The 2023 XC World Cup treats race fans to another big spectacle as riders battled it out across brutal climbs and high temperatures. The Austrian venue backed up the incredible racing in Lenzerheide with more drama and surprising results.
Once again it was Sofie Pedersen who controlled the U23 Women’s race as an attack at the start of the first full lap carried her all the way to the finish. The brutal climb at the start of each lap proved crucial for Sofia Pedersen as an overtake against Ronja Blöchlinger at the start of the first full lap saw her build an impressive 33-second lead once she reached the top.
Sofie Pedersen did not show signs of slowing down as by the end of this lap she was ahead by almost 50 seconds. No rider had an answer for her speed as she secured her third XCO win of the 2023 season. Samara Maxwell put down a strong ride to beat Ginia Caluori to the line after a close battle for the silver medal position.
Adrien Boichis played a clever race to stick at the front across every lap before a final lap attack proved to be unbeatable as he went across the line 12 seconds ahead. The speeds were high for the U23 Men as we saw some fierce competition at the front. A third lap push from Dario Lillo and Adrien Boichis saw the pair move into the leading positions and build a gap that couldn’t be closed by the chasing racers. The pair headed into the final lap with nothing between them before Adrien Boichis put the power down at the start of one of the course’s brutal climbs and pulled away from the Swiss Rider. Adrien Boichis’ show of strength was unmatched as he would secure the third-round victory.
Puck Pieterse continued to showcase her incredible talent as she took off from the start and never looked back. After taking a spectacular win at round one it is another World Cup win for the young rider as she storms the course in Austria with a speed that no one could match. Mona Mitterwallner tried her hardest to close the gap and get another Austrian rider on top of the box this weekend but it was not to be as the gap remained around 40 seconds. It was still a great home result with Mitterwallner joined by Laura Stigger on the podium.
As the attention moved to the final event of a hectic week in Leogang we were treated to one last spectacle in Austria. The Elite Men’s race had no shortage of drama as Lars Forster showed a return to form and took the win by 14 seconds. Lars Forster was the strongest rider up the hills as he pulled away from Luca Schwarzbauer and Ondrej Cink up the first climb on the final lap and created a gap that couldn’t be closed. Luca Schwarzbauer fought hard and showed he is becoming more and more of a threat for the win in both XCC and XCO as he ends the week in 2nd. Ondrej Cink fell just short of the top position crossing the line in 3rd, 23 seconds back.
The teams and riders will now have a short break before the season continues at Val di Sole for the fourth round of the 2023 season.
