CRANKWORX LAUNCHES FANTASY LEAGUE IN LES GETS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WHISTLER, BC May 27, 2016 —A five-day trip-of-a-lifetime to see the Crankworx World Tour wrap in Whistler awaits the lucky fan who can assemble the winning team in the Crankworx Les Gets Fantasy Contest.

The brand new online fantasy sports contest will run from June 16 to 19, during Crankworx Les Gets, at fantasy.crankworx.com.

Like a fantasy football draft, or the office hockey pool, players will have to stick within a predetermined salary cap, and select athletes for their team based on their relative salaries, and the athletes’ probability of doing well in five core Crankworx events. The player whose riders bring in the most points wins the contest, and the VIP trip of a lifetime, including tickets, accommodation, transfers, spending cash and airfare to Crankworx Whistler.

“We’ve seen fantasy contests in other sports create new interest and fans and, at the same time, give existing fans even greater reason to follow the action. The athlete list for Les Gets reads like an encyclopedia of contemporary mountain biking and now the riders’ loyal followers will have their chance to compete on a platform designed to let them support the world’s best. And the winner is coming to Whistler,” says Darren Kinnaird, Crankworx General Manager.

The contest will run for the duration of Crankworx Les Gets, with players selecting two athletes from Dual Speed & Style, two athletes from Dual Slalom, four from the Les Gets Pump Track Challenge presented by RockShox, two from Slopestyle and four from the Crankworx Les Gets DH presented by iXS. Players begin with a salary cap of $116,200 and must have a complete line-up to have an eligible roster.

The league is free to enter and open to fans in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, France, and Germany who have reached the age of majority where they reside. The grand prize includes a five-day trip, August 17-22, 2016, to see the second half of Crankworx Whistler and the grand finale of the Crankworx World Tour.

Follow along with the action live on the Crankworx webcast—scoring update in real time—and the Crankworx Twitter, @Crankworx, for updates.

The Crankworx Fantasy Contest will open Wednesday, June 1 and run to the end of Crankworx Les Gets, June 19, with players able to shuffle athletes until the start of each event. Roster spots will lock in place before each event begins. The competitions included are:

 

The Crankworx Les Gets Dual Speed & Style will feature 2015 World Champ Bernard Kerr (GBR) along with 2015 Whistler winner Tyler McCaul (USA), 2016 Rotorua winner Tomas Slavik (CZE) and contenders Martin Sӧderstrӧm (SUI), Kyle Strait (USA), and the always competitive and Ryan Howard (USA).

The Les Gets Pump Track Challenge presented by RockShox could set the stage for a couple of rematches. The 2015 pump track world champs, Adrien Loron (FRA) and Anneke Beerten (NLD), were both bested by rivals Tomas Lemoine (FRA) and Jill Kintner (USA) in Rotorua and Loron will face additional challenges from previous Pump Track Challenge winners Barry Nobles (USA), Joost Wichman (NLD) and Pump Battle World Series record holder Noel Niederberger (SUI) in Les Gets.  Beerten will also have four-cross champion Katy Curd (GBR) and Les 2 Alpes winner Anne Caroline Chausson (FRA), as she makes her return to competitive Crankworx racing after cancer treatment.

Thus far, Nicholi Rogatkin (USA), Brett Rheeder (CAN), Thomas Genon (BEL), Brandon Semenuk (CAN), Logan PEAT (CAN), Tomas Zejda (CZE) and the Sams, Pilgrim and Reynolds, of Great Britain, have been invited to compete in Slopestyle, as the top eight riders from the 2015 FMB World Tour season. They will be joined by Tomas Lemoine (FRA), Yannick Granieri (FRA), Mehdi Gani (FRA), Paul Genovese (CAN), Torquato Testa (ITA), Max Fredriksson (SWE), Anthony Messere (CAN) and Szymon Godziek (POL)—the top eight riders in the 2016 FMB rankings—and wildcards Diego Caverzasi, (ITA) and Ryan Nyquist (USA).

The Crankworx Les Gets Downhill includes Troy Brosnan (AUS), Sam Blenkinsop (NZL), Marcelo Gutierrez Villegas (COL), reigning King of Crankworx Bernard Kerr (GBR), Mick Hannah (AUS), and current King of Crankworx leader Matt Walker (NZL), to name a few. And on the women’s side, Canadian speed demon Casey Brown (CAN), local favorite Tahnée Seagrave (GBR), who resides at the base of the hill in Morzine, Tracey Hannah (AUS) and current Queen of Crankworx leader Jill Kintner (USA) will meet the likes of two-time Crankworx Les 2 Alpes champion Myriam “Pompon” Nicole (FRA) and Emilie Siegenthaler (SUI) in one of the stiffest rounds of competition yet.

Crankworx will be broadcast live on Crankworx.com and Pinkbike.com, and Slopestyle will be broadcast exclusively on Red Bull TV and Crankworx.com. The full broadcast schedule is:

Media contacts:
Jennifer Smith
Crankworx Communications Manager
Jennifer@Crankworx.com
604-848-8801

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Mountain biking’s defining celebration descends on the French Alps for the fourth year from June 15-19, 2015, bringing MTB stoke to the country renown as the centre of cycling.

 Through dirt, sweat and cheers, Crankworx celebrates the epic endurance, supreme flow, monster air and heart-stopping drops of gravity mountain biking. Anointed by dirt, powered by passion, the Crankworx World Tour travels to Rotorua, New Zealand, Les Gets, France and culminates in its Canadian home base of Whistler, B.C.

Tread among the gravity-fed. Join the bike-minded.

Crankworx.com