Day two of the 2024 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Pal Arinsal, Andorra, saw Erice Van Leuven (New Zealand) successfully defend her Women Junior downhill rainbow jersey. Asa Vermette (USA) is the new Men Junior downhill UCI World Champion. VAN LEUVEN RETAINS HER RAINBOW STRIPES Taking to the start hut in Pal Arinsal (Andorra) were 20 Junior Women representing 14 nations. Riding with the Number 11 plate, 2nd fastest qualifier Ella Svegby (Sweden) knocked 14 seconds off the previous fastest run. Heather Wilson (Great-Britain), winner of three UCI World Cup rounds in 2024, struggled and finished 19th. It was only the Kiwis who could compete with Svegby’s time: Eliana Hulsebosch was the first rider to get within 10 seconds of the Swede. Sacha Earnest finished within 6 seconds of Svegby to finish third, as she did in Fort William, Scotland (Great Britain) in 2023. Then it was all down to fastest qualifier Van Leuven who pulled out a sensational run to light every sector green and win for the second successive year. Erice Van Leuven (NZL) in 2:59.891 Ella Svegby (SWE) +6.357 Sacha Earnest (NZL) +12.180 VERMETTE SHOWS PURE CLASS Fifty-nine riders representing 19 nations started the Men Junior final. When third-fastest qualifier Bode Burke (USA) set a time of 2:41.699 - more than 3 seconds faster than every previous rider - there were six more riders still to go. New Zealand’s Tyler Waite came close to the American’s time, but it was only the last two riders, fastest qualifier, France’s Max Alran (with two UCI World Cup wins this year) and USA’s Asa Vermette (three UCI World Cup wins so far in 2024) who could go quicker than Burke. Asa Vermette (USA) in 2:39.185 Max Alran (FRA) +1.516 Bode Burke (USA) +2.514 On Friday, men and women UCI World Champions will be crowned for Junior cross-country Olympic (XCO) as well as Elite and Under 23 cross-country short track (XCC).
The first day of the 2024 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Pal Arinsal, Andorra, saw rainbow jerseys awarded to Sofia Wiedenroth (Germany) and Jérôme Gilloux (France) in E-mountain bike cross-country (E-MTB), before the USA took their first win in the cross-country team relay (XCR). WOMEN’S E-MTB XC: WIEDENROTH DOMINANT FROM THE START Germany’s Sofia Wiedenroth set the early pace with Austria’s Anna Spielmann and defending UCI World Champion Nathalie Schneitter (SUI), while one of the other pre-race favourites, Justine Tonso (FRA), was near the back after the first lap. Spielmann’s race was over on lap 2 as she appeared to suffer with injury. Meanwhile, the 29-year-old German steadily increased her lead, with the 38-year-old Swiss rider remaining in touch. Chile’s Florencia Espiñeira Herreros, the overall E-enduro leader of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series with one UCI E-enduro World Cup round remaining, secured third place, while Italy’s Alia Marcellini finished in fourth. Wiedenroth claimed the rainbow in confident, commanding style, with a time of 1:00:09, just over a minute ahead of Schneitter and a little over two minutes from Flo Espiñeira. The highly experienced Kathrin Stirnemann (Switzerland) was fifth. MEN’S E-MTB XC: GILLOUX BACK IN THE RAINBOW The favourites, 2021 and 2022 UCI World Champion Jérôme Gilloux and defending UCI World Champion Joris Ryf (Switzerland) slugged it out from the start, with Hugo Pigeon (France) in third, and cross-country Olympic (XCO) specialist Martín Vidaurre Kossmann (Chile) and Mirko Tabacchi (Italy) in close attendance. While Gilloux – who suffered a late mechanical in last year’s final, finishing third – was eking out a small advantage, the riders behind him were swapping places, as Vidaurre passed Pigeon and Ryf, the Swiss rider then slipping back further – with the top four circulating within 20 seconds at the halfway point. After winning the first two rounds of the 2024 UCI E-MTB World Cup, Gilloux maintained his perfect record to take back the crown as UCI World Champion. His winning time of 1:01:32 was 29 sec clear of Vidaurre, the Under-23 XCO UCI World Champion in 2021, with the silver medal. Pigeon got bronze (+45-sec), with Ryf and Tabacchi rounding out the top five. TEAM RELAY: BLEVINS LEADS USA HOME TO PIP FRANCE Fifteen national teams came to the start line at Pal Arinsal, each with six riders tackling one lap. With men and women Elite, Under 23 and Juniors riding in the order prescribed by their team management, the lead – and most other positions – would swap many times. A strong start from Luca Braidot (Men Elite) saw Italy and five-time former UCI World Champions France (Luca Martin – Men U23, then Nicolas Kalanquin - Men Junior) swap the lead over the first two laps. Denmark was close, along with the USA with Nicholas Konecny (Men Junior) preparing to hand over to Haley Batten (Women Elite). Meanwhile, reigning UCI World Champions Switzerland were sneaking up from 9th to 6th by the end of lap two as Austria honed in on Denmark for provisional fifth. Lap three was a battle of Women Elite riders up front with Italy’s Martina Berta leading until France’s Loana Lecomte overpowered her, while Ramona Forchini took the Swiss outfit into 4th, with eyes on their last leg, Thomas Litscher (Men Elite). Batten’s work prepared Vida Lopez (Women Junior) to move into 2nd place for the USA, 30-sec behind France’s Olivia Onesti (Women U23), with Italy third. When Lopez faded, Italy’s Giada Martinoli (Women Junior) passed her before handing to Valentina Corvi (Women U23) for the penultimate circuit. Madigan Munro (Women U23) regained 2nd place for the USA and chased the leader, ready to tag Christopher Blevins (Men Elite) for the final blast. Meanwhile Isabella Holmgren (Women U23) took Canada up to 4th, before handing over to her older brother Gunnar (Men Elite). On the final lap, Blevins found his way ahead of Frenchman Mathis Azzaro, while Holmgren did his best to chase down Italian Mattia Stenico (Men Junior). USA won in a time of 1:19:38 just 3-sec ahead of France, with Italy third (+1.31), Canada fourth and Switzerland fifth. NOT FORGETTING DOWNHILL In the Junior downhill (DHI) qualifying ahead of Thursday’s finals, Erice van Leuven (NZL) was the fastest woman in 2:59:533, almost 10 sec ahead of Ella Svegby (SWE) and Heather Wilson (GBR). In the Men Junior qualifying, the USA’s Asa Vermette pipped Max Alran (FRA), with Bode Burke (USA) in third.
