Cycling Sportives in Italy: A Guide to Maratona dles Dolomites

TL;DR – Maratona dles Dolomites Explained

The Maratona dles Dolomites is one of the best closed-road cycling events in Europe, set deep in the UNESCO-listed Italian Dolomites.

It takes place on the first Sunday of every July, starting from La Villa and finishing in Corvara in the Alta Badia region of northern Italy. You can choose to tackle any of three routes, with up to 4,230 metres of climbing, including iconic passes like Passo Giau and Passo Pordoi.

Key takeaways:

• Location: Corvara / Alta Badia, Dolomites
• Date: First Sunday of July
• Routes: 55km (Sellaronda) | 106km (Medio) | 138km (Maratona)
• Elevation: Up to 4,230 metres of climbing on the full route
• Entry: Via ballot - roughly 1 in 4 get in - or guaranteed through an operator. View our Maratona dles Dolomites packages here.

Maratona dles Dolomites Routes Explained

You can choose between three routes on the day, depending on how your legs feel - a rare flexibility in a major sportive. Most events lock you into your distance weeks in advance. Here, you make the call before the start line.

Maratona Route (138km, 4,230 metres)

Seven major climbs. Then, just when you think you're done, the Cat Wall. That's what the full Maratona gives you, and it's not subtle about it.

The complete route includes Passo Giau as its defining challenge - a climb that reliably separates riders who've paced conservatively from those who haven't. Long sustained gradients, altitude fatigue, limited shelter from the weather. It's demanding in a way that sticks with you, in the best possible sense.

This is the route for experienced climbers who want a benchmark. Something to train for, return to, and measure yourself against.

Medio Route 106km, 3,130 metres)

The Medio cuts out Passo Giau and covers six passes instead of seven, which makes it more manageable - though still a serious day in the saddle. For strong amateur riders who aren't yet ready for the full Maratona, this is the smart choice.

You'll still climb over 3,000 metres and ride through the heart of the Dolomites. It's not a compromise; it's a different challenge.

Sellaronda Route (55km, 1,780 metres)

Don't be fooled by the distance. The Sellaronda covers four passes in a compact loop and offers sustained climbing throughout. In many ways, it's arguably the best 55km ride in the Dolomites - a concentrated hit of everything that makes this region so special.

It's the ideal entry point into Italian cycling sportives if you're newer to gran fondos or simply want to experience the event without committing to the full distance.

Key Climbs in the Maratona dles Dolomites

The Maratona is defined by long, sustained climbing rather than short, explosive efforts. You won't find many punchy 2-minute walls here. Instead, it's about holding a rhythm across hours, managing your effort, and reading your body carefully.

Passo Giau

10km at an average of 9.3%. That's a gradient that demands respect from the very first pedal stroke, and it gets harder psychologically the further into the ride you are before reaching it.

By the time most riders hit Passo Giau on the full Maratona route, they've already covered serious ground. The climb itself offers very little recovery - no false flats, no switchback respite.

There’s also a blanket of silence up there. Thousands of riders, yet all you can hear is the click of gears changing and the sound of breathing. It's where pacing errors from earlier in the ride catch up with you, sometimes brutally.

Passo Pordoi and Passo Sella

Pordoi is 9km at 6.9% - a rhythm climb that rewards steady cadence. Get into your tempo and sit there. Sella is shorter but sharper, with a 7.9% average that catches riders who've let their cadence drop on the descent.

These two climbs come in the first half of the route, before Gardena and a second hit of Campolongo, setting the tone for the day. How you ride them will tell you a lot about how Giau is going to feel.

Passo Gardena and Campolongo

Shorter climbs, but don't dismiss them. They stack fatigue early and they matter. Campolongo is ridden twice over the course of the Maratona route - once in each direction - which means you'll know its corners well by the end.

On the Gardena climb, there's a feed station at Hotel Chalet Gerard. Stop. Grab a piece of strudel. It's the best you'll find in the Dolomites, and that's not a claim we make lightly.

The Cat Wall

Max gradient: 19%. It's short, sharp, and comes late in the ride.

The atmosphere around the Cat Wall is unlike anything else in cycling sportives. Flares, crowds pressed tight on both sides pushing riders on, and a giant evil cat banner waiting at the end. After over 100km of a serious challenge, it's the most alive you'll feel all day.

Expert Insight: What We Know About the Maratona Start (That Most Riders Don't)

Having operated the Maratona dles Dolomites as an official partner since 2012, we've learned a few things that don't make it into the official event guide. The start sets the tone for your entire day - get it wrong and you're playing catch-up before you've even hit the first climb.

First of all, pen allocation matters more than you think:

• Semi-pros go in Pen 1.
• All female riders start in Pen 2.
• The majority of amateur riders are in Pens 2 and 3.

Get to your pen early. All riders begin by cycling uphill, and it creates bottlenecks that can completely disrupt your rhythm if you're caught mid-bunch behind a slower rider.

Stick to the left on the early climbs. If someone clips out in front of you, you'll lose momentum and potentially your desired race pace.

