Evie Richards and Victor Koretzky took home rainbow jerseys after tight short track battles at the Mountain Bike World Championships in Pal Arinsal, Andorra. Located at 2,000 meters above sea level in the Pyrenees, the Andorran venue served up hot weather, dusty trails, and thin air for the short course showdown.
The course immediately tilted upwards and Pauline Ferrand-Prévot took the holeshot in what she has said will be her final mountain bike appearance before switching to the road next year. The French Olympic champion was followed by Chiara Teocchi (Italy), Puck Pieterse (Netherlands), Laura Stigger (Austria) and Evie Richards (Great Britain).
Switzerland’s Alessandra Keller and the American duo of Savilia Blunk and Kate Courtney were also in the top 10 during the opening laps.
Ferrand-Prévot opened a gap during the second lap, but Sweden’s Jenny Rissveds bridged across and glued to her wheel. Pieterse led the chase in third position.
Richards then used the steep climb as a launch pad to overtake Pieterse and bridge up to Rissveds and Ferrand-Prévot. The next lap she attacked in the same spot to take over the lead from the Frenchwomen, with Rissveds dropping to third and getting distanced by the leaders.
Ferrand-Prévot then attacked on the final lap, but Richards watched her like a hawk. The two came over a flyover bridge, made a right turn, and Ferrand-Prévot led out the sprint down the short straightaway. Richards used her explosiveness to come around and add an XCC rainbow jersey to her collection that includes the 2021 XCO world title.
Jordan Sarrou of France led out the men’s race followed by Christopher Blevins (United States), Simon Andreassen (Denmark), Alan Hatherly (South Africa), Victor Koretzky (France), and the British contingent of Charlie Aldridge and Tom Pidcock.
Sarrou led for the first eight laps of the 10-lap race, the others happy to stay in the wheels while keeping an eye on their positions. The top five places held relatively steady, occupied by Koretzky, Blevins, Andreassen, Hatherly, and of course Sarrou breaking the wind. Sam Gaze (New Zealand) dangled in the chase as did Pidcock.
Heading into the final laps, Koretzky and Blevins placed themselves in the wheels and Koretzky launched into the lead for the penultimate lap. He opened a gap, but Sarrou was too gassed to close anything. Aldridge took an inside line to overtake the other chasers and attempt to bridge to the Frenchman.
He ultimately could not manage to get all the way across. Koretzky crossed the line three seconds ahead of Aldridge. Hatherly just inched out Blevins to take bronze. Racing continues all weekend, with the XCO events on Sunday.
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