While there may have been a break in the 2024 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series over summer, there’s been plenty of off-road action for fans to sink their teeth into since the most recent UCI World Cup in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie. The highlight was the Olympic Games Paris 2024, where Tom Pidcock (Great Britain) retained his title with a last-ditch pass on Victor Koretzky (France) in a nail-biting men’s cross-country Olympic (XCO) race. This came hot off the tyre tracks of Pauline Ferrand-Prévot’s (France) victory 24 hours earlier – the home favourite dominating to finally clinch an elusive gold medal in what looks set to be her last season in mountain biking before switching to the road. Rather than heralding the season’s conclusion though, the Olympics kicked off a series of races that will prove decisive in how this year’s titles and championships are distributed. And before the final three rounds of the 2024 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, there is the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships to be decided. ANDORRA AWAITS The 35th UCI Mountain Bike World Championships will take place in Andorra’s Vallnord Pal Arinsal Bike Park between 28 August - 1 September. A regular on the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series circuit, it’s the second time that the Pyrenean venue has hosted the annual rainbow jersey-deciding races. Nine years ago, icons of mountain biking Nino Schurter (Switzerland) and Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (France) were victorious in Vallnord in the Cross-country Olympic (XCO), while Loïc Bruni (France) and Rachel Atherton (Great Britain) won the Downhill (DHI). Each win kickstarted periods of dominance that saw Schurter claim five world championships in a row, while the others each have five in their collections. All but Atherton are still amongst the favourites to be crowned champions this time round as well – the British downhill legend’s last race the 2023 UCI Downhill World Championships in Fort William. WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP-WORTHY COURSES The Andorran spot is a favourite with both riders and fans thanks to its big, natural features, but the bike park’s build crew have added a few new surprises to keep everyone guessing. The XCO races will pit the Endurance athletes against a 4km track that packs 160m elevation gain into each lap. The loop contains three big, long ascents, but the riders won’t have a chance to catch their breath on the flat or downhill sections, which are crammed with singletrack, roots and rock gardens before a final section of pump track. If the technicality of the Vallnord course doesn’t get you, the altitude will; located at 1,900m vertical, riders will also battle against reduced oxygen levels, which could become a factor in the race’s outcome if they haven’t acclimatised properly. Although the Downhill course starts even higher at 2,400m vertical, the Gravity contingent won’t be hanging around long enough for altitude to play as big a factor. But if the course used in the 2023 UCI Downhill World Cup is anything to go by, they’re not in for an easy ride either. The 1.6km course drops 427m and is a tale of two halves. The top sees riders build up a head of steam on an open hardpark before delving into a lower section where they have to navigate rock gardens, off-camber piste, and endless immovable pine trees. PIDCOCK AND FERRAND-PRÉVOT TARGET BACK-TO-BACK TITLES The Olympic champions Tom Pidcock and Pauline Ferrand-Prévot are clear favourites for the XCO UCI World Championships, which would see both also complete back-to-back victories having won at Scotland’s Glentress Forest course last year. But it’s far from a foregone conclusion. Pidcock is likely to resume his rivalry with Victor Koretzky – the Frenchman targeting vengeance over the Brit after he’d led the Olympic race until the very last section of singletrack – while the bronze medallist from Paris 2024, Alan Hatherly (South Africa), is in red-hot form and leads the 2024 UCI XCO World Cup overall in the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series. Others in contention include Mathias Flückiger (Switzerland), who won the 2023 UCI XCO World Cup round in Andorra, while it’s hard to rule out his fellow countryman Nino Schurter (Switzerland). The 10-time UCI World Champion already has four wins to his name at the venue, and another would be a fitting finale in what is predicted to be his final season. Ferrand-Prévot’s challengers are harder to predict, but last year’s winner in Andorra – Mona Mitterwallner (Austria) – is unlikely to be battling for a podium place after being off the pace for most of the season. Haley Batten (USA) was closest to the Frenchwoman in Paris and has been consistent all year, while Puck Pieterse (Netherlands) comes into the race after a stage-winning performance on the road at the Tour de France Femmes. One outside contender is Evie Richards; the 27-year-old Brit was a surprise UCI World Champion in 2021 so knows how to win on the biggest stage, and has been flying somewhat under the radar this season despite finishing fifth at the Olympics. GAZE AIMS TO REGAIN RAINBOW WHILE KELLER FACES OFF WITH FERRAND-PRÉVOT Just like at the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, there is a separate Cross-country Short Track (XCC) race format that plays to the strengths of the more sprint-focused Endurance riders. Reigning champion Sam Gaze (New Zealand) currently leads the men’s 2024 UCI XCC World Cup overall, but there’s likely to be a tyre width separating the podium steps with Koretzky, Pidcock and Hatherly all with XCC wins to their names this year. The women’s event is set to be just as close, and Alessandra Keller (Switzerland), Pieterse, Ferrand-Prévot, Batten and Richards are just a handful of riders who could come out on top. BRUNI VS PIERRON AND CAN HÖLL MAKE IT A HAT-TRICK? After a washout in Fort William (Scotland, Great Britain) that saw Charlie Hatton (Great Britain) and Vali Höll (Austria) clinch the 2023 UCI Downhill World Championships titles, riders will be hoping for slightly more predictable conditions on course come Saturday, August 31. After a season that has seen the rivalry between Loïc Bruni and Amaury Pierron (France) reignited, all eyes will be on the French pair come the men’s final. Bruni has the edge at the venue and in UCI World Championships (two wins to zero, and five to zero respectively), but his compatriot has found some of the form that has alluded him since 2019 – winning the last two UCI Downhill World Cup rounds in Val di Sole (Trentino, Italy) and Les Gets (Haute-Savoie, France). Other Frenchmen Loris Vergier and Thibaut Daprela have also recorded UCI World Cup wins in Andorra in recent years, so don’t be surprised if it’s a French 1-2-3. It will also be a momentous occasion as Greg Minnaar (South Africa) takes to the UCI World Championships start gate for the 28th and very latest time. The four-time UCI World Champion and widely regarded G.O.A.T isn’t there to make up the numbers either, as his third place at Les Gets (Haute-Savoie, France) last time out proved. On paper, the women’s race looks like a less competitive affair – 2024 UCI Downhill World Cup overall leader Vali Höll targetting her third consecutive rainbow jersey. But the 22-year-old Austrian hasn’t been looking her infallible self of late and has found herself on the lower steps of the podium after mistakes in race runs at the UCI Mountain Bike World Series rounds in Val di Sole (Trentino, Italy), Les Gets (Haute-Savoie, France) and Bielsko-Biała (Poland). Those ready to pounce on any errors include Tahnée Seagrave (Great Britain), Marine Cabirou (France) and a resurgent Myriam Nicole (France). RETURN OF THE WHOOP UCI MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD SERIES A week on from the UCI World Championships sees the return of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series for the first of the final three UCI World Cups of the 2024 season. The Loudenvielle-Peyragudes, France (6-8 September) weekender will see the downhill athletes joined by the Enduro and E-enduro riders for an all-out Gravity affair, where the Enduro and E-enduro overall winners will also be decided. It’s not the final Enduro and E-enduro race of 2024 though, with the first ever UCI Mountain Bike Enduro & E-Enduro World Championships scheduled the following week (12-15 September) in Val di Fassa, Trentino, Italy. All the action from the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships is available on Max, Eurosport and discovery+, with WBD Sports platforms bringing the sport to countless screens worldwide.
Britain’s Tahnée Seagrave is homing in on her debut overall title. The only thing standing in her way? The reigning overall title holder. There is no doubt that when it comes to the few talents to have defined the sport of elite women’s UCI Downhill World Cup racing, Austria’s Valentina Höll is one of the first names out of most fans’ mouths. But she is not yet a monolith of the type the sport hasn’t seen since Rachel Atherton and before her Anne-Caroline Chausson ruled supreme. The winning done by both still skews the numbers of any facts born conversation. The Brit and the Frenchwoman have won 40 apiece whereas Höll currently sits on 10. She is, of course still, a relative newcomer at just 22 years of age. On this trajectory, barring disaster, the YT MOB’s signing from the last off-season will be right up there by the time she’s reached full stride. Given her list of accolades (two UCI World Championships elite titles and a pair of overall UCI World Cup titles to her name), it’s all too easy to see Höll as all-dominant when in fact she will be under very real pressure from a very experienced rival as we approach the final two rounds of the season. Tahnée Seagrave’s similarities with Höll are more common than you would perhaps be forgiven for thinking. Both grew up in bike parks, both were surrounded by pro’s from an early age and both currently sit in big teams largely built around them. Seagrave burst into elites back in 2014 and from 2017 onwards really made a name for herself, alongside Manon Carpenter, as one of the few riders to have an answer for the all-conquering Atherton. Nine wins have followed, but she’s yet to chalk a title. There have been harrowing battles with injuries. The most recent of which being when a potentially life changing concussion forced Seagrave into the kind of mental struggle that few amongst of us will ever appreciate. It is now, at long last, fully behind her and a turbulence-free off-season seems to have re-galvanised her substantial reserves of raw speed. The difference is just 224 points with 800 left on the table across the three session of each of the last two rounds. Marine Cabirou (Scott DH Factory) is mathematically in contention too being 409 behind the leader Höll, but it’s a longer shot. When Höll has faltered this season (finals in Bielsko-Biala – Poland, and then Val di Sole, Trentino - Italy) it has been on relatively innocuous sections of track leading the prevailing wisdom to maintain that only Vali can really beat Vali. But that is doing Seagrave a disservice. The British rider is staring an incredible opportunity in the face, an overall title is there for the taking. Yes, the lead belongs to someone else, but Downhill has never been straight forward and in finding the kind of form that has seen her back on the top step this season, Tahnée Seagrave looks set to push Valentina Höll every inch of the way. Catch all the action from the penultimate round of the UCI Downhill World Cup at Loudenvielle-Peyragudes on Max, Eurosport, discovery+, and a variety of international broadcast partners from September 6-8, bringing the sport to countless screens worldwide.
