Downtown Columbus was the stage of some exciting battles on June 3rd as athletes raced shoulder to shoulder in the opening round of the 2018 UCI Mountain Bike Eliminator World Cup powered by CityMountainbike.com. Part of the inaugural Eliminator World Cup in 2017, the Columbus stopover this year saw riders tackle a slightly modified course while also dealing with heat and humidity. Second in the Elite Women overall standings last year, Norway’s Ingrid Sofie Jacobsen will go into this year’s second round (Volterra, Italy, on June 16) wearing the leader’s jersey. “What a day!” she wrote on social media after her opening round victory. “Sooo happy to take the win at this year’s first World Cup XCE. Tough battle in the insane heat and humidity…”
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Junior athlete Ella Holmegard showed great form to take second place, while the home crowds celebrated the third place of American Jennifer Malik. Sixth overall in the Men’s competition in 2017, Dutch athlete Jeroen Van Eck took his first World Cup victory in Columbus, followed by Sweden’s Anton Olstam, whose best result last year was 10th place. France’s Lorenzo Serres, second overall in last year’s UCI World Cup, claimed the final place on the podium at the weekend.