Ultracycling European Championships: Philip Handl wins the Race Across Austria 2026

Philip Handl from Tyrol won the RACA1000 in 40 hours and 9 minutes, crowning himself WUCA European Champion in unsupported ultracycling. He also set a new course record. The 29-year-old completed the 1,000-kilometre route from east to west across Austria in the fastest time, beating the ultracycling elite. Handl had previously won the Race Across the Alps twice, claimed victory twice at the Salzkammergut Trophy and became European champion in MTB ultramarathon in 2021. He has been cycling for 18 years.

Participants could choose between two routes: via the Felbertauern or the Großglockner High Alpine Road. Both routes ended in Feldkirch. The cyclists had to tackle up to 16,000 metres of elevation gain and received no outside assistance.

Battle for a podium place at the Ultracycling European Championships

Stefan Fettes crossed the finish line 45 minutes after Handl and secured second place in 40 hours 54 minutes. The former European champion from Germany put in a strong performance on the challenging course. Robert Müller completed the podium in 41:18 hours. The world-renowned ultra-cyclist had previously won the first edition of the RACA.

Christoph Strasser finished fourth. The Austrian ultracycling legend was one of the hot favourites, but had to admit defeat to the competition. “Of course, I’m not at all happy with this fourth place; a medal would have been really cool. Physically, things went well, but three riders were better this time,” analysed the Styrian. For a long time, Strasser was in second place after riding through the first night without any sleep. The second half of the race then took him over the high mountains. “I’d actually planned to ride through the second and final night without sleep. But I just couldn’t manage it – I was too tired. I also didn’t want to take any risks on the sometimes dangerous descents from the high passes at night, so I took two 20-minute power naps. The others were able to ride through, so the medal was out of reach.” In the Men’s 50+ category, Markus Biechl from Austria won in 46:03 hours, ahead of Juan Pedro Moreno from Spain in 58:41 hours and Salvador Palomo, also from Spain, in 58:59 hours.

Freudenstein dominates the European Ultracycling Championships

Michaela Freudenstein from Germany won the women’s under-50 category in 50:07 hours. Katharina Stockbauer came second in 60:11 hours, whilst Anna Bachmann from Germany came third in 62:57 hours and won the bronze medal at the European Championships in her age group.

Bianca Fach from Switzerland triumphed in the Women’s 50+ category with a time of 51 hours and 11 minutes. Last year’s overall winner once again demonstrated her class in ultracycling. Sabine Fischer from Germany finished second with a time of 71 hours and 07 minutes.

Glockner Classification and supporting programme

Ida Sachse clocked the fastest time on the Glockner stage in the women’s category, completing the climb in 3 hours and 16 minutes. Tobias Gosch secured the ‘Glockner Man’ title with a time of 2 hours 28 minutes. The Großglockner High Alpine Road was one of the two route options and presented an additional challenge within the race.

Organiser Steff Wagner was impressed by the performances of all participants at the Ultracycling European Championships. He particularly highlighted the strong presence of women and emphasised that every finisher in Feldkirch had their own story to tell. The organisers, in partnership with Wald4Leben, are planting a tree for each participant. Every finisher will receive a handmade wooden trophy from Diakonie Gallneukirchen.