The 29th edition of the Tartu Bike Marathon made a successful debut in the Gravelking UCI Gravel World Series this weekend, with Lukas Malezsewski (BEL) and Tiffany Cromwell (AUS) taking victories over the 123 km gravel course in Estonia.
In the men’s race, victory was decided in a sprint among five riders after more than three hours of hard racing. Belgian rider Lukas Malezsewski proved the fastest at the finish, crossing the line in 3:23:39. Home favourite Kirill Tarassov (EST) finished in second, while Maris Bogdanovics (LAT) completed the podium in third. With this win, Malezsewski takes over first position in the men elite ranking.
The women’s race saw a dominant performance from experienced Australian gravel specialist Tiffany Cromwell. Cromwell completed the 123 km route in 3:53:41, building a decisive advantage during the race and maintaining a lead of almost four minutes at the finish.
Defending race winner Karoliina Leinonen (FIN) secured second place at 3m23 while reigning Estonian gravel champion Aidi Gerde Tuisk (EST) rounded out the podium at 6m33 behind Cromwell.
The event attracted 3,446 participants from 16 countries across four distances, underlining the popularity of gravel racing in the Baltic region. Around 2,000 riders took part in the two UCI Gravel World Series qualifying events over 123 km and 83 km, battling for qualification places and valuable series ranking points.
