MTB World Cup 2021 – 1 – Albstadt [FULL RACE – XCO] (ladies)

May 9, 2021

MTB World Cup 2021 – 1 – WE XCO – Albstadt

The UCI Mountain Bike World Cup is a multi-round mountain bike racing series that is sanctioned by the Union Cycliste Internationale. The first World Cup series – which was composed of cross-country events – was held in 1989. The Downhill World Cup was inaugurated two years later, and the Dual Slalom World Cup was launched in 1998. The dual-slalom format – which involved knock-out heats with two riders on the parallel courses in each heat – evolved into four-cross (with four riders on a single course per heat) in 2002 before being dropped after the 2011 season. Riders win points according to their placing in each event. The reigning series leaders in each class are identified by a special jersey.

France finished 1-2 on Sunday in Albstadt, Germany, for the opening round of the Mountain Bike World Cup, with Under-23 world champion Loana Lecomte (Massi) beating elite world champion Pauline Ferrand Prevot (Absolute-Absalon-BMC). However, Ferrand Prevot took the World Cup leader’s jersey, after winning the Short Track on Friday.

Albstadt is one of the hardest courses on the World Cup circuit with two long, steep climbs per lap, and once again it tested the riders. Along with Round 2 of the World Cup, next weekend in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic, Albstadt is a final qualification event for the Tokyo Olympics, so there were ‘races within races’, as riders fight to qualify for their Olympic teams.

Lecomte simply rode away from the rest of the 106 rider field on the start loop, opening up an 18 second gap on the first major climb of the race. She never looked back, increasing her lead to over a minute by the start of the fifth and final full lap, and eventually beating Ferrand Prevot by 53 seconds.

“I don’t believe it,” said Lecomte, “in my head it was my goal for today, but I didn’t know if I could do it. This race and Nove Mesto are the race qualifications for the Olympic Games [for France] so it was a big goal for me to be in shape for these two World Cups; now that goal is 50% complete.”

With Lecomte untouchable at the front, the race action was happening behind. Ferrand Prevot was joined in the early chase by 2019 World Cup champion Kate Courtney (Scott-SRAM) and Australian champion Rebecca McConnell (Primaflor Mondraker XSauce), however, both began to fall back on the second lap, and the early hard pace hurt them later in the race, with McConnell sliding all the way to 21st by the finish.

While Courtney dropped off the pace of Ferrand Prevot, she looked to be solidly in third until her young compatriot, Haley Batten (Trinity Racing), caught her and then dropped her on the third lap. Batten, in only her first elite World Cup, is one of a number of Americans battling for an Olympic spot (Courtney already has one locked up), and she was actually making ground on Ferrand Prevot in the last lap and a half.

The French 1-2 was followed by an American 3-4, as Courtney held onto fourth behind Batten, just ten seconds in front of Yana Belomoina (CST PostNL Bafang), who made a late race surge to take the fifth and final podium spot.

“I honestly didn’t know what I was capable of,” admitted Batten, “so to start the season like this is pretty incredible. I think in the Short Track I felt really strong, so I just gave it what I had today, and raced my race. I’ve had a couple of hard races here in the past, in Junior and U23, so to just race so strong and so smooth from start to finish is not something I would have expected previously. I’m not sure how much this counts towards [the American] Olympic criteria, but Nove Mesto does, so this is a really good sign.”

