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The world’s best cross-country MTBers gathered in the Trentino region of northern Italy this past weekend for round 4 of the eight-round UCI MTB World Cup. It was little surprise when two of XCO’s biggest names – Pauline Ferrand-Prévot and Nino Schurter – rode to commanding victories on the steep grades of the Val di Sole course.
Ferrand-Prévot, in sparkling form ahead of a home Olympics, rode clear early in the six-lap race and went on to win by nearly a minute. In the men’s race, the GOAT set out hard, forging a leading group of four. Eventually he was the only one left, riding his way to a millionth World Cup win (actually his 36th, in case you’re wondering).
Our man Piper Albrecht was there in Val di Sole to capture all the action, which you can see in the galleries below. We begin with the elite women’s race.
Among the heavy-hitters on the startline was former world champ Evie Richards.While not one of the sport’s biggest names, African (and South African) champion Candice Lill would have a starring role on Sunday.Off they went, to start six laps of the Trentino course.Two of the big favourites – Ferrand-Prévot (left) and Puck Pieterse (right) – didn’t take long to come to the front.After winning three rounds of last year’s MTB World Cup, Pieterse is yet to hit the winners’ list in 2024.Lill was the only rider in the top 22 places on the startlist without a professional team. The USA’s Gwendalyn Gibson en route to 15th on the day.Ferrand-Prévot, Pieterse, and Loana Lecomte got off the front on lap 2 of six, but Lecomte soon dropped off the pace, as too did Pieterse.Lill’s previous results in this year’s XCO World Cups: 18th and 16th in Brazil then sixth at Nové Město.Hungarian multi-discipline champ Blanka Vas started way back in 59th place and moved up to 43rd by race’s end.Ferrand-Prévot spent a good chunk of the race on her own and looked to be doing it easy.US champ Savilia Blunk on her way to fifth.Alessandra Keller ended up 10th.Check out Martina Berta’s chain here.Series leader Haley Batten was only able to manage eighth on the day.As Pieterse fought for second place …… Ferrand-Prévot rode to a commanding victory. It’s her second-straight World Cup win with a home Olympics just on the horizon.After Pieterse took second, Lill rode in for third place – a career-best result.Fifth for a happy Blunk.Respect among rivals. Will we see these two on the Olympic podium soon too?From left to right: Loana Lecomte (fourth), Puck Pieterse (second), Pauline Ferrand-Prèvot (first), Candice Lill (third), and Savilia Blunk (fifth).
And then it was time for the elite men to shine.
All in readiness …… with a very-focused Schurter waiting for his moment.The GOAT wasted no time coming to the front.Nick Burki with the skillz.Alan Hatherly was in the early group of four and was the last rider able to stay with Schurter.After winning the short-circuit race on Friday, Sam Gaze finished outside the top 30 on Sunday.Like Hatherly, Chilean champ Martin Vidaurre was part of the four-rider group that formed around Schurter in the early laps. He’d end up 11th.Steep grades …… and solid crowds. Here’s Italy’s Simone Pederiva enjoying the vibes towards the back of the field.It wasn’t quite Mathias Flückiger’s day, with the Swiss champ having to settle for 12th.Round 1 winner Chris Blevins, too, wasn’t able to reach his potential on the day. The US champ came in 26th.Ultimately, it was a Schurter masterclass. The Swiss rider spent much of the day with Alan Hatherly, but Schurter was able to drop the South African …… who finished second, seven seconds behind Schurter, and was quick to congratulate his rival.The sprint for third was won by France’s Mathis Azzaro ahead of Luca Braidot and Filippo Colombo.From left to right: Luca Braidot (fourth), Alan Hatherly (second), Nino Schurter (first), Mathis Azzaro (third), and Filippo Colombo (fifth).And so concludes the fourth round of the UCI XCO World Cup. The series continues this coming weekend with a first visit to Crans-Montana, Switzerland.
