MTB – XCO – World Cup 2023 – 3 – Leogang [FULL RACE]

June 18, 2023

MTB – XCO – World Cup 2023 – 3 – Leogang, Austria

Cross-country Olympic, named because it’s the only format of mountain biking included in the Olympics, sees a big pack of riders take on laps of a natural, challenging track. The laps themselves can vary from 3km to 10km in length, and the number will vary, but the races will always be around 90 minutes for men and women. The track itself is designed to test the rider’s full range of abilities over a mixture of terrain: singletracks, dirt, grass, sand, rocks and some tarmac. Courses have many obstacles to negotiate – artificial and natural – and often incorporate ramps, berms, jumps, drops and rock gardens. As well as the features, there will be climbs and descents to deal with,

Lars Forster (Thömus Maxon) attacked on the final lap to win the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Leogang, Austria. He finished 14 seconds ahead of Luca Schwarzbauer (Canyon- CLLCTV) in second, while Ondrej Cink (Primaflor Mondraker Genuins) finished third.

“I had a pretty good start and just felt good today. I told myself to be patient, and reminded myself about the heat and how long the race was. I just took my time and started to gain places and started to think I might be able to get a top 5,” Forster said.

“When I overtook Mathias [Flückiger], I knew that a win might be possible. I knew I would be the strongest climber on the penultimate lap, so I pushed on from there. I had goosebumps on the last 500m on that last lap, I’m so happy.”

The notoriously challenging Leogang course proved to be an even tougher endeavour due to the rising temperatures at the third round of the UCI Cross-country Olympic World Cup.

“That I can get this result on a track like this against riders 8-10kg lighter than me is just incredible. This is the first World Cup that I could ride absolutely pain-free and I could finally see what my body is capable of,” said runner-up Schwarzbauer.

“I must say I didn’t think this kind of result was possible, so I am super happy. I’ll try to enjoy this result then look to the next round. I’m a bit overwhelmed right now. It was such a good race, and I am so thankful for the Canyon team around me.”

In the overall standings, Jordan Sarrou (BMC) leads with 580 points, while Nino Schurter (Scott SRAM) is in second place with 565 points and Luca Schwarzbauer (Canyon-CLLCTV) has 548 points.

Results :