Gran Fondo New York

1700 cyclists started the 3rd annual international GFNY Colombia cycling race, the world's highest all-comers cycling marathon, finishing at 3365m. It opened the 2017 GFNY World season, which consists of 14 cycling events around the globe.

Held just 30 minutes outside the country's capital of Bogota, GFNY Colombia once again had all kinds of weather conditions in store for the riders. It was windy and sunny at times but also cold and rainy on top of the 3365m-high La Cuchilla mountain, where the event finished.

Nonetheless, 1378 riders officially finished the challenging course, making it the largest Colombian cycling race ever.

March 17-19, GFNY Italia will be GFNY's first cycling stage race consisting of an uphill time trial, a short, fast stage and a gran fondo. Situated just 90 minutes south of Rome in the coastal town of Terracina, GFNY Italia delivers some of the most beautiful race courses in Italian gran fondo cycling.

GFNY Italia kicks off with a uphill time trial and a start will be in the historic village of San Felice Circeo, and the route then climbs through the Circeo National Park up to the Bellavista. Saturday offers a fast 60km road race stage along the famous beaches of Sabaudia with a climb to the finish in San Felice Circeo. The classic 130km Gran Fondo with 2087m of climbing rounds out the 3-day race on Sunday March 19. Now in its fourth year, the organizers added the infamous Querce climb which used the be the favorite training ground for Marco Pantani.

In South America's Saint Tropez, Punta del Este, GFNY Uruguay was held on March 19 and is Uruguay's only mass participation bike race. GFNY Uruguay more than doubled its registered riders from the inaugural 2016 edition, to over 750 registered riders at the 2017 edition.

This year's route followed the same 180km course as last year. After following the South Atlantic shore, the route turns inland where the numerous hills add up to a formidable challenge with 2000m of climbing.

Half way through the race where the riders hit the over-10%-steep climbs, a group of six riders split off the remaining lead group. A fast and flat lead-up to the finish meant it would come down to a sprint finish. Uruguayan Ricardo Guedes edged out countryman Roderyck Asconeguy after 4:35:20. The women's race was won in 4:57:40 by 2016 GFNY Championship NYC runner-up Marcella Toldi from Brazil. Flora Meirelles (also Brazil) finished 7 minutes behind her with Uruguayan Johanna Noelia Bracco Olmedo a further 8 minutes back.

The first-ever GFNY Regional Championship took place in Mexico City with the GFNY Latin America Championship on March 26. The race started in the heart of the metropolis and finishes in the mountains above the city.

Riders from all across Latin America and well beyond competed for the coveted crown to be GFNY Queen and King of Latin America. It was a championship-worthy cycling route: 130km with 2,319m of climbing and a mountaintop finish at 3080m.

In the women's race, 8-time GFNY Champion Camila Cortes (Colombia) was again unbeatable. After winning GFNY Colombia four weeks ago, she added a 9th GFNY title to her incredible palmares. In the men's category, a group of five riders separated itself, including defending champ Gabriel Corredor (Colombia) and GFNY Cozumel champion Flavio De Luna (Mexico), with De Luna championing in a sprint finish.

On April 23, Ipoh, one of the biggest cities in Malaysia, plays host to the inaugural GFNY Malaysia and is surrounded by stunning limestone hills and rainforest. Cyclists from all across Asia and the rest of the world will tackle a course made even more challenging amidst Malaysia's grueling tropical heat and humid conditions.

Cyclists have the option between the competitive 161km long distance with 1342m of climbing and the non-competitive 75km middle distance with 541m of climbing.

The seventh edition Campagnolo GFNY World Championship NYC was held on 21st May 2017. The world's most international cycling event brought riders from 97 countries to New York City to take on the Championship course.

GFNY World events Argentina, Colombia, Cozumel-Mexico, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico City, Malaysia and Uruguay were represented. On Sunday New York City delivered great conditions that highlighted the beauty of the GFNY NYC Championship course. 80% of the 5,000 riders rode 100 miles and 8,500 feet of climbing starting from George Washington Bridge to Bear Mountain and back to Fort Lee, New Jersey. 20% opted for the 50-mile GFNY Bear from George Washington Bridge to Bear Mountain.

It was the most dramatic finish in GFNY history. Gritting his teeth, Ricardo Pichetta proved the strongest, and in a photo finish, he won in the time of 4:28:47. Victor Gras beat Chase Goldstein for a close second, and Defending Women's Champion, Colombia's Camila Cortes once again showed what she's made of to take a fourth title bringing her GFNY World victories to ten.

