Florian Vogel and Nathalie Schneitter win World Cup Cross-Country #4
Champéry, Switzerland hosted the fourth round of the Mountain Bike World Cup, and local hero Florian Vogel pleased the fans by giving them their second hometown victory of the day, after the women’s race was won by Swiss Nathalie Schneitter.
"I knew it was important to be out in front on this course," said Vogel. "So I attacked very hard at the beginning. When Julien [Absalon] came up and then attacked, I was pretty concerned, but I could tell that he was struggling a bit in some of the more technical sections.”
Vogel’s teammate, World Champion Nino Schurter, finished third behind Jaroslav Kulhavy, the European champion. The best-young-rider award was won by another Swiss, Mathias Fluckiger, who finished fourth in the event. Julien Absalon, the overall World Cup leader finished fifth.
"I was most worried about Kulhavy, because he looked to be climbing very well, but then I could see he was actually more tired, so I knew that I had to make my chance on that final climb," said Vogel. "This is a very big win for me, only my second World Cup, and to win in Switzerland is very special."
Don’t let the brevity of the 4.3km circuit fool you. After the 3.2km start loop, which took the place of a 7th lap due to the poor weather conditions, the competitors faced two difficulties; a steep climb with an immediate descent was followed by a three metre drop-off. A ride-around option was available for riders afraid of the open-air, but it was not worth the time it would waste. The main climb followed at the opposite end of the circuit, after a valley which led them to a summit before dropping back into the woods. The long track was muddied by the weather and full of jutting roots.
The racers split as early as the start loop, when Vogel and defending champion Burry Stander gained a 10 second lead on their trailer Schurter. Absalon bridged to the leaders during the first lap and eventually dropped them both. Absalon gained 20 seconds before suffering a flat tire in the fourth lap, which inspired Vogel to attack. Kulhavy stuck to Vogel’s wheel and the duo widened their lead on Schurter and Fluckiger. Vogel finished 11 seconds ahead of Kulhavy, who was 24 seconds ahead of Schurter.
Schurter is now 24 points behind Absalon in the overall classification, and Kulhavy is in 3rd, 50 points behind. Todd Wells, riding for Specialized, was the best North American contender, just outside of the top-10, while Rabobank’s Adam Craig finished 14th despite his recent knee surgery.
The women’s competition, raced on the same course earlier the same day, was an aggressively contested circuit. Nathalie Schneitter won the hometown event and her teammate Eva Lechner took control of the overall World Cup lead from Catharine Pendrel.
"It was a dream," said Schneitter. "I knew that if it stayed muddy in the forest, I could do well, and I was thinking that it would be possible to be on the podium, but I did not think of winning."
The pair opened the gap immediately with a mad sprint from the start line. Willow Koerber and Julie Bresset built a gap that left the other contender fighting over fifth place. Koerber finished third behind Lechner, climbing to second place overall ahead of Pendrel and 15 points behind Lechner.
"I was getting close a few times, but I couldn't quite catch her," said Koerber. "I think I was climbing well, but losing some time on the descents. This just makes me more motivated for next weekend [round five], because I would really like to go into the final race in the US wearing that leader's jersey."
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