The two fast Frenchmen have form when it comes to series-deciding showdowns. But who will come out on top this time? For Specialized Gravity’s talismanic Frenchman, Loïc Bruni, the mid-season break arrived bang on cue. The roar of the chainsaws fizzed against the hammering rain in Les Gets as his great rival Amaury Pierron treated the downhill world to a masterclass which, almost from the first split time, threatened to be one of the all-time great race runs. he Commencal MucOff by Riding Addiction star had, against every conceivable odd, won in Val di Sole, Trentino, on the infamous Black Snake and just as in Italy, his run in Haute-Savoie, Les Gets (France) was somehow a different Pierron. The man from Brioude was finally back on a race bike and at the sharp end of the time sheets having returned from a broken back suffered during one of the first practice sessions of last season. Not only was he back in the all-white colours of the Commencal factory entry, but the trademark smile was also back too. The swagger had returned but it was somehow altered. The once wild, ‘fast in, faster out’, rodeo style now tamed with apparent added ‘Bruni’ – there were calculations, compromises, an added rigidity and focus to his efforts. Whether it was conscious or not, Pierron Version 2.0 was on a different level. It was enough to furrow the dark brows of the man who had so deftly extracted points from the previous season and a half. Luck was on Loïc’s side; a break in the season, a chance for the kettle to come off the boil was imperative. At 30 and 28 years of age respectively, Bruni and Pierron have been locking horns since they were Juniors. When it comes to their trophy cabinets, a winner is far from clear cut. Bruni has taken up Nicolas Vouilloz’ mantel of king of the UCI World Championships and has amassed five sets of rainbow stripes whereas Pierron is still waiting for his first. They have both won the UCI Downill World Cup overall title two times. Pierron won his first of those in 2018 when he became the first Frenchman in (then) nearly 20 years to have taken top honours. He has 12 Elite UCI World Cup wins to his name ahead of Bruni’s 10. Two tracks remain this season; Loudenvielle, Peyragudes, in France and Mont-Sainte-Anne, in Canada. And in that fact may just lie Loïc Bruni’s second advantage. He won in Loudenvielle last season (his first UCI World Cup win on French soil) on the venues debut whilst Pierron remained on the sidelines. Bruni has won in Mont-Sainte-Anne too whereas his rival has yet to win there. Even in terms of machinery there is little to nothing to separate them. The Commencal Supreme remains one of the most successful race machines in the sports history and a closer inspection of those being raced in the Commencal MucOff by Riding Addiction pit represent the zenith of the breed. Prototype linkages, custom made (steel) chainstays with every titanium bolt paint marked and torqued to perfection. The Specialized Gravity prototype machine has shrouded itself in the kind of aura only previously seen around bikes such as the Honda RN-01 and the Sunn Radical Plus. Completely bespoke to Bruni’s needs it features all and every manner of modern bike tech including additive machined lugs and electronically actuated suspension. Both teams are well-oiled, precision machines adept at providing bikes that can allow their pilots to operate at their own highest levels. It's punch and counter punch, jab, and parry. The pairing that treated us to a finger-nail ruining finale in Snowshoe in 2019 are at it again. There is nothing to choose between them and their respective teams. All that we have to do now as fans is sit back and enjoy it.
Great Britain’s Tom Pidcock broke French hearts to beat Victor Koretzky in a thrilling race and retain the Olympic title he won in the Tokyo 2020 Games. Pidcock’s winning time on the cross-country Olympic course at Élancourt Hill on Monday was 1:26:22. Victor Koretzky (FRA) finished second, +0.09, with Alan Hatherly (RSA) third, +0.11. The 36 men, representing 27 nations, tackled eight laps of the man-made course that featured fast compacted gravel, a challenging drop-off, and tough rock garden features. For half the race, Koretzky had promised a French double, following Sunday’s victory for Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, but despite the deafening support, it was not to be. Pidcock recovered the time lost due to a puncture to take glory. “This week, with the Olympics there are so many things to consider by the time you get to the start line. I knew that it would not be easy today,” said the new Olympic Champion, Tom Pidcock. “I knew after the puncture that I had almost five laps, and that’s 50 minutes, so I thought, anything’s possible. “In the end it was really fast with Victor, I just couldn’t get rid of him! I just had to go for a gap. The Olympics is no different. I’m sorry for him, the support for him was incredible.” As South Africa’s Alan Hatherly (winner of the most recent UCI World Cup this year at Les Gets, France) and 22-year-old American Riley Amos pushed the early pace, some favourites including Pidcock, Switzerland’s 2016 Olympic Champion Nino Schurter and New Zealand’s Sam Gaze worked their way through the pack. When Victor Koretzky and Switzerland’s Mathias Flückiger hit the front with a relentless pace, UCI World Champion Pidcock and Schurter joined them, along with Italy’s Luca Braidot, USA’s Christopher Blevins and Germany’s Luca Schwarzbauer, forming a talent-packed lead group. Half an hour in, Pidcock hit the front and pushed the pace even further, splitting the lead group, taking Flückiger and Koretzky with him, before the Swiss rider was dragged back into the fracturing chasing group that included the second British rider, Charlie Aldridge. On lap 3, Pidcock pitted with a front puncture, and 29-year-old Koretzky – winner of the test event on the Élancourt course in 2023 – took the lead solo from 2019 E-MTB Cross-country UCI World Champion Hatherly. A chase group formed with Flückiger, Aldridge and Gaze, joined by Pidcock, +38-sec towards half-distance. With the gap at +25-sec, the Yorkshireman broke from the chasers and bridged to the South African, 17-sec behind the Frenchman, and the duo reeled in the three-time UCI World Cup winner Koretzky on the penultimate lap before the 24-year-old Briton attacked on the climb. The trio took the race right down to the final lap. Attacks from Pidcock tested the pace before the Frenchman and the Briton swapped the lead and came together in the woods in the finale. Results available here
The Paris 2024 women’s mountain bike race was won by Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (FRA) at Élancourt Hill on Sunday 28 July. It was one of the few major honours missing from her record. Ferrand-Prévot’s winning time over the cross-country Olympic (XCO) course was 1:26:02. Haley Batten (USA) was second, +2.57, with Jenny Rissveds (SWE) third, +3.02. The 36 women, aged 19 to 35, and representing 28 nations, tackled seven laps of the man-made course that featured fast compacted gravel, a wooden drop-off, and tough rock garden features. But none could live with the pace of the French star. “I’ve worked so hard for today. And I wanted to go full gas… I felt amazing today. I can’t believe it!” said the new Olympic Champion, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot. “I thought ‘it’s not possible, it’s not possible, it’s not me, it’s a dream.’ And I was just so happy to see my parents after the finish line. “My coach said yesterday, ‘Pauline has to take this race like a normal race’. So I said ‘ok, I will do as if I was in a UCI World Cup.’ I wanted to stay in the wheels… and then push hard and make them suffer. I felt quite strong and went my own pace. It was all about pushing hard on the climbs, and not going slow on the downhills but just trying to recover.” French rider Loana Lecomte, winner of the test event on the course held in 2023, started fast and was soon joined by her compatriot, Ferrand-Prévot (winner of two of the six UCI World Cup races so far in the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series season), the Netherlands’ Puck Pieterse (2023 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series overall XCO winner), and Austria’s Laura Stigger. The leading quartet was trailed by other top-class riders including 2016 Olympic Champion Jenny Rissveds, South Africa’s Candice Lill – who later suffered a mechanical – and Italy’s Martina Berta, with WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series overall cross-country leader Alessandra Keller (SUI), Haley Batten and Great Britain’s 2021 UCI World Champion Evie Richards in touch. A sharp acceleration on her hardtail bike by 32-year-old Ferrand-Prévot on lap 2 built a gap of 30-seconds from Pieterse and Lecomte, with the chase group soon a further 20 seconds back. Such was the dominance of the athlete who has already won titles of UCI World Champion for road, cyclo-cross, gravel, XCO, mountain bike marathon (XCM), and cross-country short track (XCC), the gap at the front only grew. Lecomte had slipped back to the chasers before crashing on the rock garden descent. After circulating solo in second position, Pieterse suffered a soft rear tyre and was chased down and passed by Rissveds, Stigger, Batten and Keller at the start of the penultimate lap, 3 minutes behind Ferrand-Prévot. 25-year-old Batten and 30-year-old Rissveds then worked together to power away and stage their fight for the remaining medals. Results available HERE
