Bike Odyssey

Bike Odyssey is an eight-day cross-country mountain bike stage race across the Pindus, the largest mountain range in Greece, and its organisers bill it as the hardest race in the country and one of the toughest anywhere. Each day brings long climbs, steep pitches, technical trails and mountain weather that tests both rider and bike.

The route threads through beech forests, across rushing rivers and over exposed alpine passes and ridgelines, with rocky descents that demand a clear head when the legs are empty. For riders who cannot give it a full week, a 3-Days format keeps the same raw character in a shorter block, with categories for conventional bikes and e-bikes.

The race is the project of Christos Makrygiannis and has the backing of the Greek National Tourism Organisation, and it draws a strong field each year, including former Olympic champion Gal Fridman for 2027. The organisation moves riders' luggage between stage towns and provides a GPX file for every stage.