Results :
1 Loana Lecomte (France) 1:21:38
2 Pauline Ferrand Prevot (France) 0:00:53
3 Haley Batten (United States Of America) 0:01:15
4 Kate Courtney (United States Of America) 0:01:20
5 Yana Belomoina (Ukraine) 0:01:30
6 Anne Terpstra (Netherlands) 0:01:47
7 Linda Indergand (Switzerland) 0:01:57
8 Laura Stigger (Austria) 0:02:11
9 Jenny Rissveds (Sweden) 0:02:54
10 Sina Frei (Switzerland) 0:03:03
11 Eva Lechner (Italy) 0:03:11
12 Daniela Campuzano Chavez Peon (Mexico) 0:03:12
13 Jolanda Neff (Switzerland) 0:03:38
14 Maja Wloszczowska (Poland)
15 Erin Huck (United States Of America) 0:03:59
16 Lena Gerault (France) 0:04:06
17 Rocio Del Alba Garcia Martinez (Spain) 0:04:13
18 Alessandra Keller (Switzerland) 0:04:22
19 Nicole Koller (Switzerland) 0:04:30
20 Githa Michiels (Belgium) 0:04:39
21 Rebecca Mcconnell (Australia) 0:05:24
22 Ronja Eibl (Germany) 0:05:52
23 Chiara Teocchi (Italy) 0:05:58
24 Elisabeth Brandau (Germany) 0:06:04
25 Evie Richards (Great Britain) 0:06:09
26 Janika Lõiv (Estonia) 0:06:24
27 Emily Batty (Canada) 0:06:42
28 Greta Seiwald (Italy) 0:06:54
29 Nina Benz (Germany) 0:07:02
30 Chloe Woodruff (United States Of America) 0:07:25
31 Candice Lill (South Africa) 0:07:31
32 Lotte Koopmans (Netherlands) 0:07:34
33 Iryna Popova (Ukraine) 0:07:35
34 Barbara Benkó (Hungary) 0:07:49
35 Steffi Häberlin (Switzerland) 0:07:55
36 Kristina Ilina (Russian Federation) 0:07:56
37 Anne Tauber (Netherlands) 0:08:07
38 Jennifer Jackson (Canada) 0:08:17
39 Tanja Žakelj (Slovenia) 0:08:30
40 Isla Short (Great Britain) 0:08:36
41 Martina Berta (Italy) 0:08:41
42 Elisabeth Osl (Austria) 0:09:28
43 Lea Davison (United States Of America) 0:09:32
44 Andrea Waldis (Switzerland) 0:09:34
45 Jitka Čábelická (Czech Republic) 0:09:53
46 Annie Last (Great Britain) 0:09:54
47 Sandra Walter (Canada) 0:10:14
48 Sofia Gomez Villafane (Argentina) 0:10:45
49 Katarzyna Solus-Miskowicz (Poland) 0:10:46
50 Laurie Arseneault (Canada) 0:10:51
51 Sophie Von Berswordt (Netherlands) 0:10:53
52 Catharine Pendrel (Canada) 0:11:08
53 Nadine Rieder (Germany) 0:11:16
54 Karla Štěpánová (Czech Republic) 0:11:27
55 Mariske Strauss (South Africa) 0:11:36
56 Anna Spielmann (Austria) 0:12:02
57 Agustina Maria Apaza (Argentina) 0:12:10
58 Adelheid Morath (Germany) 0:12:16
59 Lucie Urruty (France) 0:12:36
60 Perrine Clauzel (France) 0:13:07
61 Kelsey Urban (United States Of America)
62 Seraina Leugger (Switzerland)
63 Giorgia Marchet (Italy)
64 Janka Keseg Stevkova (Slovakia)
65 Vera Medvedeva (Russian Federation)
66 Natalia Fischer Egusquiza (Spain)
67 Chrystelle Baumann (Switzerland)
68 Jana Czeczinkarová (Czech Republic)
69 Hannah Finchamp (United States Of America)
70 Klaudia Czabok (Poland)
71 Theresia Schwenk (Germany)
72 Margot Moschetti (France)
73 Hélène Clauzel (France)
74 Raiza Goulao Henrique (Brazil)
75 Ramona Forchini (Switzerland)
76 Tereza Tvarůžková (Czech Republic)
77 Paula Gorycka (Poland)
78 Fabienne Schaus (Luxembourg)
79 Kim Ames (Germany)
80 Gabriela Wojtyla (Poland)
81 Joana Monteiro (Portugal)
82 Lejla Tanovic (Bosnia Herzegovnia)
83 Aleksandra Podgorska (Poland)
84 Ann-Dorthe Lisbygd (Denmark)
85 Naama Noyman (Israel)
86 Viktoria Kirsanova (Russian Federation)
87 Iryna Slobodyan (Ukraine)
88 Amelie Laquebe (France)
89 Cindy Montambault (Canada)
90 Janina Wüst (Switzerland)
91 Josefina Casadey (Argentina)
92 Sara Öberg (Sweden)
93 Jaqueline Mourao (Brazil)
94 Jovana Crnogorac (Serbia)
95 Maria Fernanda Castro Gonzalez (Chile)
96 Antonia Daubermann (Germany)
97 Barbara Borowiecka (Poland)
98 Mari-Liis Mõttus (Estonia)
DNF Julie Bresset (France)
DNF Charline Fragnière (Switzerland)
DNF Linn Gustafzzon (Sweden)
DNF Haley Smith (Canada)
DNF Sabrina Enaux (France)
DNF Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Netherlands)
DNS Cherie Redecker (South Africa)
DNS Emma Belforth (Sweden)