The only off-road cycling discipline of the Olympics will take place on a 4.4km course in Élancourt, a small town situated in Paris’ southwestern suburbs. The relentless route is fast and physical throughout and includes 110m of elevation gain per lap. In addition to sharp, switch backing singletrack and adrenaline-fueled descents, the course has several technical features like rock gardens and jumps that could prove decisive in the race for gold. While Paris is world renowned as the setting of the finale of road cycling’s biggest race – the Tour de France – the French capital is less well known for its mountain biking. But this summer, the City of Love will also be hosting off-road riders as it welcomes the discipline of cross-country mountain biking as part of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics schedule. Unlike BMX freestyle’s La Concorde urban park venue, an iconic landmark of Paris isn’t being transformed into an Olympics-worthy mountain biking track though. Instead, athletes will be heading 30km southwest of the capital to the town of Élancourt, and in particular Élancourt Hill. At 231m, it’s the highest point in the Paris region, and it’s reportedly possible to see landmarks of the city’s skyline such as the Eiffel Tower on clear days. A former sandstone quarry-turned-landfill that was regenerated into a public park in the 1980s, the artificial hill was already home to a network of mountain bike trails when it was chosen as a Paris 2024 venue back in 2021. Since then, South African course designer Nick Floros has been put to work crafting a track fit for the Olympic Games. Floros has been responsible for the Cross-country Olympic (XCO) mountain bike courses for Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, and the UCI World Championships in Glasgow 2023, and his creation in Élancourt looks set to provide the ultimate proving ground in the race for gold. The main course is 4.4km long, while its start loop is 2.2km and covers a lot of the same ground as the main course. The number of laps won’t be decided until the afternoon before the first day of competition, but each race is expected to last between 1-2 hours. Each lap features 110m elevation gain across numerous calf-burning climbs, and fast, adrenaline-fuelled descents. Although the final Paris 2024 course is yet to be confirmed, it’s sure to be a relentless and physically demanding race if last year’s test event is anything to go by. After a wide-open gravel start/finish straight, riders get funneled into a steep climb, which makes a fast start imperative. From here, there is a smorgasbord of features including flowy undulating sections, rock gardens, jumps, log-lipped step-downs and berms that will assess the rider’s technical abilities. The standout is a chunky rock garden about two-thirds of the way through the lap, where multiple lines provide riders with faster albeit harder paths. The majority of the course is set on hardpack gravel, although there is a shorter section of rooty and mulchy woodland, which could become interesting if there is any rain. At the 2023 test event, France’s Loana Lecomte and Victor Koretzky came away with the wins, but their domination isn’t guaranteed at Paris 2024 with Tom Pidcock (Great Britain), Nino Schurter (Switzerland) Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (France) and Puck Pieterse (the Netherlands) amongst the favourites for mountain bike gold at the Olympic Games. The women’s event starts at 12:10 UK time on Sunday, July 28, while the men’s will be decided from 12:10 UK time on Monday, July 29.
Mountain biking has been a staple of the Summer Olympics since Atlanta 1996 and Paris 2024 marks its eighth appearance at the Olympic Games. This year, the competition for gold is the fiercest it's ever been. From reigning Olympic champions looking to defend their crowns to legends of the sport where a gold medal would complete a glittering career, here are the favourites for Mountain Biking medals. Mountain Biking is one of the most exhilarating sports to watch at the Olympic Games. Riders are pitted against a technically testing off-road course where bike handling skills are as important as raw power, and the racing is intense from the off. Introduced to the Olympic Games at Atlanta 1996, the sport has become an Olympics staple. Paris 2024 is the eighth time the gold medal will be contested in the Cross-Country Olympic (XCO) Mountain Biking discipline. The Élancourt XCO course 30km southwest of the French capital pits riders against a 4.4km track packed with leg-shredding climbs and technical features like rock gardens and log drops. At last September’s test event, France’s Victor Koretzky and Loana Lecomte were victorious in the men’s and women’s elite races respectively. But a home win for the 15,000 fans expected to line the course isn’t guaranteed. From previous Olympic champions looking to add another gold medal to their collection to rising stars who are aiming to stand at the top of the podium in their Olympic Games debut, here are the favourites for the Paris 2024 Olympics Mountain Biking. WOMEN Alessandra Keller (Switzerland) The 28-year-old Swiss rider is making her Olympics debut but is one of the stand-out favourites after an impressive start to the 2024 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series that sees her top of the overall standings. While she hasn’t finished first at a UCI XCO World Cup this year, an impressive collection of podium finishes in all but the season opener in Mairiporã, Brazil, suggest she’s in contention for a medal at a minimum. Puck Pietrse (Netherlands) The Dutch phenom might only be 22, but her performances since stepping up to the elite class in 2023 show she can mix it with the best. The 2023 XCO overall winner of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series spent the early part of the 2024 season on the road but has resumed her winning ways since returning to mountain biking in May – including the European championships and the final UCI XCO World Cup before the Olympics in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie, France. Haley Batten (USA) The 25-year-old finished a respectable 9th at Tokyo 2020 but has come on leaps and bounds in the intervening three years, finishing fourth in the 2023 test event and recording her first UCI XCO World Cup win in April in Araxá, Brazil in round 2 of the 2024 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series. The American hasn’t finished outside the top 10 in any race she’s entered this year, although didn’t take part in the UCI XCO World Cup in Crans-Montana, Switzerland due to a minor injury and sat out the last round in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie, France to focus solely on Paris 2024. Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (France) The French icon and reigning UCI XCO World Champion has won all there is in mountain biking, but the Olympics has alluded her – eighth (London 2012) her best finish in her three previous attempts. The 32-year-old will be hoping it’s fourth time lucky in front of a home crowd, and if her season so far as anything to go by – where she has won all but one XCO race she’s entered, including two UCI XCO World Cups – then it will take a lot to stop her. It’s also her final season in mountain biking before she makes the switch to road, and gold in Paris would be a fitting finalé to a stellar off-road career. Others to watch: Evie Richards (Great Britain), Jenny Rissveds (Sweden), Sina Frei (Switzerland) MEN Tom Pidcock (Great Britain) The reigning Olympic champion was the clear favourite for the men’s gold medal at Paris 2024 having won both of the UCI XCO World Cups he has entered this year, but his defence is now looking less certain. The 24-year-old multi-discipline star was competing at the Tour de France but had to withdraw before stage 14 after testing positive for Covid-19. With only two weeks between his diagnosis and the Olympics, it’s unsure how fit the British rider will be when he takes to the start line. Nino Schurter (Switzerland) The greatest of all time will be taking part in his fifth Olympics at Paris 2024, but the 38-year-old isn’t there to make up the numbers. The nine-time world champion won the 2023 UCI XCO World Cup overall title (the first one under the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series umbrella) and has been in the mix during his final season in the sport – winning in Val di Sole, Trentino, Italy. He already has a full suite of Olympic medals, including gold at Rio 2016, but few would bet against him adding to his collection. Alan Hatherly (South Africa) Another rider with extensive Olympic experience, this will be Hatherly’s third Olympic Games. The South African’s eighth in Tokyo 2020 was his best result to date, but the 28-year-old should be competing for a podium spot if his form this year is anything to go by. He currently sits at the top of the 2024 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series XCO overall standings and won the most recent UCI XCO World Cup in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie, France. Victor Koretzky (France) Koretzky had an explosive start to the 2024 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series season with back-to-back second places in Brazil (Mairiporã and Araxá), but after suffering with Covid and crashes and skipping the last two UCI World Cups, it’s not certain that he’s fully recovered and racing fit. The 29-year-old will have the backing of a partisan home crowd as he takes to the course in Élancourt though and knows what it takes to win in the Parisian suburbs having finished first at the 2023 test event. Others to watch Christopher Blevins (USA), Riley Amos (USA), Simon Andreassen (Denmark) The Paris 2024 Olympics women’s mountain bike event starts at 12:10 UK time on Sunday, July 28, while the men’s will be decided from 12:10 UK time on Monday, July 29.