Take warm clothing for the pens. Early mornings in the Dolomites are very cold - arm warmers and a gilet won't cut it. The Love Velo team is positioned on the Campolongo climb, about 10km from the start, to take your warm gear from you. We're also at the 55km mark after the Sella Ronda loop, so you can shed layers or get rid of unwanted items again there if needed.

It might sound like small stuff, but it isn't.

How to Get a Place (And Why It's Not Easy)

Entry to the Maratona is highly competitive. The ballot opens in autumn each year, and roughly one in four applicants secures a place. It's oversubscribed every year without exception.

Entry Options:

• Ballot: Opens in autumn. Plan well ahead and accept that the odds aren't in your favour.
• Guaranteed entry via an operator package: The reliable route in. Places are finite, and operators like ourselves have a direct allocation.

Why Does Using an Operator Make Sense?

Beyond the guaranteed entry, there's the accommodation question. Most hotels in the Alta Badia area don't open their rooms to individual bookings - they give their allocation directly to operators like us.

If you're trying to DIY this trip, you'll quickly find options are sparse, or there will be decent accommodation within easy reach of the start. In addition, the organisers stipulate that accommodation providers must offer a minimum of a 4 night minimum stay. Our trips reflect that but most places actually operate more onerous requirements such as longer stays or mandatory half board.

We've been operating the Maratona as an official partner since 2012. That's a lot of editions, a lot of lessons learned, and a lot of riders who've crossed that finish line in Corvara because the logistics worked.

What Does the Love Velo Package Include?

The Love Velo Maratona package is built around one idea: you focus on the ride, we handle everything else.

What's included:

• 4 nights accommodation near the start (additional nights available on request)
• Airport transfers from Venice
• Guided warm-up ride
• Mechanic support throughout
• Dedicated Love Velo feed station at the 34-mile mark

That feed station matters more than it sounds. Knowing a familiar face is waiting with exactly what you need - at the point where the Sella Ronda loop ends and the real climbing begins - changes the psychology of the day.

Secure your guaranteed entry with a Love Velo package here.

Maratona dles Dolomites Tips: Pacing, Nutrition, and Race Strategy

The key to finishing strong is pacing conservatively in the early stages and fuelling consistently throughout. Most riders who blow up on the Maratona do so on Giau, and almost always because they rode too hard in the first 80 kilometres.

Start Strategy

Easy first hour. The bottlenecks at the start will naturally slow you down anyway - use that as a gift. Try to resist the surge to chase faster riders when the road opens up.

Climb Efficiently

Ride within your limits. A steady cadence at 80–90 RPM on long climbs is more sustainable than grinding a big gear. Save any surge for the final kilometre of each climb, not the first.

Fuel Consistently

Eat every 30–40 minutes, starting from the gun. Use the feed stations - they're well-stocked and well-positioned. Don't wait until you're hungry. By the time you feel it, you're already behind.

We've got a full podcast episode on fuelling strategy coming in the next few weeks.

Descending

The roads are closed, so use the full width. That said, Italian descenders are fast - pay attention on the technical sections and ride your own line.

How Does the Maratona Compare to Other Cycling Sportives in Europe?

The Maratona stands out for its combination of scenery, closed roads, and sustained climbing. It's one of the best cycling events in Europe for a reason.

The Étape du Tour is an incredible event riding with the pros. However, as it follows a stage of the Tour de France, it’s an unknown quantity each year and so the logistics are often quite cumbersome.

The Mallorca 312 is a distance test more than a climbing challenge, albeit there’s still significant climbing in the first part of the ride.

The Maratona is something else entirely: a concentrated hit of the best Italian cycling climbs, on completely closed roads, in a setting that genuinely takes your breath away (altitude aside).

Why Is Italy One of the Best Countries for Cycling Sportives?

Italy offers something that's hard to replicate elsewhere: the combination of genuinely challenging terrain, a culture that reveres cycling, and food that makes recovery feel like part of the experience.

The Italian cycling climbs are unmatched - from the Dolomites in the north to the Apennines further south. Events here are well-organised, well-attended, and well-loved. And when you roll into Corvara after the Maratona, an espresso and a plate of local pasta feel like they've been waiting for you specially.

That, alongside a heritage that runs from Fausto Coppi to the Giro d'Italia, is why cycling sportives in Italy have a particular gravity that keeps riders coming back.

You can explore all of our Italy cycling tours here if you’re not quite ready to tackle the Maratona, but want to experience the roads, the climbs, and the culture that make Italy the home of cycling.

Is the Maratona dles Dolomites Right for You?

This sportive suits experienced riders who are comfortable with long climbs and significant elevation gain. If you're regularly riding 100 kilometres with significant climbing in training, you're in the right territory.

Ideal Rider Profile

• Strong amateur cyclist
• Comfortable riding 100k kilometres+
• Some experience with sustained climbing and high altitude
• Happy to train specifically for an event for 3–6 months

What if You're Not Quite There Yet?

The Sellaronda route is a genuine option. 55 kilometres of Dolomites cycling, four iconic passes, closed roads. It's arguably the best short Dolomites sportive you can do.

Alternatively, a dedicated training camp in the Dolomites a few months before the event can bridge the gap considerably. We've seen riders transform their climbing on week-long blocks in the mountains. Our Dolomites bike tours are the ideal pre-event training block if that's the route you want to take.