The opening race of the Swiss mountain bike racing season on April 8 and 9 has an outstanding line-up. Of course, the two Olympic champions Schurter and Rissveds are the big figureheads, along with the Frenchman Julien Absalon, the reigning European champion and World Cup winner. The local Monte Tamaro cycling club will also be represented by its promising talent Filippo Colombo. He is aiming for a top classification in the U23 category. "I know the terrain very well and will do my best for it," explained the 20-year-old at the press conference.

In addition to the starting field, which currently includes athletes from 16 nations, OC President Marzio Cattani proudly presented further details: "Although we are competing with two other races, we are expecting around 700 participants". Work has been underway on the course for around two weeks to ensure that the athletes will find the best conditions. The fifth edition of the Tamaro Trophy is classified as a C1 category race by the UCI.

Armin Meier, CEO of the central marketing company Human Sports Management AG, is also looking forward to the kick-off: "The Proffix Swiss Bike Cup is also a training platform for the whole of Swiss cycling." In fact, the current trend is for many children to learn the technique of mountain biking and only then specialize in mountain biking, road or track. Accordingly, the organizing committee has also created the Mini Tamaro Trophy, in which "kids for kids" ride laps for an hour. For every lap completed, a contribution is made to the Greenhope Foundation, which campaigns against childhood cancer.