The South African and Swiss stars accrued big points at all eight rounds of the 2024 UCI Cross-country Olympic (XCO) World Cup series, building almost unassailable leads to be crowned champions in Mont-Sainte-Anne, Quebec (Canada).
Olympic years always throw up interesting seasons in the UCI Cross-country Olympic (XCO) World Cup. The culmination of four years of preparation, the first few rounds see certain athletes peak to guarantee their spot in the gold medal race, while others have the luxury of focusing on the main summer event and gradually up the ante as the UCI XCO World Cup progresses. Some skip weekends to preserve their fitness, while others choose to take every opportunity to get between the race tape to stay sharp.
For Alan Hatherly (Cannondale Factory Racing) and Alessandra Keller (Thömus Maxon), the latter of these two strategies appeared to work best, securing them both the overall XCO series titles and third and seventh respectively in Paris last summer.
The pair were ever present at every WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series round and were almost numerically nailed on for first place as the season reached its finale in Mont-Sainte-Anne. From a year of top-10 finishes to sealing the title in style, here’s how Hatherly and Keller did it.
HATHERLY HITS RED-HOT STREAK AT RIGHT TIME
Before the 2024 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, Alan Hatherly had never won an XCO race on the biggest stage. The first five rounds looked like it was set to be more of the same from the 28-year-old South African, who had shown promise but never converted a strong performance into a statement victory – a second place in Val di Sole, Trentino (Italy) equaling his previous best finish. Although he was still near the top of the standings, it would take some hard work to remain there – particularly after finishing 20th in Crans-Montana, Valais, Switzerland.
But in the last UCI World Cup in Les Gets, Haute Savoie (France) before the Olympic Games, there was a marked difference to Hatherly. After bouncing back from a disappointing weekend less than seven days before to win the UCI Cross-country Short Track (XCC) World Cup, he backed it up in the XCO to do the double, beating second-place veteran Mathias Flückiger (Thömus Maxon) by more than a minute and a half. The win appeared to unlock a new gear and propelled him to the top of the individual standings.
It was the start of a red-hot streak that no one could compete with. A bronze medal at Paris 2024 behind Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers) and Victor Koretzky (Specialized Factory Racing) was immediately followed by the XCO win at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship in Pal Arinsal, Andorra, securing the South African his first set of rainbow bands.
A month later, when the 2024 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series resumed in late September, Hatherly’s momentum hadn’t slowed. Outsprinted to the line by Koretzky on a fast and furious Mt Van Hoevenberg – Lake Placid course in the USA, Hatherly’s second place had all but confirmed his debut XCO series title.
After missing out on the win in the Mont-Sainte-Anne’s final UCI XCC World Cup that would have secured him the top spot in the overall, Hatherly showed why he deserves to be regarded as the best XCO rider of the year two days later. Setting a ferocious pace from the off in the Olympic-distance race, only Mathis Azzaro (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) could get within striking distance before the rainbow bands dug again, sailing off into the distance to claim a second UCI XCO World Cup win and the overall in style.
KELLER USES CONSISTENCY TO TAKE SECOND OVERALL WIN
Alessandra Keller knows what it takes to win an overall series, having finished top of the UCI XCO standings in 2022. The Swiss star couldn’t repeat her feat in 2023, settling for fifth while Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Deceuninck) exploded onto the world stage. But come this season, the 28-year-old was ready to go toe-to-toe with anyone and was aided by a constantly changing field that often saw favourites such as Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Ineos Grenadiers) and Pieterse absent because of other focuses.
From the opening round in Mairiporã, Brazil, Keller was in the mix, and came away fourth in the individual standings – the lowest she’d rank all season. By round three in Nové Mesto Na Moravě (Czechia), she was up to second in the individual standings – her XCC win boosting her third position in the XCO – and even a relatively poor showing in Val di Sole, Trentino by her high standards (10th in the XCO, 5th in XCC) did little to diminish her status in the overall.
While she fell agonisingly short in her home race at Crans-Montana, Valais, Loana Lecomte (Canyon CLLCTV) having the edge, her place was enough to take her to the top of the standings – a position she wouldn’t relinquish again.
Another podium (third) in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie saw her build a commanding lead over Pieterse, and when it was announced that the multi-disciplined Dutch rider would focus on the UCI Road and Gravel World Championships instead of heading to North America for the final two rounds of the season, the overall was Keller’s to lose.
She could afford to let the front of the race go, instead riding in a measured, controlled, and consistent manner where it was about finishing in one piece rather than pushing the envelope. Ninth place in Mt Van Hoevenberg – Lake Placid meant she could secure the XCO overall with a top-30 finish in the following week’s XCC, and given she’d just be crowned the overall XCC title winner, only a crash was going to stop her.
Finishing eighth in Mont-Sainte-Anne’s UCI XCC World Cup, Keller had completed the XCC-XCO double with one race to spare. You wouldn’t have known it in the final race of the season though – the Swiss rider bossing her way to fifth and her fifth XCO podium of the year.
