Luis Leao Pinto of Portugal regained the ‘King of the Himalaya’ crown in the 11th Hero MTB Himalaya. Earlier he had won the crown in 2013. The top three riders in the Solo Men’s category – Luis Leao Pinto, Andi Seewald and Pau Zamora were stiff competition for each other as they competed neck-to-neck in the 600km long 7- stage race.

Lawyer turned rider, 34-year old Luis Leao Pinto has won the title for the second time and had won the MTB race in 2013. Luis, who practices about five hours a day, said it was the scenic beauty of Himachal and its friendly people which brings him back to the race. This race is very significant as it infuses confidence and prepares me for other races that are in the pipeline, he added.

The cyclists covered a distance of 600 km distance in seven riding days with a total elevation gain of 12,000m (39,370 feet) with highest altitude being 3,250 m (10,662 feet). The terrain was tough and challenging and riders had to paddle past single track, motorable jeep track, rocky tracks, loose gravel, sand, mud and broken tarmac.

Considered to be a very challenging, the race started out with 88 riders, including seven women, out of which only 54 completed the race. The toughness of the race can be gauged from the fact that even the seasoned riders were not comfortable due to altitude of the race tracks and steep uphill and downhill riding.