Horal MTB Maratón

Horal is one of the fixed points of the Slovak mountain bike calendar: a marathon from the small town of Svit, under the High Tatras, that has been running for more than a quarter of a century. In 2017 it hosted the official European MTB Marathon Championships, bringing riders from 23 countries to Svit.

The longer routes climb into the Low Tatras around Kráľova hoľa and the edge of Slovenský raj National Park, with long forest climbs above 1,400 metres. Gravel riders have their own timed category on the Grejvi route, a fast loop on mostly paved and compacted roads through Lopušná dolina, the Čierny Váh valley and villages such as Vikartovce, Liptovská Teplička and Šuňava.

The race is run by the local club ŠK Horal together with the town of Svit and the villages the routes cross, and the weekend has grown into a small cycling festival around the Koliba area, with music, a family route and a free tent village for participants.