the most famous brazilian to compete in this race is rubens valeriano donizeti - he won the silver medal in rio's pan am games in 2007, and competed in beijing in the 2008 olympics. his most recent accomplishments include winning the gold medal at brazil's own mountain biking cup in 2012.

since rubens is only one of many well trained mountain bikers who represent brazil, it  shows the passion and dedication that many brazilians have for mountain biking.

for the recreational mountain biker, rio de janeiro is host to many famous trails, and people travel from all over the world to experience the legendary terrain   of the region.