The winner of the mountain bike gold medal in Tokyo 2020, Jolanda Neff, has announced that she will not take to the Olympic start line at Paris 2024. The Swiss star has struggled all season at the UCI Cross-country World Cups even opting to miss rounds to compete at the Tour de Suisse on the road. The 31 year-old has sited a respiratory issue that involves her vocal chords sticking together which impairs air getting to her lungs properly. She took to social media to state that she was relieved that no medication or treatment was required and that it was instead more about learning to adjust her breathing technique around it. So that’s what I‘ve been doing on a daily basis over the last weeks. We wanted to leave as much time as possible. Only yesterday I raced my mountain bike for the first time since May. My breathing was a lot, lot better and didn‘t cause issues - huge relief! However, by having missed so much training and racing, my shape is not on a level where I am competitive. Not on a national level, let alone on an Olympic level. Jolanda Neff The Trek Factory Racing – Pirelli’s replacement has already been announced as the 26 year-old Sina Frei. Frei, who races for Specialized Factory Racing at the UCI Cross-country World Cup’s, won a silver medal at Tokyo 2020 behind her compatriot Neff.
The WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series continued this weekend in the third new venue of the 2024 series: the trails of the Aletsch Arena in Bellwald, Valais, Switzerland. Poor weather in Valais pushed the weekend’s action back by a day, so Sunday saw a double-header of brilliant action across the UCI Enduro and E-enduro World Cups, happening on the same day for the first time. The UCI Enduro World Cup featured five stages totalling 54.5km, including 4,591m of descending and 1,583m of total elevation gain (including liaisons), while the UCI E-enduro event involved a gruelling nine stages totalling 76.3km course with 5,899m descent and 2,677m of total elevation gain (including liaisons). The Alpine hills of the Aletsch Glacier witnessed a thrilling day of racing and will host the riders once again next year, as the home of the 2025 UCI Enduro and E-enduro World Championships. The inaugural battle for the rainbow stripes across these disciplines takes place in just two months’ time, as the riders will descend on Val di Fassa Trentino, Italy on 14-15 September for the sport’s biggest prizes. In the Men’s Elite UCI Enduro World Cup, Richie Rude (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) continues to hold prime position to defend his 2023 overall title, but the American couldn’t pull off the series win in Valais, coming third. He was 21 seconds behind Jack Moir (YT MOB), who won the final three stages of the five-stage course and came second on the first two to log an impressive win. Rude’s teammate Slawomir Lukasik bested him to second place, coming in 14 seconds down on Moir and with the teammates sharing the spoils at one stage win each. But Rude still has a 342-point lead over the Pole and the teammates still look poised to make it a Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team one-two at the end of the UCI World Cup. It was another good weekend for Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team, who remain top of the Team Standings. Speaking after the race, Rude said: “It was tough, I feel like I didn’t perform that great on stages 1 and 4, my legs didn’t feel like they were there. When it went downhill on stage 2, I felt like I was on it, it was a tough day for sure. I wanted to be up there, and I definitely had the confidence to do that but struggled to find the pace on 1 and 4 and Jack (Moir) was just on it all day, so it was hard to keep that pace. But for the overall, this is the perfect place to be.” Isabeau Courdurier (Lapierre Zipp Collective) had been looking strong at the top of the Women’s Elite UCI Enduro World Cup overall standings, but with just one series left to decide the title there’s still time for one of her challengers to spring a surprise. And that’s what happened in Valais: the 2023 title winner finished third in the Aletsch Arena as Harriet Harnden (Trek Factory Racing Gravity) inched closer to her in the overall standings by taking victory this weekend, her second of the series. The Brit won stages 1 and 4, while compatriot Ella Conolly kept the pressure on Courdurier as she pipped her to second place by less than two seconds. The Frenchwoman came in 30 seconds down and now has just a 63-point advantage over Harnden in the overall, while Conolly moves into third another 322 points back. Speaking after the race, Harden said: “It’s amazing, I can’t believe I actually put it together. A lot of mistakes but obviously it was still really good. One more race left, the overall is super tight so it’s really exciting. I’m just going to be giving it my best for the overall.” In the Women’s U21 race Canada’s Elly Hoskin got the better of Simona Kuchynkova, who had to settle for third place despite winning one stage. Hoskin produced a brilliantly consistent performance to take her first series win, which was all the more impressive because of some early mistakes including a crash on stage 1. She took second on the first three stages before winning the final two to edge out compatriot Emmy Lam (Forbidden Synthesis Team) by 37.466 seconds to the overall victory. Kuchynkova was another 11 seconds behind but remains top of the overall standings, 160 points ahead of Hoskin. Hoskin said: “It feels exceptional, that was such a hard day, and I wasn’t expecting it to be my day at all! Everything came together from a crash in the first corner of the first stage, I was like, I guess I’m shooting for stage wins now. Priorities shifted but it was a good day. Stage 2, I wasn’t expecting to enjoy that stage as much, but it came together really well in the race. That’s when I was like, maybe this is a good day.” The top three in the Men’s U21 race came home in exactly that order, with just under 12 seconds the leading trio after a tightly contested battle across the nine stages. Bailey Christie (Theory Racing) is now just two points ahead of Jt Fisher (YETI / FOX FACTORY RACE TEAM) in the overall standings, with the Australian’s victory in stages 1 and 4 sealing the series as he finished eight seconds ahead of his American rival. Third-placed Sascha Kim (Giant Factory Off-Road Team-EDR) now sits 168 points off Christie’s pace but produced another consistent performance – including a win on stage 3 – to make it a thrilling three-way contest. He moved 33 points clear of Wei Tien Ho in the overall standings after the Canadian – who had topped the table in earlier rounds – could only finish 39th. In the Men’s Elite UCI E-Enduro World Cup, Australia’s Ryan Gilchrist (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) resumed his battle for overall top spot with Manuel Soares José Borges (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Enduro Team). The two have swapped places numerous times over the course of this series and this time the Australian came out on top. Gilchrist won three of the nine stages to emerge victorious in Bellwald, ahead of Kevin Marry (Lapierre Zipp Collective) in second and Borges in third. The Australian now has a healthy 119-point lead over his Portuguese rival in the overall standings with Marry a further 438 points back in the bronze medal position as it stands. Speaking after the race, Gilchrist said: “Everyone was hurting just as much but it feels really good, knowing the prep’s there to be able to lay down the watts where necessary. I really like being able to win in a fashion that’s convincing. I love battling with these riders and to come out on top is special. To be able to have this win and this jersey on my shoulders a little bit more firmly than last race feels great. Leader’s jersey doesn’t lie, I’m happy about it, I’m proud of it, and I want to keep it!” In the Women’s Elite Florencia Espiñeira Herreros (Orbea Fox Enduro Team) continued her total dominance of the competition, winning her second consecutive series title. The Chilean logged four 1st places, three 2nd places and two 3rd places across the nine-stage course to finish nearly half a minute ahead of closest challenger Raphaela Richter. She now has what feels like an impassable 721-point lead over Laura Charles, who sits second overall but could only manage 7th in Bellwald, Valais. Speaking at the end of a physical and challenging race, Espiñeira Herreros said: “I’m happy for getting through this day, it was very tough, even happier to take the win. It was a big battle with Rapha so, good day! I took it stage by stage, trying to go fast in every single one. I never stopped attacking.” After this penultimate weekend of racing the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series now takes a break to focus on the upcoming Paris Olympics. The series will resume in Loudenvielle - Peyragudes on 6-8 September to crown the UCI Enduro World Cup winners.
