19 May 2023

Premiere in Tyrol: Hike, Smile & Fly Festival from 8 to 11 June in Kitzbühel - Kirchberg celebrates the start of this year's adventure race Red Bull X-Alps

Every two years since 2003, the Red Bull X-Alps adventure race attracts athletes to showcase their skills on a route through the Alps of Central Europe. The route of the race, which takes athletes flying, climbing and hiking through Austria, Germany, Switzerland, France and Italy, changes with every event. Maps dating back to the first race in 2003 can be found at redbullxalps.com/the-race/history. This year, for the first time, the route will start in the luxurious ski, hiking and sports region of Kitzbühel-Kirchberg in Tyrol.

Coinciding with the 20th edition of the Red Bull X-Alps, the Hike, Smile & Fly Festival will take place in Kitzbühel and Kirchberg from 8 to 11 June 2023. In 2023, 32 top athletes, including four women, will showcase their climbing, hiking and flying skills. More information about the athletes can be found on the adventure race website, including an interview with Laurie Genovese from France, who when asked why she wanted to do the race again after participating in 2021, replied, "To show to the paragliding and sport community that women can do it too, differently, with their own abilities. ..." (Source: redbullxalps.com/athlete/laurie-genovese)

The Red Bull X-Alps kicks off on 8 June with a prologue in Kirchberg, where athletes will race a 58.6km course through the Kitzbühel Alps. The main race will begin in Kitzbühel on 11 June, with athletes starting in the center of the city and making their way up to the Hahnenkamm. The total route is 1,223 km and crosses Austria, Germany, Switzerland, France and Italy.

Image: Infographic about the route for Red Bull X-Alps 2023. Photographer: © Zooom Productions / Red Bull Content Pool.

Some details about the route 2023:

• The route is 1,223 km long.
• First ever start of Red Bull X-Alps in Kitzbühel - Kirchberg.
• It features a via ferrata climb in the Sexten Dolomites.
• The route passes five countries: Austria, Germany, Switzerland, France and Italy.
• There are 15 mandatory turnpoints.
• Anti-clockwise loop course.