Riders didn’t have long to rest their legs from last weekend’s racing in Lenzerheide as they got back between the tape for the lung-busting bar-to-bar fight of short track racing.
The U23 riders were the first on course as we saw more wins from Ronja Blöchlinger and Adrien Boichis as they are proving to be the riders to beat in the short course format.
A day later and after a wet and windy afternoon that saw a disrupted downhill qualifying session the Elite Women took on the now treacherous course. The conditions were best handled by Pauline Ferrand Prevot and Puck Pieterse who battled at the front throughout the five laps with the World Champion just pulling ahead at the end of the race to lead the round one XC winner Puck Pieterse by five seconds. Evie Richards stayed right on their rear wheels and secured a great third-place finish.
Next up was the Elite Men and after his commanding win in Lenzerheide all eyes were on the powerhouse of Luca Schwarzbauer. A hectic race in the greasy conditions saw another close race between Schwarzbauer and Jordan Sarrou with either rider looking capable of the win. By the last lap, it was the Leogang 2020 XC World Champ winner who took home the top podium position by just two seconds. Martins Blums had an incredible ride to end his day in third.
The elite and U23 now have a short rest before the XCO action gets underway on Sunday.