The 2024 UCI Enduro and E-enduro World Cup overall series are approaching their pointy end as riders ready themselves to compete in the fifth, and penultimate, round of the season. And what a weekend it’s set to be – Switzerland’s Aletsch Arena - Bellwald, Valais hosting its first ever UCI World Cup. The venue sees a return to the alpine settings that are part of the enduro’s roots, and athletes will be pitted against long, tough stages with an eyewatering amount of vertical descent. One rider who’s looking forward to racing in the foothills of the Aletsch glacier is Ella Conolly (Cannondale Factory Racing). The British rider has had something of a breakout season and sits in fourth in the overall standings, although thinks there’s still time to be found before she’s contesting for the top spot. Speaking at the pre-race press conference, Conolly said: I’m really happy to be back in such an alpine, adventurous location because for me that’s what enduro is. I think it’s an amazing venue and I hope it stays. The goal this year is to be up there competing for the win. I feel like I’ve got a little bit of extra pace to find. I’m in the mix but not right at the top at the moment. I’m looking forward to pushing on this weekend and seeing what I can do. For me, the mental side of things is a huge thing – that’s something I’m working on a lot at the moment. I think there’s time to be made there. For Richie Rude (Yeti/Fox Racing Team), this weekend’s UCI Enduro World Cup is more about consolidating his place at the top of the men’s overall standings. The reigning overall champion of the discipline is in pole position to retain his title, but if the previous round in Combloux, Haute-Savoie (France) is anything to go by – where just 0.05 seconds separated him and Alex Rudeau (Commencal Enduro Project) going into the final stage – he’s going to be pushed all the way. Speaking at the pre-race press conference, Rude said: Sometimes, when you’re that close, you’ve got to battle for it. That can feel good, but it’s definitely stressful when you’re going into a big last stage. There’s a lot of time that can be made or lost, and you definitely have to enter it in the right mindset and try and have a solid performance. Even the short stages can be quite difficult too because you have to go at full out intensity. [The lead] is definitely in my mind. I raced [the UCI Downhill World Cup in] Les Gets last weekend and the Enduro overall was in the back of my head when going down the track – at times it was stressing me out a little bit. Having that lead is nice but you always want it to be a bit more and I want the last round to hopefully be a bit chill. There’s a bit of pressure on myself this weekend to keep the gap the same or build on it. Especially here, it’s fast, it’s rocky, I think I’ll have to be careful out there. It comes down to line choice and being mindful. Even stage one, at the top, there are some sharp rocks that could end your weekend very quickly. While Rude has a buffer of 387 points with two rounds to go, teammate Ryan Gilchrist (Yeti/Fox Racing Team) holds just a 24-point advantage over Manuel Soares José Borges (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Enduro Team) in the UCI E-enduro World Cup overall standings. The pair exchanged some friendly fighting talk at the pre-race press conference, with Gilchrist confident he will go on to win his first overall UCI E-enduro World Cup title. Speaking at the pre-race press conference, Gilchrist said: Being able to start the season with the number one plate, hold onto the number one plate, lose it and then regain it… that’s three different validating factors that means that I deserve to be where I am, which plays well into my own head and my own preparation for the race. I’ll just race the season how I’ve done so far – that’s put me in the lead. I’m really looking forward to this race – there are big, long physical stages. My best stage performances this year have been on long, physical stages. I’m feeling fit, feeling strong, and the team is putting a lot of work into making everything click, so it’s going to be about finishing the races as high in positioning as possible and trying to win that overall. In response, Borges said: My goal is to take the number one at the finish of the end of the season. The focus [this weekend] is the overall. After I’ll focus on the world champs because I want to bring the jersey home. But the goal is to take the overall from Ryan. Due to the weather forecasts from multiple sources predicting several storms and persistent rainfall on Friday, the schedule for the UCI Enduro World Cup in Aletsch Arena - Bellwald has been revised. The Open races originally scheduled for Friday, July 12, 2024, have been postponed to Saturday, July 13. The UCI Enduro and E-Enduro World Cup races will both be held on Sunday, July 14, 2024. This safety decisions have been made by the UCI, WBD Sports, and the local organizers to ensure the welfare of athletes, teams, marshals, volunteers, spectators, and everyone involved in the event. Extreme weather means that the schedule for the UCI Enduro World Cup and UCI E-Enduro World Cup are still to be confirmed. Keep up to date with the latest announcements on this weekend’s racing here.
Due to the latest weather forecasts from multiple sources predicting several storms and persistent rainfall on Friday, July 12, the schedule for the UCI Enduro World Cup in Aletsch Arena - Bellwald has been revised. The Open races originally scheduled for Friday, July 12, 2024, are postponed to Saturday, July 13. The UCI Enduro and E-Enduro World Cup races will both be held on Sunday, July 14, 2024. This safety decisions have been made by the UCI, WBD Sports, and the local organizers to ensure the welfare of athletes, teams, marshals, volunteers, spectators, and everyone involved in the event.
