Stigger, Balmer win Junior XC World titles
Austrian dominates junior women's race, Swiss rider edges out Kaiser
At the 2018 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, on Thursday, Austria's Laura Stigger won the junior women's XCO race, while Alexandre Balmer (Switzerland) was victorious in the junior men's event.
Junior women
Austria took the first individual title of the 2018 mountain bike Worlds with Laura Stigger successfully defending her junior women's XCO title.
The Austrian was untouchable in the junior women's five-lap race, riding away from the rest of the field on the opening climb, and extending her lead throughout the race to win by over three minutes.
Tereza Saskova of the Czech Republic moved into second place on the first lap, but was challenged in the second half of the race by Harriet Harnden of Great Britain.
Saskova managed to drop her British rival in the last half lap to take the silver medal, 34 seconds in front of Harnden.
Junior men
Host nation Switzerland continued their winning streak for a second day with Alexandre Balmer taking a come-from-behind victory in the junior men's XCO.
Balmer had also been a member of the winning Swiss team relay squad the day before.
The junior men began in the rain, making the track slick and treacherous, although it gradually dried out in the second half of the six-lap race.
Mathis Azzaro of France jumped away to build a strong lead in the first half of the race, opening a maximum gap of 41 seconds on the second lap.
But his gap began to shrunk after that, with Leon Kaiser of Germany, Balmer and his teammate Loris Rouiller steadily closing in.
By the start of the last lap, Balmer, Kaiser and Azzaro were together, and when Kaiser attacked, only Balmer could respond. The Swiss rider then countered to cross the finish line a slim two seconds ahead of Kaiser, and immediately collapsed after his effort.
Azzaro held on for third ahead of Rouiller.
"My start was very bad and I lost 30 seconds," said Balmer. "In my head, I thought my race was over, but I decided to give it everything – for my country, my family, my team.
"I just kept calm, but it was very long and difficult. Leon [Kaiser] went crazy on the uphill, but I was able to come back. It was a crazy race.
"I'm usually not so good at altitude, so I'm very happy with this race; it has been a perfect season. Now I'll focus on Innsbruck," said Balmer, who will head to Austria to compete in the junior race at the road world championships later this month.
Full Results
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
---|---|---|
1 | Laura Stigger (Austria) | 1:09:46 |
2 | Tereza Sásková (Czech Republic) | 0:03:03 |
3 | Harriet Harnden (Great Britain) | 0:03:37 |
4 | Isaure Medde (France) | 0:04:39 |
5 | Sofie Heby Pedersen (Denmark) | 0:05:04 |
6 | Ronja Blöchlinger (Switzerland) | 0:05:43 |
7 | Jacqueline Schneebeli (Switzerland) | 0:05:59 |
8 | Marianne Theberge (Canada) | 0:06:06 |
9 | Emma Eydt (Germany) | 0:06:26 |
10 | Raquel Queirós (Portugal) | 0:06:54 |
11 | Giada Specia (Italy) | 0:08:01 |
12 | Magdalena Mišonová (Czech Republic) | 0:08:14 |
13 | Pasquine Vandermouten (France) | 0:08:15 |
14 | Virág Buzsáki (Hungary) | 0:08:20 |
15 | Anna Mcgorum (Great Britain) | 0:08:33 |
16 | Angie Milena Lara Zarazo (Colombia) | 0:09:03 |
17 | Akari Kobayashi (Japan) | 0:09:11 |
18 | Radka Paulechová (Slovakia) | 0:09:30 |
19 | Melanie Tresch (Switzerland) | 0:09:51 |
20 | Zoe Cuthbert (Australia) | 0:09:57 |
21 | Leoni Fend (Germany) | 0:09:58 |
22 | Roxane Vermette (Canada) | 0:09:59 |
23 | Tamara Wiedmann (Austria) | 0:10:26 |
24 | Zandri Strydom (South Africa) | 0:10:33 |
25 | Lisa Baumann (Switzerland) | 0:10:45 |
26 | Tina Züger (Switzerland) | 0:10:59 |
27 | Darya Alexeeva (Russian Federation) | 0:11:06 |
28 | Mireille Larose Gingras (Canada) | 0:11:10 |
29 | Anna Mirolyubova (Russian Federation) | 0:11:31 |
30 | Vita Movrin (Slovenia) | 0:11:32 |
31 | Justine Tonso (France) | Row 30 - Cell 2 |
32 | Agnieszka Szpocinska (Poland) | 0:11:57 |
33 | Catalina Maria Vidaurre Kossmann (Chile) | 0:11:58 |
34 | Madeline Robbins (United States Of America) | 0:12:11 |
35 | Urara Kawaguchi (Japan) | 0:12:48 |
