usacycling.org
Val Di Sole, Italy
Elite men’s and women’s Olympic-style Cross-Country racing capped off the 2008 Mountain Bike World Championships as Todd Wells (Durango, CO) and Georgia Gould (Fort Collins, CO) recorded the top American finishes. Wells rode to a 15th place finish, while Gould finished ninth to lead the American women’s squad.
The Swiss dominated the men’s competition, sweeping the podium and placing four riders amongst the top 15 of the 129-rider field. Christoph Sauser (Swi) earned a commanding victory over his countrymen, winning the 24.9 mile race with a final time of one hour, 58 minutes and 26 seconds. Last year’s silver and bronze medalists swapped places in 2008 with Florian Vogel (Swi) taking second, 2:54 behind the winner and Ralf Naef (Swi) earning the bronze, 4:19 back.
Wells, ranked 11th on the World Cup circuit, finished 8:09 behind Sauser. Adam Craig (Bend, OR), who finished 22nd in 2007, was the United States’ next best finisher in 45th, 16:56 off the winning pace. Both one lap down, Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (Boulder, CO) placed 49th, while Barry Wicks (Corvallis, OR) moved up 62 spots from his start position of 128th to finish in 56th. Michael Broderick (Chilmark, MA) placed 68th and Sam Schultz (Tucson, AZ) in 71st.
After being assigned the 24th start position based on his UCI world ranking, Wells started hard with a pair of sub-18 minute laps. After a slight midrace lull, Wells, who finished 46th at last year’s World Championships, finished strong, moving up three spots in the final lap to take 15th.
“It was hard. I had a tough start and had to recover. My fourth lap was bad, but I was able to come back strong,” explained Wells. “It’s hard to move up when you start toward the front. I was shooting for a top 10, but when you leave it all out there you have to be pleased.”
The elite men’s race served as a reminder that the European mountain bike pool continues to feature a formidable list of contenders less than two months away from the 2008 Olympic Games. Despite the U.S. men ranking amongst the top 10 nations in the world, Wells and Canada’s Geoff Kabush were the only non-European finishers inside the top 20.
Margarita Fullana of Spain captured the world title in the 18 mile women’s race, besting now two-time silver medalist Sabine Spitz (Ger) by +1:43. The reigning world champion, Irina Kalentieva (Rus) was left with the bronze this year, 2:20 behind Fullana’s mark of 1:39:01.
Although the victim of a midrace crash, Gould rode consistently throughout to equal her ninth place finish at the 2007 Mountain Bike World Championships in Fort William, Scotland. Taking the seventh start position, Gould rode near the front on the first lap until the powerful trio of Fullana, Spitz and Kalentieva were able to get away on the second of the five laps.
The U.S. women continued to illustrate the depth of American off-road racing, placing three riders in the top 20; more than any other country. Twenty five-year-old Lea Davison (Jericho, VT) was able to move up 27 spots from her 46th-place start position to finish in 19th, while Mary McConneloug (Chilmark, MA), the 17th ranked rider in the World Cup standings, crossed the line just over a minute behind Davison in 20th. Davison used consistently faster lap times to steadily move up throughout the event.
“I felt stronger and stronger as the race went on,” said Davison. “With its steep climbs and fast descents that course suited me well. My goal was top 20, so I’m pumped.”
Heather Irmiger (Boulder, CO) crossed the line inside the top 30, 13:16 behind the winner, while Willow Koerber (Asheville, NC) placed 40th, 18:42 back. Kelli Emmett (Colorado Springs, CO) placed 47th, making up 16 spots from her assigned start position, to round out the U.S. contingent.
With most of the six American women starters near the front of the pack on the first lap, the steep climbs and temperatures nearing the 90s helped to quickly sort out the contenders. By the end of the first lap Fullana, Spitz and Kallentieva had opened up a small lead which continued to grow as the trio rode together out front. It wasn’t until the fourth lap that Fullana was able to break away for the more than one minute victory.
Margarita Fullana (5), XC world champion
At the end of the third lap, with Davison surging and McConneloug in the 17th spot, it looked as though the U.S. might place three riders inside the top 15, but McConneloug was ultimately passed by three riders, including Davison, during the last lap.
Gould, the top American mountain biker in the world rankings, gave the U.S. its sixth consecutive top ten finish at the World Championships. Since Luna Chix Alison Dunlap captured the world title in 2001, the top results have been sixth place efforts courtesy of Sue Haywood in 2003 and McConneloug in 2006.
Christoph Sauser, XC world champion
WORLD'S CROSS-COUNTRY RESULTS
1. Christoph Sauser (Swi)...Specialized...1:58:26
2. Florian Vogel (Swi)...SwissPower...+2:54
3. Ralf Naef (Swi)...Multivan Merida...4:19
15. Todd Wells...GT...8:09
16. Geoff Kabush (Can)...Maxxis...8:15
45. Adam Craig...Giant...16:56
49. Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski...Subaru-GF...-1 Lap
56. Barry Wicks...Kona-Les Gets...-1 Lap
68. Michael Broderick...Kenda-Seven...-2 Laps
71. Sam Schultz...Subaru-Gary Fisher...-3 Laps
WOMEN
1. Margarita Fullana (Spn)...Massi...1:39:01
2. Sabine Spitz (Ger)...Central Ghost...+1:43
3. Irina Kalentieva (Rus)...Topeak Ergon...2:20
9. Georgia Gould...Luna Chix...6:18
19. Lea Davison...Trek-VW...10:03
20. Mary McConneloug...Kenda-Seven...10:26
29. Heather Irmiger...Subaru-Gary Fisher...13:16
40. Willow Koerber...Subaru-Gary Fisher...18:42
47. Kelli Emmett...Giant...-1 Lap