European Masters Mountain Bike Championships return to Slovenia

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A rider descends in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia (Image credit: Anze Furlan)

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Looking at Kranjska Gora in Slovenia from above (Image credit: LTO Kranjska Gora)

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Racing downhill at the 2009 European Masters Championships in Slovenia (Image credit: Anze Furlan)

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Racing downhill in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia, which will again host European Masters Championships (Image credit: Anze Furlan)

The slopes of Mount Vitranc above Kranjska Gora in Slovenia will again host an international mountain bike event. The European Masters Mountain Bike Championships - in cross country and downhill - will be held there in 2011, 2012 and 2014. This year's dates are June 24-26.

The Masters Championships were scheduled for Killarney, Ireland, but after they were cancelled, Slovenia stepped in. Kranjska Gora successfully hosted a similar event in 2009 - the European Downhill Championships for junior, elite and masters categories.

The downhill course will remain more or less the same as it was in 2009; however, a new cross country loop will be used - it was built in 2010 for a national-level event. It goes through sections of the bike park and also includes new purpouse-built forested sections.

Cross country races and downhill seeding will be run on Saturday while the downhill finals will happen on Sunday.

Visit the race website for more information.