After a thrilling Cross-Country and Downhill double header in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie (France), the Enduro and E-enduro action resumes to conclude six weekends of back-to-back mountain biking action. There’s no letup either, and riders will be tasked with tackling the trails of Aletsch Arena - Bellwald, Valais, Switzerland – the third new venue of the 2024 series. What’s more, while it might only be mid-July, we’re now entering the crucial phase of this year’s WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series. Each format has just one or two UCI World Cup rounds remaining, and every position or point could make all the difference; championships could be won or lost in the blink of an eye. Richie Rude (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team), Isabeau Courdurier (Lapierre Zipp Collective), Ryan Gilchrist (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) and Florencia Espiñeira Herreros (Orbea Fox Enduro Team) lead their respective series, but if the last round in Combloux, Haute-Savoie, proved anything, it’s that there are a long line of riders ready to pounce when the opportunity arises. EPIC, DESCENT-HEAVY DAYS OUT Although Aletsch Arena - Bellwald, Valais, is making its WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series debut, it’s the second time the series has visited the Swiss canton this year, following Crans-Montana’s hosting of the Endurance action back in June’s hosting of the Endurance action back in June. The Enduro and E-Enduro events will add some Gravity to proceedings and take place on Alestch Arena - Bellwald’s extensive trail network. Situated in the alpine-forested foothills of the mesmerising Alestch Glacier, riders and fans can expect amazing scenes around every berm and bend. For the Alestch Arena - Bellwald, Valais’ WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series debut, the UCI Enduro World Cup will see athletes take on five stages during a 54.5km course featuring 4,591m m descent and 1,583m of total elevation gain (including liaisons), while the UCI E-enduro World Cup has nine stages across a 76.3km course with 5,899m descent and 2,677m of total elevation gain (including liaisons). Finally, this weekend’s racing could also be an indicator of who’s likely to be a future rainbow band wearer, with Alestch Arena - Bellwald, Valais set to host the 2025 UCI Enduro and E-enduro World Championships. It will be the second UCI World Championships for the formats – the inaugural Enduro and E-enduro rainbow jerseys to be contested at Val di Fassa Trentino, Italy, in two months (14-15 September) CAN ANYONE STOP RUDE AND COURDURIER? Richie Rude and Isabeau Courdurier are sitting pretty at the top of their respective UCI Enduro World Cup overall standings, and it looks like it will take an almighty upset for 2023 overall title winners to not retain their crowns. They aren’t infallible though. Rude won in Combloux, Haute-Savoie, by the skin of his teeth after being pushed all the way by Alex Rudeau (Commencal Enduro Project) – the pair both crashed on the final stage but the American had enough of a buffer to reign supreme in France. Rude’s teammate Slawomir Lukasik (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) and Charles Murray (Specialized Enduro Team) are best placed to pounce if Rude does slip up in Switzerland, while a resurgent Rudeau has come into form just at the right time. Courdurier also showed a chink in her armor last time out and her compatriot Morgane Charre (Pivot Factory Racing) dominated, winning five out of six stages. The Lapierre Zipp Collective rider had to settle for second-best on the day and will be looking to make amends this weekend. Her closest competitor in the overall, Harriet Harnden (Trek Factory Racing Gravity), will also be keen to bounce back after her fourth place in Combloux, Haute-Savoie, with Charre and Ella Conolly aiming to keep the pressure on. BORGES AND GILCHRIST RESUME THEIR BATTLE, WHILE HERREROS CAN BE CROWNED CHAMPION The UCI E-enduro World Cup has thrown up two contrasting competitions for the 2024 series. In the Men Elite, the top spot has switched numerous times between Manuel Soares José Borges (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Enduro Team) and Australian Ryan Gilchrist, and only 24 points separate the pair going into the penultimate round. While the Australian returned to the top spot after his third place in Combloux, Haute-Savoie, this one looks like it’s going to the wire and won’t be decided until Loudenvielle - Peyragudes, France, in September. The Women Elite racing meanwhile has been a one-horse race – Florencia Espiñeira Herreros running away with the overall lead since her main rival, Tracey Moseley, confirmed she wouldn’t be competing at every round of this year’s series. While the Chilean met her match in Combloux, Haute-Savoie, with Estelle Charles (Specialized Enduro Team) doubling up to race the E-enduro and Enduro UCI World Cups, Espiñeira can claim her second consecutive series title in Aletsch Arena - Bellwald, Valais this weekend. HOW TO FOLLOW THE ENDURO ACTION UNFOLD There will be several ways to watch the action unfold at Switzerland’s only Gravity UCI World Cup of the 2024 Series. For Sunday's Enduro and E-enduro racing, there will be live timings on the official WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series website and highlights on the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series’ Instagram and Facebook channels, with top stories from the race weekend to be published on the YouTube channel on Monday July 15th and broadcast on Eurosport 1 at 6.15 CET on Thursday July 18th.
In the last round of the UCI Cross-country Olympic (XCO) World Cup before the Olympics, Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Alan Hatherly (Cannondale Factory Racing) put themselves in the strongest possible position by claiming commanding victories. Pieterse rode away from the field on the very first lap to win by more than two minutes from Candice Lill. Hatherly left it until the middle of his race to hit out solo, crossing the line 91 seconds ahead of Val di Sole second place, Mathias Flückiger (Thömus Maxon.) PIETERSE POWERS TO GLORY IN LES GETS Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Deceuninck) was ready, hovering menacingly over her bars on the front row of the grid. When the lights went green the big names had mixed starts. Alessandra Keller (Thömus Maxon) dropped a dozen places, while Gwen Gibson (Trek Factory Racing - Pirelli) and Rebecca Henderson (Primaflor Mondraker Racing Team) fared much better. Jenny Rissveds (Team 31 Ibis Cycles Continental) led onto the lap proper, with Henderson on her left shoulder. Chiara Teocchi (Orbea Factory Team) also got off to her trademark strong start. On the first climb, Henderson took over at the front briefly, before Puck Pieterse moved ahead of her at the top, ultimately the only attack she would be called upon to make. With things getting busy behind her she headed solo into the woods. As she scampered across the rollers after four minutes of racing, Pieterse already had a lead of six seconds over Henderson, making light work of the first entry into the woods. In contrast, Gibson lost it completely into the roots and rolls, going straight over her bars and landing heavily. Out front, Pieterse was well into zone 5 of her heart rate but was making it count. Her lead was already well into the double digits of lead. Henderson had to unclip on a narrow section of course, holding up Kate Courtney (Scott-Sram MTB Racing Team), and only helping Pieterse. The European champion was having it all her own way, putting huge time into the chasing pack. Friday’s short-track winner Alessandra Keller had made it back into the top ten but was already 50 seconds in arrears. Back into the open field, the track was already torn to pieces. No grip whatsoever on an off camber left bend caused several riders to either go wide or lose it completely. Henderson and Candace Lill, who had moved up and was clearly on a flyer herself, crossed the line to start the second lap 36 seconds down. Evie Richards (Trek Factory Racing – Pirelli) was hunting the pair down, while Alessandra Keller had made it through the traffic to join them and make a strong quartet of pursuers. The onus was on Keller but she seemed to be struggling more than the other two on the climbs, even as she was handling the technical sections with greater proficiency. Lill’s strength allowed her to break free in the other direction and concentrate on going as fast as she could, rather than merely racing the riders around her. Meanwhile, Pieterse was experiencing a few difficulties in the rock gardens but was otherwise on a flyer. The only concern, as it has been in previous rounds, was that she had gone too hard, too early. Into lap three and big gaps were opening up between the chasers. Lill and Keller were both now on their own, while Richards had homed in on Henderson, with Anne Terpstra (Ghost Factory Racing) tagging on. By now, only Lill was within a minute of Pieterse. The leader attacked the bike park and had the freedom to do so. Lill managed the deficit, and held it mostly steady, but was unable to reduce it. Keller found herself with 30 seconds to the riders ahead and behind. Heading onto lap 4, the biggest scrap seemed to be for fourth place, with Richards, Rissveds, Savilia Blunk (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) and Terpstra trading blows and swapping places on the sections of the course that suited their different strengths. Lill began to feel the fatigue but made up for that by better getting to grips with the course conditions and its ever-changing nuances. Keller seemed to be mainly battling herself but wasn’t losing ground. At around midway, Richards and Blunk had fallen away from the other two, while with three laps remaining, Lill began to ship chunks of time to Pieterse. She was in no danger of losing second to Keller, who was losing at least as much and riding a race all of her own. Rissveds stole a march on Terpstra across the lap, to strengthen her grip on 4th place. Despite her massive advantage, Pieterse refused to let up. Rather than relaxing, she kept her aggressive, elbows-out position over the bike. For her part, Keller, knowing how easy it was to lose time on the climbs, kept fighting. Richards’ head seemed to drop as she began her penultimate lap. The British champion was losing touch with 5th place but managed to just about keep the carrot of Terptstra in her sights. Past the