First up was the fast and furious Cross-country Short Track (XCC) race, which has awarded its own rainbow bands since 2021 and favours the riders blessed with buckets of fast-twitch muscle fibres. This was then followed by the traditional Cross-country Olympic (XCO) race, which would be crowning its 36th world champion since the inaugural event in 1990 in Durango, USA.
KELLER WINS HER FIRST RAINBOW JERSEY
Alessandra Keller (Switzerland) has been one of the most consistent riders of the last few seasons, clinching both the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series titles for XCC and XCO in 2024. The rainbow jersey has always eluded the Swiss star, though, who appears to excel at placing well even when she doesn’t win across a whole season rather than dominating one-off events.
Credit: SWpix
She came into her home UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in XCC in good form, having won in Pal Arinsal (Andorra) and finished second in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie (France) last time out.
In Crans-Montana, she would resume her rivalry from Les Gets with Jenny Rissveds (Sweden), but would reverse the last Elite UCI XCC World Cup’s result to win by four seconds in front of a passionate home crowd.
Canada’s Jennifer Jackson completed the Elite podium to win bronze whilst fellow countrywoman Isabella Holmgren took Under 23 world title.
KORETZKY GOES BACK-TO-BACK
Victor Koretzky (France) has yet to hit the form that saw him crowned the 2024 UCI Mountain Bike World Champion in XCC, and the rainbow jersey has had to settle for second best behind Specialized Factory Racing teammate Christopher Blevins (USA) this season – the American winning the series’ first five rounds.
Credit: SWpix
The Frenchman even skipped his home race in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie to keep his powder dry for defending his title, and it was a tactic that appeared to work. Koretzky’s stars aligned and he outsprinted 2021 winner Blevins to claim a narrow, one-second victory.
Compatriot Mathis Azzaro (France) finished just behind the Specialized pair to become the final rider on the Elite podium. Adrien Boichis (France) meanwhile took the Under 23 gold.
RISSVEDS PROVES THAT CLASS IS PERMANENT
After narrowly missing out on the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship in XCC, Rissveds brushed herself down to clinch the rainbow jersey in the main XCO event. Nine years on since the Swede’s first major victory at the Olympic Games Rio 2016, the result in Crans-Montana and the recent XCC-XCO double at the UCI World Cup in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie proves that she’s still at the top of her game.
Credit: SWpix
She almost didn’t have it her own way though. The 31-year-old went solo on the first lap and appeared content to rely on her early lead as the race progressed through its seven laps. This year’s UCI XCO World Cup overall leader Samara Maxwell (New Zealand) and Keller kept Rissveds’ lead in check though and seemed the most likely to mount a threat.
Keller faded in the final lap to add bronze to her XCC win, while Maxwell could only reduce the gap to 18 seconds to take silver. Isabella Holmgren (Canada) did the double by securing the Under 23 crown.
HATHERLY WINS CONSECUTIVE CROWNS WHILE VAN DER POEL’S TITLE TILT FADES
Coming into the final race of the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships, all eyes were on the multi-discipline master, Mathieu van der Poel (Netherlands). The Dutchman has already clinched rainbow jerseys in road, gravel and cyclocross, and was looking to become the first male rider to complete the an unprecedented quartet.
But it was to be another dual-discipline rider who would come away with the spoils – Alan Hatherly (South Africa) defending his UCI Mountain Bike World Championship in XCO despite spending a large proportion of this season on the road.
Credit: SWpix
The South African resumed his 2024 season-long battle with Koretkzy from the off before surging into an unassailable lead on lap two. Van der Poel meanwhile overcame his five-row starting place before ultimately fading to 29th.
Simone Avondetto’s (Italy) last lap break was enough to secure the 2024 European Champion a silver medal, while Koretzky recovered to overtake home favourites Luca Schatti (Switzerland) and Mathias Flückiger on the line to clinch bronze.
Men U23 UCI XCO World Cup leader Finn Treudler (Switzerland) took the Under 23 gold in front of his home crowd.
