Malevil Cup

The Malevil Cup began in 2000 as the Lužická 50, an idea a group of friends and family hatched over a beer after a bike tour, and it has grown into one of the classic mountain bike marathons of central Europe, with UCI status and two European marathon championships behind it. Riders gather on the square of Jablonné v Podještědí, close to the monastery church of St Lawrence, and finish at the Malevil resort in Heřmanice.

In between lies the sandstone country of the Lusatian and Zittau Mountains, with rock formations, field and forest tracks, long climbs and stony descents, and a route that crosses into Germany: the organiser sums it up as four courses, two countries, one race. Gravel riders have their own category on the 50 km course, a gentler way into terrain the long routes tackle at full length.

It is run by PAKLI SPORT KLUB from Jablonné with the help of hundreds of volunteers from both sides of the border, and it has a strongly international field, with a popular pairs category and glass medals made at a nearby Czech glassworks.