startjizerskepadesatky-en

Hrabětice meadows – where the Jizerská 50 starts

The Jizerská 50, now a world-renowned cross-country ski race, was started by mountain climbers from the Lokomotiva Liberec sports club. The first race was held on Saturday, January 20, 1968 with 52 amateur skiers at the starting line

Some years skiers set off during a snowstorm (1973).

Most competitors came to the starting line from Bedřichov (1983).

More and more people signed up for the Jizerská 50 each year, so they had to find a starting line with enough space. Currently the number of competitors is limited.

he number of participants grew each year, with nearly 7,000 competing in 1977. The years with the greatest turnout started out right here in Hrabětice meadows (Hrabětické louky). The huge crowd of skiers headed out on a slight uphill incline towards Královka, with its unforgiving crush in the notorious “funnel”, where the wide path narrowed to allow only several skiers abreast. The fourth year of the Jizerská 50 was a landmark year.

A total of 5,441 skiers met at the starting line of the Jizerská 50 in 1989.

Women rushing towards the notorious “funnel” on Královka
in 1979

A 15-member Czech mountaineering expedition had recently died in an earthquake in the Andes in Peru. Since many of the members of the expedition had previously participated in the Jizerská 50, in subsequent years the race was called Peru 1970 Expedition Memorial Race (Memoriál expedice Peru 1970) in their honor. Since 1999 the Jizerská 50 has been part of the Worldloppet series of long-distance cross-country skiing events. The main event is classic style and draws top skiers from around the world as well as amateurs. The race now starts at the ski stadium in Bedřichov.

Text: Otokar Simm

Images: Bohumil Jakoubě, Bořivoj Černý, Archiv Jizerské 50 (Jizerská 50 archive)

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