Charles the Bold was defeated at Morat in 1476 during the Burgundy War. One of the victorious Confederates runs to bring the great news to Friborg brandishing a branch of linden tree torn from the battlefield. This branch gave birth to a lime tree at the place where the messenger collapsed.
This battle is not one battle among others, it is the battle which founded the canton of Fribourg. As the messenger and the laurel branch are for the “Marathon–Athens” race, the messenger and the linden branch are the symbols of the Morat–Fribourg race. 1933: June 25: 1st official race. In front of 13 other competitors, Alexandre Zosso from Basel won, in 1h01’00, the 16,400 km event with 506 m of total difference in altitude (ascending: 336 m), which separates the Morat castle from the lime tree in Fribourg.