The 8th annual Campagnolo GFNY World Championship New York will be held on May 20, 2018. Cyclists take on a challenging 100-mile route from NYC to Bear Mountain to Fort Lee to compete against each other, the clock and themselves in a personal endurance challenge.

The third edition of GFNY Mont Ventoux took place on Sunday, June 25, worth 2000 riders competing. Set amid the charming provincial town of Vaison-la-Romaine, famous for its well-preserved 2000-year-old Roman ruins and medieval town and cathedral, GFNY Mont Ventoux offers beautiful scenery, vineyards and charming Provencal villages, which provides a dramatic setting for the challenge the riders take on.

GFNY Mont Ventoux, taking in 130km and over 3200m of climbing, is the only open cycling race to finish on top of Mont Ventoux; all GFNY races are open to professionals and amateurs alike.

In the men's race it was a close battle on the final climb up Mt. Ventoux with Kristof Houben from Belgium and defending champion, Alexander Duncan of Switzerland, riding side by side until the final 500 meters. Houben launched an attack with 500 meters to go and Duncan was unable to respond to the Belgian's effort and Houben took the GFNY European Championship Mont Ventoux title in a time of 4:14:53h. Nicolas Reynaud of France completed the podium just over a minute back.

In the women's race, Stephanie Subercaseaux, from Chile rode away with the win in a time of 5:16:17h. She overtook Isabel Eizmendi (Spain) on the climb up Ventoux, which she started 8 minutes later and won by 2 minutes. Muriel Reggiani (France) finished third a further 3 minutes down.

The long-awaited, inaugural GFNY Brasil offers a challenging course with over 3300m of climbing on August 6, just two hours north of Rio de Janeiro. The charming historic town of Conservatória, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, will be the host and is known for its stunning nature with rolling green hills, waterfalls and rainforest-covered mountains, is located in a picturesque area that was the heart of Brazil's coffee industry in the mid-1800s.

Brazil is a particularly special nation for GFNY. On May 15, 2016, over 700 Brazilians tackled the Campagnolo GFNY Championship in NYC. For the second year, Brazil was the second-largest contingent at the NYC race after the host nation, USA.

Two distance options will challenge riders, a 160km / 100-mile competitive long course and a 72km / 45-mile medium non-competitive route for riders who want to experience GFNY but are not able to tackle the 160km long course.

A former coffee plantation will host the pre-race expo and post-race festivities. The grand estate is located in a beautiful setting in the countryside, with green pastures bordered by stretches of lush Atlantic rain forest.

GFNY Deutschland, also on September 3, is a chance for riders to enjoy smooth, fully closed-to-traffic roads. While Germans curiously enjoy alcohol-free beer after their races, GFNY also offers the traditional kind of beer to complement post-race sausage and fries.

GFNY Indonesia is the first GFNY Asia Championship, held on the exotic island of Lombok on September 3. Riders will test their mettle on climbs of up to 25% steep in the hottest and most humid conditions of the GFNY circuit.

GFNY Provence is GFNY's second three-day stage race, and will be held on September 29 - October 1. Riders will tackle Mont Ventoux on the first day and enjoy two more breath-taking stages over cols and through charming, historic, Provençal villages.

On the same day, GFNY Argentina is also held on fully closed-to-traffic roads around San Luis, South America's hub for bike racing. Local police showcase in perfection how to close and secure roads for cyclists in beautiful landscape.
With GFNY Chile, yet another South American challenge has been added to the calendar on November 26. The race will be held near Santiago, in one of Chile's great wine valleys.

The extremely successful GFNY Cozumel returns for the fourth time on November 12. With its sandy beaches and tropical weather, the event is a cycling marathon in paradise.

With GFNY Chile, yet another South American challenge has been added to the calendar on November 26. The race will be held near Santiago, in Valparaiso, one of Chile's great wine valleys.

Cyclists have the option of riding either the competitive 165km long distance with 2000m of climbing or the non-competitive 85km middle distance with 1259m of climbing. The long distance serves as 2017-2018 qualifier race for the racer corral at the 2018 Campagnolo GFNY World Championship in NYC.

Santiago, Chile's capital, is where the race's official hotels and pre-race expo are located, and is the cultural, political and financial centre of Chile and has lots of tourism attractions including colonial-era buildings, monuments, parks and more.

The Valparaíso Region offers fantastic cycling along vineyards and wineries and in quiet valleys. A winery in Casablanca will serve as the start and finish site of the race. Vineyard and winery visits are the top tourism attraction of Valparaiso and Casablanca. Historic coastal towns of Valparaíso and Viña del Mar are interesting places to visit.