mountains.

In his younger days Gerald “Sancho” Fister was a passionate cyclist. The athlete from Carinthia enjoyed mountain runs to relax. But over time, his love of outdoor running developed more and more, and in 2009 Fister took part in his first ever competition. “I wasn’t at all pleased with my result at that time, and so I started a period of intense training. I participated in 13 half marathons during that same year and realised that I improved steadily. From 2011 my focus changed more and more to mountain runs, because I really enjoy being out in the terrain. The distances also got longer and longer”, Fister explained.

A decision with consequences: Because Gerald “Sancho” Fister became increasingly successful in a wide range of competitions. And generally, the longer they were, the better his final result turned out to be. The first victories followed.

Multiple winner at Austria’s most important trail events

The 41-old top athlete from Finkenstein by Faaker See is twice winner of the Großglockner Ultra-Trail (2016, 2017), the Pitz Alpine Glacier Trail (2017, 2018), the Hochkönigmann (2016, 2017) and the Wörthersee Ultra Trail (2014, 2015). Fister’s trademark is that he enjoys sharing his victory with competitors and runs through the finish line with them.

However, Gerald Fister also had to give up during a few races in his career. “Two years ago it was the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc, last year the Mozart100. But this year, I want to complete them both”, the qualified carpenter stated. The Austrian first heard about the Südtirol Ultra Skyrace from the athletes’ manager of the South Tyrolean trail spectacle, Thomas Stricker. “I met Tom and his friends in Pitztal the last couple of years. Each time they raved enthusiastically about the Hufeisen tour and invited me. And so it was obvious that I would follow that invitation. I’m aiming to finish in the top places, which isn’t easy, considering the top quality field. I’m therefore going to continue to train hard… “Sancho” concluded.

Brief info Südtirol Ultra Skyrace: The extreme mountain race along the Hufeisen tour in the Sarntal Alps will run from 26 to 28 July 2019. Participants can choose from four distances: The Südtirol Ultra Skyrace (121 km/7554 m elevation), the Südtirol Skyrace (69 km/3930 m elevation), the Südtirol Sky Marathon (42 km/2863 m elevation), and the Südtirol Sky Trail (27 km/1027 m elevation). You can register on the official website.

INFO: Südtirol Ultra Skyrace