Birkebeinerrittet China 2009 started with a big bang of Chinese fireworks and beaming sunshine from a blue sky. 148 participants from 12 countries set out from Yakeshi City Square on their ride to the finish at Phoenix Lake.

The starting field was mixed from semi-professional bikers to old and new amateurs out for a good ride. The track was tough according to many bikers, “but it was good because then you get the real challenging mountain bike feeling when you ride” according to one older Chinese participant. A big group of Chinese participants had come from Mudanjiang City in a nearby province and many of them did well in both the 25km and 50km race. Best placement there was Lin Fang who came 1^st in the Men’s 25km and Mrs. Pan Jihong who came second in the women’s 50km race and got 6000 RMB in price money.

For the Men’s 50km, the winner of this year’s Huangshan MTB Festival and Genghis Khan MTB Adventure Feng Kuanjie showed up as well as Terje Amundsen, a good biker from Norway who just recently competed in Nordic Ways organized Vatternrundan China in Yunnan. Terje had come to China as part of a group of Europeans, and although they decided to leave, Terje stayed on another two days just to be able to take part in this Chinese edition of the famous Norwegian Birkebeinerrittet. It seems that Mr Amundsen made a good choice because got a good head start in the first tough uphill and then finished first in the race, with nr 2 Feng Kuanjie as much as 4 minutes behind. Third man to cross the finish was Kuanjie’s teammate Jian Zhihang.

The Women’s 50 km was won with an overwhelming time distance between nr one Jennifer Hillman (CAN) and Pan Jihong (CHN), Jennifer finished at 2.37.27, just 20 minutes from Terje Amundsen but 55.5 min before the next woman in the group. Jennifer said after her victory that she had a good time coming to Yakeshi and that she really liked the track, the surroundings and the organization. Lucky third in the women’s 50km was Tone Helene Aarvik who was part of a group from the Norwegian Embassy in Beijing going up to the Inner Mongolian City Yakeshi.

Morten Nergård, representative from the Norwegian Birkebeinerrittet also took part in the race after having given a speech to the participants at the opening ceremony. “-It was a tough track” he said after finishing the 50kms as one of the later participants reaching goal. Next, dinner and a good nights rest awaits the participants of Birkebeinerrittet who are going home tomorrow having spent a Saturday of mountain biking in the Inner Mongolian hills.

Men 50km

1.       Terje Amundsen (NOR) 2.06.53, 2. Feng Kuanjie (CHN) 2.11. 05, 3. Jian Zhihang (CHN) 2.16.11 4. Liu Min (CHN) 2.17.47

Women 50km

1. Jennifer Hillman (CAN) 2.37.27, 2. Pan Jihong (CHN) 3.32.55, 3. Tone Helene Aarvik (NOR) 3.33.32, 4. Luo Qi (CHN) 3.54.10