hour mark, every rider was feeling the fatigue and making mistakes they hadn’t in the early phases. Tyres were also clogging with mud, creating even more challenges. Pieterse hit the two-minute lead point on lap 6. The riders closest to her had entered something of a holding pattern, with approximately thirty seconds separating each of those on the podium. She took the bell, continuing to motor at the front, flinging her bottle into the tech zone to reduce the weight she was carrying onto the first of the two final climbs. Lill, who had delighted to take 3rd in Val di Sole, Trentino (Italy) was riding even better than she had that Sunday. Keller hadn’t given up completely on 2nd, however, opting for the hardest, fastest. lines through all of the most technical parts of the course. It looked too late to close the gap completely but the small gains she was able to find kept her motivated to the end. The final drop into the Red Bull Roots and Rolls was the only time Pieterse saw any sort of trouble. She momentarily unclipped and came to an abrupt stop but came through without complete calamity. She flew through the final mud section to take her first UCI Cross-country Olympic World Cup victory of the season. Candice Lill came home safely, 2’37 in arrear but no less overjoyed to have achieved a career-best second place. Keller was close enough to give her a wave on the late course overlaps but not near enough to threaten the result. Lill’s result was all the more impressive given her low grid position. Fourth went to Rissveds and fifth to Terpstra. It was close but no cigar for Evie Richards, who crossed the line in sixth, with mud on her right shoulder from an unseen fall. “I tried to go full gas from the start and luckily it worked out,” Pieterse summarised afterwards. “I knew it was a climber’s course so I tried to push every climb to my fullest and take less risks on the descent. The last lap I got a bit tired and made a few mistakes but luckily I had enough time. Maybe the focus was a bit gone… After three laps I worried if I had taken it too early but luckily I kept it together.” Pieterse’s opening lap was 34 seconds quicker than that of any other rider, and she was the only rider to go under 12 minutes. The result moves her into second place in the UCI XCO World Cup standings, ahead of Haley Batten (Specialized Factory Racing) who opted to skip the Les Gets round. Overall leader Keller was “very happy with third” and is now going into “my very first Olympics with no pressure. I’ll just try to enjoy the Olympic spirit.” HATHERLY HITS CAREER HIGH AHEAD OF OLYMPIC TEST When the lights changed from red to green, Cannondale Factory Racing immediately flew off in formation, their riders going up the hill in a 1-2-3. The WHOOP never-ending climb saw Simon Andreasson leading the way. A good start was hugely helpful as riders battled for space. Daniele Braidot (CS Carabinier - Cicle Olympia) broke the Cannondale dominance by moving into second place while, on the second climb, his brother Luca (Santa Cruz Rockshox Pro Team) powered to the very front. Alan Hatherly took the opportunity to move up while Mathias Flückiger (Thömus Maxon) made a big move into the woods, clearing several riders with a swoop into third. Ahead of the descent, Braidot looked over his shoulder to see Hatherly coming up behind. The course was drying but had been shredded by the earlier races. Hatherly started the second lap nine seconds behind Braidot but in the company of Flückiger, working together to reel in the Italian. The next six riders, led by Charlie Aldridge (Cannondale Factory Racing), were fifteen seconds further back. Braidot opted for route one through the Red Bull Roots & Rolls, but Hatherly handled the section even better, cutting several seconds out of Braidot’s lead. It was clear the men’s race was going to unfold very differently to the women’s, but also that tyre choice was going to be key. Towards the end of lap 2, it was looking like a three-way battle between Braidot, Flückiger and Hatherly. The Swiss rider overtook the South African by running one technical part in the trees. Luca Schwarzbauer (Canyon CLLCTV XCO) led a powerful duo of Nadir Colledani (Santa Cruz Rockshox Pro Team) and Andreasson but they were 21 seconds down and losing more time than they were gaining. Flückiger fancied a turn at the front, taking plenty of risks, one of which saw him nearly go over the front. Hatherly had to dig deep to stay with the Swiss man. Sam Gaze (Alpecin-Deceuninck) was going from strength to strength. He moved up to fourth place but had to find even more power for a hope of making up the almost 45 seconds deficit to the leaders. Out front, there was little between Hatherly and Flückiger until there was a lot. The South African pulled ahead before the second climb of the course, getting out of the saddle and putting down the hurt where it was steepest. It was sufficient to draw out a lead of eight seconds immediately, before doubling again in the last part of the lap. By the time Flückiger crossed the line, Hatherly was out of sight. Not so the 4th chase group, led by Gaze, who were visibly closing down Braidot as they began their fifth lap. Before too long he was in their clutches and in danger of heading out the back door. Deep into the 5th lap Hatherly was cruising, with 50 seconds over Flückiger, who himself had almost a minute on everyone else. Braidot’s superior descending allowed him to come back, while Simone Avondetto (Wilier-Vittoria Factory Team XCO) shared some of the load in the same group, which was fighting for podium places at best. One of them would have to miss out. Into the final third of the race, the attacks began to come. One from Avondetto surprised Braidot but he was able to claw his way back. Andreasson was more interested in positioning, moving to the front going back into the woods. It proved immediately advantageous as Gaze had to hop off and run, holding up the rest. At the hour, Hatherly led Flückiger by a minute. If the four behind could cooperate it was not beyond them to pull back the Swiss rider. More likely, however, was that their caginess would allow the Schwarzbauer selection back into contention. Gaze seemed to sense that threat and launched his attack late on lap 7. The effect was instant: over barely a few hundred metres he had claimed a double-digit lead over his erstwhile allies. At the bell, Hatherly had no worries. Nor did Flückiger. In the race for 3rd and below, Braidot accelerated across the line to close the gap to Avondetto and Andreasson, before going over the top of them and somehow roaring back onto the wheel of Gaze. Andreasson looked to have kept something in the tank himself. He dropped Avondetto on the climb and closed in on the next descent. The course had dried out making it even faster but also differently difficult. That caused Gaze to fall. As quick as the Kiwi was to jump back on his bike all momentum was lost. Having had his eyes on 3rd, he was suddenly off the podium entirely. As Andreasson and Braidot continued to squabble, Hatherly sailed to a first UCI World Cup win. The South African grabbed a flag to carry across the line, before stopping and raised his bike above his head. Flückiger showed his strength for a solid second, though minimal celebration indicated initial disappointment at not having done better. Braidot chased Andreasson into the straight but did not have enough to deny the Cannondale rider third place. Simone Avondetto held out for the remaining podium place. For Hatherly it had been an “unreal weekend. Before the race I visualised the double and I’m so happy to have executed it, especially leading into the [Olympic] Games.” “Once I was confident and happy with my pacing strategy I just cracked on. I was surprised that I rode away the way I did, but happy. I just kept it steady to the finish.” Flückiger was more reflective afterwards than he had been at the finish: “I’m happy with the whole race,” he said. “Alan [Hatherly] was just on a different level today… The podium is good for the confidence, and we still have a few weeks left before Paris.” The fastest lap was Luca Braidot’s first, which saw him the only rider to go under ten minutes. HOLMGREN AND RILEY MAKE IT DOUBLES IN LES GETS, HAUTE-SAVOIE Having tasted U23 short-track success in Les Gets on Friday, Isabella Holmgren and Bjorn Riley (Trek Future Racing) each completed the set in Sunday’s UCI U23 XCO World Cup. Having missed the Crans-Montana round, Holmgren enjoyed a toe-to-toe battle with Olivia Onesti (Trinx Factory Team) for the second time in three weeks. The Canadian again came out on top, by 25 seconds from the French rider. She was especially keen to pay tribute to her team: “I’m so happy to have the support of Trek for the last three World Cups,” she said. “Without them I don’t think I’d be able to do this.” Next up is Paris 2024 where “I’m really happy to be able to go with my brother. This was a nice race to boost my confidence. Between now and then I’m just going to train hard and have fun.” Overall U23 XCO leader Kira Böhm (Cube Factory Racing) was a further 81 seconds back in third. Afterwards she declared herself “super pumped to get on the podium. It was super slippery but I just got stronger and stronger on the climbs of each lap.” Bjorn Riley (Trek Future Racing) will have to wait until Los Angeles 2028 to make his Olympic debut, but the future is certainly bright for the young American, who is only getting stronger as he enters the final phase of this season. Having raced it out with Finn Treudler (Cube Factory Racing) on Friday’s XCC U23 UCI World Cup, Riley’s closest challenger in the XCO was Luca Martin (Orbea Factory Team). Martin finished more than a minute down, with Treudler 38 seconds back in third. Riley’s success this weekend must in part be attributed to his riding with total freedom: “Coming into the race I knew I was the favourite,” he said, “especially with [US team-mate] Riley [Amos] being gone, but I just decided to race. Coming away with the win is even more special, but I didn’t even care what position I got.” He also spoke of being a huge fan of Les Gets: “This is one of my favourite courses on the World Cup circuit - I’ve always had a good result here. The climbs are pretty perfect for what I do and the downhills are so fun. Everything about this course makes me happy.” The WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series returns to Switzerland next weekend where the Aletsch Arena - Bellwald, Valais will host the fifth round of the UCI Enduro & E-enduro World Cups.
