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The Swiss team leader, Nadine FÄHNDRICH, returns from the World Championships in Trondheim with a bronze medal in the sprint competition. The winner of the Engadin Skimarathon 2018 has shown a very strong season and knows the Engadine course like the back of her hand. All eyes will be on the duel between Maëlle VEYRE and Giuliana WERRO. Last year, the French athlete had been temporarily disqualified after a positive test for fluorinated ski wax but was later exculpated and declared the winner – to the disappointment of Giuliana Werro, winner of the 2023 'Engadiner', who was relegated to second place. Alina MEIER should not be discounted for a tour de force either: the young sprinter from Davos has gained two top-ten World Cup rankings. The winner of last Sunday’s Engadin Women's Race, Lea FISCHER, will also be in the running, as will former Swiss top biathlete Selina GASPARIN.

Strong male competitors

A former biathlete also stands out on the men's favourites list: Frenchman Martin FOURCADE is a five-time Olympic winner and thirteen-fold world champion. The French athletes typically leave a strong mark on the 'Engadiner': Arnaud CHAUTEMPS, winner of 2023, and World Cup sprinter Renaud JAY are among the favourites to win the race. Norway is also poised to win: World-class sprinter Bjørnestad SKAR is known to also excel at long-distance races, Magne HAGA won the Engadin Skimarathon last winter, and, finally, Havard MOSEBY finished fifth at this year's Tour de Ski.

Swiss cross-country skiing fans will have their eyes fixed on Valerio GROND. He has made substantial progress in long-distance racing and has demonstrated that he is in top form with several top-ten World Cup rankings. Another promising young athlete is Noe NÄFF from Scuol, who finished in the excellent 20th position in the Sprint competition at the World Championships. Roman ALDER and Jannik RIEBLI should not be left out of the equation either: both know the course inside out and, along with several other up-and-coming Swiss athletes, will be grabbing the opportunity to make their mark in front of a home crowd at the biggest cross-country fixture in the Alps.

Fairy-tale conditions for the Night Race and Marathon

Ahead of Sunday's Engadin Skimarathon, a good 800 racers will meet for Thursday's 7th Engadin Night Race. They will race the 17 kilometres from Sils to Pontresina in darkness, their headlights guiding the way. Best-possible weather conditions are forecast: the moon should be out, shining bright in the star-lit Engadine sky. Online registration for the Engadin Night Race is open until two hours before the start.

The organisers are still receiving registrations for the Engadin Skimarathon and Half-Marathon in light of the excellent snow conditions and the favourable weather forecast. Registration for both races will close on Saturday at 5 PM. By midday on Tuesday, a good 12,100 runners had signed up.