"Pretty much everything is different here" Leogang winner Kolb on the Val Di Sole track

Leogang victor and home-nation hero Andreas Kolb reckons the technical, burly nature of the fearsome Val Di Sole track makes this weekend’s race a totally different animal.

But the Continental Atherton rider says where you couldn’t really afford mistakes on the Austrian track, everyone expects to make them in Val Di Sole.

Kolb was a hugely popular winner in Leogang as he and fellow Austrian Valentina Höll both took the top step making it a double celebration for the home fans at the second round of the UCI Mountain Bike Downhill World Cup.

The 27-year-old is sitting in fourth in the 2023 rankings after his debut victory two weeks ago where, after crossing the line to a rapturous reception, he had a nervous wait as the top qualifiers came down.

“I thought it would be enough for the podium,” he said.

“I was pretty sure because I was, like, two seconds up but I did two mistakes at the top section, which were pretty costly, onto the motorway where you need to carry speed. And I thought, this will cost me the win. 

“I was like, one of them boys is going to destroy my dream now.

“I actually had to rewatch Bruni’s and Finn's runs because I didn't really remember it. I was just in the hot seat, like, cramping, thinking, is it today?”

Kolb had organised a bus for all his friends and family from Schladming to travel over to Leogang and said the celebrations had continued once he got home.

He explained that the technical nature of Val Di Sole’s Black Snake track meant that, unlike Leogang, a few errors wouldn’t ruin a run.

“You're not allowed to make any mistakes in Leogang, you need to hit the lines perfectly all the way down and carry speed everywhere,” he said.

“And this one is more like you need to use your brain a bit more, I guess. Go a bit slower there. Set up high there. Just like have a good flow and not over ride the track too much. If you over ride this one, you end up crashing or just having loose moments for sure.”

The threat of rain has been foremost in many riders’ minds with a less than perfect forecast predicting rain on Friday and Saturday.

Kolb believes the track will hold up to rain better than in previous years after a lot of new material was added.

He says he had a very wet qualifier in 2019 where he rode on the seat with both feet clipped out for 20 seconds.

“I think I still qualified 21st or something because this was not really bad actually,” he said.

“So I think it just shows how hard it is to ride here.. It's just so many roots, so many slippery rocks. But I think they did a good job this year. It will be better if rain comes down now.

Kolb said he was looking forward to the race but wasn't feeling any pressure to repeat his Leogang result.

"I'm not sure if I can do it two in a row," he said.

"This will be a bit too confident maybe, but yeah, I'm pretty sure I can do another one in the future."