A look back at the first day of the 2022 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships, where the atmosphere and the public were already present to watch the Cross-country Team Relay World Championships, as well as the XCO and DHI training sessions.
Switzerland wins the XC Relay World Championship title
Neck and neck with France and Italy, it was finally the Swiss team that won the rainbow jersey 🥇🌈 after 6 intense and bouncy rounds. Italy is 2nd 🥈, followed by the USA 🥉.
France finishes in 5th position while leading the race since the 2nd lap with a large lead (+ 21sec) over Italy. Indeed, the 5th French relay rider, Tatiana Tournut crashed and damaged her saddle, which penalised her until the end of the circuit. In total, 18 teams took part in this event. In the French team, there were 6 relay riders: Adrien Boichis, Alexandre Martins, Loana Lecomte, Line Burquier, Tatiana Tournut and Jordan Sarrou.
Interviews from the podium
Nino Schurter (SWITZERLAND, XCR World Champion): “We were a bit lucky with the French crash, but that’s part of the hazards of racing. I was a bit lucky myself, I finished with a slow puncture. It’s always special to wear the World Champion jersey, it kicks off the World Championship perfectly and it’s motivating for everyone.”
Martina Berta (ITALY, XCR Silver Medal) “Our strength is the team: we are a really united group and together we are able to enhance the qualities of each individual. It was a fun competition and winning the silver medal is always a great result”
Haley Batten (USA, XCR Bronze Medal): “It’s good to be back in Les Gets. It’s a really great race track. It has everything for a mountain bike athlete. You have to be a talented climber as well as a technical rider. There are two pretty major climbs when you’re trying to go all out for a lap and its actually quite hard. You think you can just go from the gun start to finish but there are long climbs and you have to pace yourself pretty well. Then at the top, it’s pretty technical as well. The Team Relay is one of my favorite events – the atmosphere, the energy, being a part of a team environment. We aren’t often with USA Cycling at most of the World Cups and its only just the World Championships and the Olympics where you get to be a part of that team environment and energy.”
DHI training at Mont Chéry
On the slopes of Mont Chéry, it was time for the first training sessions for all the riders, after yesterday’s track walk. The women and juniors tested the track for the first time this morning, while the men discovered it this afternoon.
The aim of this session is to see if there are any new lines opening up after the training sessions and to analyse all the possible options for tomorrow’s qualifiers.
