January 30, 2022 - The Platak SkiBike competition was held this weekend as the first of its kind in Croatia, organized by the SkiBike Club Croatia.

"SkiBike was created in the USA in the late 1980s and brought to Europe via Austria in 2005. It has only gathered more and more competitors and adrenaline junkies since then. I am thrilled that we came to this interesting ambiance of Platak. This great ski center is so close to the sea and in this way we are spreading the popularity of this sport," said Gregor Schuster from Baden near Vienna, who can also be considered the father of this sport in Europe, for Novi List. 

Platak premiered the SkiBike sports competition this weekend that combines cycling and skiing. 

The price of one skibike is around 15 thousand kuna. Today, the competition is hosted on the Radeševo trail. Skibike Club Croatia is responsible for bringing them to Platak, thus entering Croatian sports history as the first host of this new sport. 

"We are the first ski and cycling club in Croatia, so we got the opportunity to organize the first international competition in this sport in Croatia. The contestants are mostly professional downhill drivers, and most of them are under contract with Red Bull. Those who have not heard of Platak so far will surely hear about it after this competition," said Jure Lučić, president and founder of Skibike Club Croatia, who radiated true satisfaction with the conditions and reactions of the competitors on Platak.

The competition was supported by Primorje-Gorski Kotar County and the Municipality of Čavle.

"The arrival of the skibike spectacle on Platak means the promotion of our sports and recreation center, as well as the region in general. Furthermore, news from this strong competition will tour Europe and reach America. Therefore, I am sure that some new competitions will be generated, all in the interest of tourism and economic development," said Mayor Ivana Cvitan Polić, expressing hope that locals and guests will take the opportunity to try the skibikes. Considering that you do not need to have previous skiing knowledge for this sport, I believe that this is an opportunity for many," concluded Cvitan Polić.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

Tourism Minister Gari Cappelli visited Primorje-Gorski Kotar county yesterday, including the mountainous region Gorski Kotar and Plakat, to take a look at the tourism potential in this part of Croatia. In 2016, Gorski Kotar was visited by 32,691 guests who spent 93,948 overnights.