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Finnish Formula 1 driver Valtteri Bottas and the team behind SBT GRVL have announced FNLD GRVL, a new gravel event in Lahti, Finland, planned for June 2023.
The new gravel race event will offer two distances with a €20,000 pro prize purse and is expected to attract more than 1500 gravel riders from around the world.
“I’ve been riding gravel around my hometown of Lahti, Finland for years, and discovered SBT GRVL in Steamboat Springs, CO in 2021,” said Valtteri Bottas. “I was impressed with such a world-class event. When Amy Charity and Chris Lyman reached out to me about partnering on a race in Finland, I saw it as a tremendous opportunity to build something similarly special in Lahti.”
The event is to be a full weekend of activities and entertainment that will include an expo, and a packed schedule of events that the organisers say, “will be tied to advocacy efforts around environmental sustainability and climate change”.
Bottas’ hometown Lahti is an hour’s drive or train journey from Helsinki and was titled the Green Capital of Europe in 2021, and has a lot of experience in hosting sports events. Like so many places in Finland, it sits near multiple lakes that are surrounded by pristine, smooth gravel roads that offer endless route combinations.
“Lahti shares so many similarities with Steamboat Springs and what we feel has made SBT GRVL successful: incredible scenery, endless gravel roads, and a community that understands hospitality and infrastructure for hosting a major sporting event,” said Amy Charity, SBT GRVL co-founder.
“When we first approached Valtteri with the idea it was evident how passionate he is about gravel riding and his community, so with our combined backgrounds, it was natural for us to team up to create a world-class gravel event,” added Chris Lyman, marketing agency co-owner.
Registrations for the race will open later in 2022, for more information and stay up-to-date with the latest visit the website.
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