Trek World Racing Take 3 Podium Places and Retain Leader Jersey After Challenging Weekend At Champery
Star of the weekend was XC rider, Mathias Flueckiger (SUI), who had an outstanding ride in his home country securing 4th place on the podium in the Men's Elite, and in the Women's Elite race, Emily Batty (CAN) rode strong and hard to secure a fantastic 3rd place on the podium in the Under 23 title race.
Last year Mathias finished 5th on this course and with the World Championships set for Champery in 2011, things are looking good for the young Swiss.
Fortune didn't shine on older brother, Lukas, whose rear derailleur was damaged beyond repair when a wayward tree branch was flung into his drive train as another rider innocently ran over it. The damage was severe and as it happened in the start loop, Luk found himself in last place (175th) and a long way from the Tech Zone. He decided to retire, hand over to younger brother Mathias, and save his legs for next week.
In the Women's Elite race, Emily Batty (CAN) rode strong and hard to secure a fantastic 3rd place on the podium in the Under 23 title race. Fighting hard from her starting position of 28, Emily moved up 8 places in the start loop dropping only slightly to finish 23rd by the end of the 5 lap race, out of a field of 120 elite women.
Mathias said: "The start was very important and I had to get to the front quickly - it was so important to stick to the front. The start loop was very difficult with lots of mud and lots of riders walking which cost me time. Then many others crashed and I was very worried but I managed to fight up to the top and find a good rhythm. I rode the technical parts well but the steep uphill was hard which showed in the last lap but I'm very, very happy with this result and to podium again at home is brilliant!" Emily said: "The second half was much better than the first - I finally turned it on and managed to catch a couple of girls. I was riding well on the descents and my Elite Hard Tail made for quick, fast running when I had to get off, which there was quite a lot of today. I'm really pleased I found it at the end and snuck in third!"
Meanwhile, Saturday threw some extraordinarily tough challenges at all riders competing in the 4th round of the UCI MTB Downhill World Cup. Following persistent hard rain all day on Friday, the 1,550 meter course - already considered one of the hardest on the international downhill circuit - became a treacherous mudslide with peanut-butter-like sections clogging-up bikes and making traction almost impossible. In the Women's race, Britain's Tracy Moseley put in a tough fight making up 8 seconds by the second split having been 6th at the first. However, following an unfortunate crash further down the course Tracy lost valuable time but picked it back up and persevered, pedalling hard to finish 5th with a place on the podium - an impressive performance at what has been one of the toughest courses in the most testing conditions for a long, long time.
The Men's race proved equally challenging for Trek World Racing's Andrew Neethling (RSA), Justin Leov (NZL) and Neko Mulally (USA) who made his debut run at a World Cup here in Champery. Crashes for all riders in morning practice meant fitness was compromised and all three suffered as a result. Focus and determination saw them all make it down the track successfully which was no small feat, particularly for Neko who rode his first World Cup in conditions far contrasted from those he ever imagined. Justin finished 44th, Andrew 63rd and Neko 74th.
Tracy said: "It was probably one of the toughest conditions and tracks I've had to race for many, many years. I found it hard to more than just get down the course and never felt like I was really racing, just surviving. I lost time with my crash and I'm disappointed but also relieved not to crash out completely. I look forward to Val di Sole (ITA) where hopefully conditions make it more of a race!"
Neko said: "It wasn't at all how I thought my first World Cup would be - I don't think I could've made it harder for myself. When I imagined my first World Cup I thought I'd be on peak form but after my injury and then my crash in qualifying I couldn't have been further from it. So I just wanted to get down safely, get experience and ride my first World Cup. I'm happy to have done it but the team has decided, and I agree, to skip racing the next World Cup until I'm feeling 110%."
Next week, the full team travel to Val di Sole in Italy for round 5 of both the XC and DH UCI Mountain Bike World Cup taking place on 31 July/1 August.
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XC WORLD CUP RESULTS:
Men's Results XC Elite Final:
1: Florian Vogel (SUI) 1hr 44mins 08secs
2: Jaroslav Kulhavy (CZE) @ +00.11
3: Nino Schurter (SUI) @ +00.35
4: Mathias Flueckiger (Trek World Racing) @ +00.48
5: Julien Absalon (FRA) @ +01.03
DNF: Lukas Flueckiger (Trek World Racing)
Men's Results XC Overall:
1: Julien Absalon (FRA) 710 pts
2: Nino Schurter (SUI) 686 pts
3: Jaroslav Kulhavy (CZE) 660 pts
4: Jose Hermida (ESP) 565 pts
5: Mathias Flueckiger (Trek World Racing) 490 pts
13: Lukas Flueckiger (Trek World Racing) 273 pts
Women's Results XC Elite Final:
1: Nathalie Schneitter (SUI) 1hr 45mins 40secs
2: Eva Lechner (ITA) @ +02.13
3: Willow Koerber @ +02.29 23:
23: Emily Batty (Trek World Racing) @ +11.57
Women's Results XC Overall:
1: Eva Lechner (ITA) 655pts
2: Willow Koerber (USA) 640 pts
3: Catherine Pendrel (CAN) 594 pts
24: Emily Batty (Trek World Racing) 203 pts
DH WORLD CUP RESULTS
Men's Results DH Final:
1: Gee Atherton (GBR) 4min 02.19secs
2: Greg Minnaar (RSA) 4m 04.98secs
3: Brendan Fairclough (GBR) 4min 06.75secs
44: Justin Leov (Trek World Racing) 4min 35.22secs
63: Andrew Neethling (Trek World Racing) 4min 46.77secs
74: Neko Mulally (Trek World Racing) 4min 57.01secs
Women's Results DH Final:
1: Emmeline Ragot (FRA) 5min 27.25secs
2: Sabrina Jonnier (FRA) 5min 32.12secs
3: Myriam Nicole (FRA) 5min 36.97secs
4: Floriane Pugin (FRA) 5min 38.90secs
5: Tracy Moseley (Trek World Racing) 5mins 39.33secs
Men's DH Results Overall:
1: Greg Minnaar (RSA) 830pts
2: Gee Atherton (GBR) 817pts 3.
10: Justin Leov (Trek World Racing) 311pts
23: Andrew Neethling (Trek World Racing) 207pts
114: Neko Mulally (Trek World Racing) 7 pts
Women's DH Results Overall:
1: Sabrina Jonnier (FRA) 850pts
2: Floriane Pugin (FRA) 645pts
3: Emmeline Ragot (FRA) 615pts
4: Myriam Nicole (FRA) 540pts
5: Tracy Moseley (Trek World R
