The Worldloppet Ski Federation is an international federation of long distance

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

events whose aim is to promote cross-country skiing through ski races. The federation was founded on 10 June 1978 in

Uppsala Uppsala ( ; ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the capital of Uppsala County and the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inhabitants in 2019. Loc ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

Locations

Membership in Wordloppet is limited to one race per country, with an emphasis being placed on prestige. As of 2015, there are 20 official Worldloppet races. While primarily concentrated in Europe, there also races in North America, Asia, and Australasia.

Racing distances

Actual racing distances may vary from year to year according to the local snow conditions, but usually, there are different categories: full distance (at least 42 km, the length of a non-skiing

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

(26 miles)) and shorter ones for children and less experienced skiers. For

Vasaloppet (Swedish language, Swedish for 'the Vasa race') is an annual long distance cross-country skiing (sport), cross-country ski race held on the first Sunday of March. The course starts in the village of :sv:Berga, Malung-Sälens kommun, Berga, jus ...

, the oldest of the races, the full distance is about . Some races are freestyle (both skating and classic are allowed), but others only permit classic style.

Worldloppet Master

Those who complete Worldloppet races in 10 different countries, at least one of which is from a continent other than Europe, qualify as a Worldloppet Master. They qualify for Worldloppet Gold Master if they have completed 10 main races, or a Silver Master if they have competed 10 races where some or all of them are short races. As of October 2019, more than 5,000 master titles have been issued.

References

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External links

Worldloppet websiteInternational Association of Worldloppet SkiersGatineau Loppet
Cross-country skiing Skiing organizations 1978 establishments in Sweden Sports organizations established in 1978 International sports organizations International organisations based in Italy