The 2023 UCI E-MTB Cross-country World Cup is well under way after the first two double-headers in Monaco (20 and 21 May) and Bologna, Italy, (10 and 11 June), held in challenging conditions.
The storms and rainfall that have hit areas of Europe in recent weeks played a part in both events which were raced over a reduced number of laps.
Monaco: champions and debutants
Day 1 in Monaco saw victories go to 2022 UCI E-MTB Cross-country World Cup overall winners and UCI World Champions, Trek-Bosch rider Nicole Göldi (SUI) and Lapierre Overvolt team member Jérôme Gilloux (FRA), each turning on the class after tense battles with adversaries old and new.
But both had to be content with a lower step on the podium on day two. The initially muddy and slippery conditions due to overnight rain dried out as the riders progressed over the five laps (reduced from seven) and eventually gave good traction.
The Men Elite victory went to Emeric Ienzer, the 24-year-old Frenchman from Doubs taking his first UCI E-Mountain Bike Cross-country World Cup win. Even though Gilloux experienced technical issues on the final lap, the day belonged to Ienzer of the Scott SR Suntour Enduro Team!
The top step was of the Women Elite podium was also occupied by a French rider, with Justine Tonso, happy again in Monaco where she had been victorious in both rounds of the opening fixture of the 2022 UCI World Cup.
Bologna: challenges and celebrations
Adverse weather also played a part in the weekend’s races at ‘BO.M.B.A.’ (the Bologna Montana Bike Area) in Bologna Montana. This time it was Saturday’s race that was affected, as continuing rain in the Emilia Romagna region – already devastated by recent flooding – meant reducing the race from five laps to four laps.
Men Elite victory went to Gilloux, after a tense battle with his fellow Frenchman Théo Charmes (Team AOTL), Britain’s Robert Williams (Haibike), and Italian Martino Fruet (Lapierre Trentino). It was Charmes who missed out on Saturday’s podium as Williams stepped up for the first time in a Men Elite race that saw six different nations represented in the top seven finishers.
Justine Tonso was coping best with the conditions in the Women’s competition, until a crash on the final lap gave the lead to the experienced Swiss rider Nathalie Schneitter (Trek-Bosch) who brought the victory home.
“Mudwrestling has always secretly been a love of mine! Those are the conditions I love racing most!” commented the 2019 UCI World Champion Schneitter, who did not race in Monaco, and claimed top spot on her first competition of the year.
Day 2 in Bologna threw up another surprise in the shape of Théo Charmes, with the 24-year-old building on his performance the previous day and putting 50 seconds into his compatriot Gilloux. “Yesterday's good sensations were confirmed today with my first E-Bike UCI World Cup win,” he commented after taking to the top step of the podium.
Nicole Göldi returned to winning ways after a close fight with Schneitter (Trek-Bosch), while 25-year-old Austrian Anna Spielmann (Haibike) picked up her second podium in her first season of UCI E-Mountain Bike Cross-country World Cup racing.
Series standings: all to play for!
With the first four rounds completed Göldi leads the Women Elite standings with 83 points from Tonso on 75 and Germany’s Sofia Wiedenroth, whose consistent 3rd and 4th places have earned her 58 points, despite mechanical issues in Monaco.
Gilloux tops the Men Elite standings with 86 points, ahead of Joris Ryf (SUI) on 60. Robert Williams has 52 with Charmes charging up on 49 points. The men and women have 12 more opportunities to score points for the overall rankings, with the next two new rounds also in northern Italy, this time in Val Seriana, Bergamo, across the weekend of 15-16 July.
[CCU1]Not the same team as mentioned earlier [CCU2]Not the same team as mentioned earlier