36 | Noëlle Buri (Switzerland) | 0:13:16 |
37 | Monika Kucerová (Czech Republic) | 0:13:35 |
38 | Rina Matsumoto (Japan) | 0:13:38 |
39 | Fiona Eichenberger (Switzerland) | 0:13:40 |
40 | Kata Blanka Vas (Hungary) | 0:14:09 |
41 | Tiffany Keep (South Africa) | 0:15:19 |
42 | Simone Roßberg (Germany) | Row 41 - Cell 2 |
43 | Eva Poidevin (Canada) | Row 42 - Cell 2 |
44 | Saga Molin (Sweden) | Row 43 - Cell 2 |
45 | Mina Ricci (United States Of America) | Row 44 - Cell 2 |
46 | Fatima Anahi Hijar Marin (Mexico) | Row 45 - Cell 2 |
47 | Teagan Atherstone (Australia) | Row 46 - Cell 2 |
48 | Eszter Bereczki (Romania) | Row 47 - Cell 2 |
49 | Surattiya Buppha (Thailand) | Row 48 - Cell 2 |
50 | Aleksandra Ushakova (Russian Federation) | Row 49 - Cell 2 |
51 | Larisa Bošnjak (Croatia) | Row 50 - Cell 2 |
52 | Camila Samso (Argentina) | Row 51 - Cell 2 |
53 | María Valentina Santomartino (Argentina) | Row 52 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Oleksandra Logvinyuk (Ukraine) | Row 53 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Kätlin Kukk (Estonia) | Row 54 - Cell 2 |
Results
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
---|---|---|
1 | Alexandre Balmer (Switzerland) | 1:13:45 |
2 | Leon Reinhard Kaiser (Germany) | 0:00:02 |
3 | Mathis Azzaro (France) | 0:01:13 |
4 | Loris Rouiller (Switzerland) | 0:01:22 |
5 | Moritz Schäb (Germany) | 0:01:53 |
6 | Cameron Wright (Australia) | 0:02:07 |
7 | Alexander Young Andersen (Denmark) | 0:02:15 |
8 | Simone Avondetto (Italy) | 0:02:23 |
9 | Holden Jones (Canada) | 0:02:45 |
10 | Pierre Chabaud (France) | 0:03:46 |
11 | Hugo Peyroux (France) | 0:04:00 |
12 | Carter Woods (Canada) | 0:04:07 |
13 | Kevin Vermaerke (United States Of America) | 0:04:49 |
14 | Tim Van Dijke (Netherlands) | 0:04:59 |
15 | Andreas Emanuele Vittone (Italy) | 0:05:02 |
16 | Charlie Aldridge (Great Britain) | 0:05:04 |
17 | Kedup Gyagang (Switzerland) | Row 16 - Cell 2 |
18 | Jørgen Anmarkrud (Norway) | 0:05:12 |
19 | Luca Schätti (Switzerland) | 0:05:15 |
20 | Benedikt Fritz (Germany) | 0:05:16 |
21 | Lars Hemmerling (Germany) | 0:05:40 |
22 | Clément Horny (Belgium) | 0:05:41 |
23 | Simon Walter (Switzerland) | 0:05:44 |
24 | Carlos Canal Blanco (Spain) | 0:06:20 |
25 | Charles Antoine St-Onge (Canada) | Row 24 - Cell 2 |
26 | Stiven Thür (Switzerland) | 0:06:43 |
27 | Nils Brun (Switzerland) | 0:06:44 |
28 | Alex Miller (Namibia) | Row 27 - Cell 2 |
29 | Ignacio Esteban Gallo Florido (Chile) | 0:06:54 |
30 | Valeriy Sukhnev (Russian Federation) | 0:07:03 |
31 | Nikolay Ivanov (Russian Federation) | 0:07:04 |
32 | David Domingo Campos Motos (Spain) | 0:07:05 |
33 | Eitan Levi (Israel) | 0:07:13 |
34 | Markus Pajur (Estonia) | Row 33 - Cell 2 |
35 | Scott Funston (United States Of America) | 0:07:20 |
36 | Martin Vidaurre Kossman (Chile) | 0:07:30 |
37 | Arne Janssens (Belgium) | 0:07:42 |
38 | Rafael Rita (Portugal) | 0:07:43 |
39 | Matthew Dinham (Australia) | 0:07:54 |
40 | Vilgot Lindh (Sweden) | 0:08:12 |
41 | Sam Fox (Australia) | 0:08:26 |
42 | Cameron Jones (New Zealand) | 0:08:27 |
43 | Markus Kaad Heuer (Denmark) | 0:08:28 |
44 | Gil-Li Gonen (Israel) | Row 43 - Cell 2 |
45 | Markus Eydt (Germany) | 0:08:29 |
46 | Mick Van Dijke (Netherlands) | 0:08:51 |
47 | Zaccaria Toccoli (Italy) | 0:09:10 |
48 | Samuel Jirouš (Czech Republic) | 0:09:17 |
49 | Omer Katzman (Israel) | 0:09:21 |
50 | Ian Millennium (Denmark) | 0:09:33 |
51 | Didac Carvacho Sevilla (Spain) | 0:10:11 |
52 | Hugo Eliasson (Sweden) | 0:10:14 |
53 | Sean Flynn (Great Britain) | 0:10:24 |
54 | Sam Walsh (Australia) | 0:10:29 |
55 | Agustin Duran (Argentina) | 0:11:37 |
56 | Tyler Clark (Canada) | Row 55 - Cell 2 |
57 | Mikhail Pilipchuk (Russian Federation) | Row 56 - Cell 2 |
58 | Paul Fabian (United States Of America) | Row 57 - Cell 2 |
59 | Shinichi Kaminaga (Japan) | Row 58 - Cell 2 |
60 | Adrian Barros Rodriguez (Spain) | Row 59 - Cell 2 |
61 | Colton Woods (Canada) | Row 60 - Cell 2 |
62 | Nadav Raisberg (Israel) | Row 61 - Cell 2 |
63 | Jakub Jencuš (Slovakia) | Row 62 - Cell 2 |
64 | Jeronimo Bedoya Botero (Colombia) | Row 63 - Cell 2 |
65 | František Honsa (Czech Republic) | Row 64 - Cell 2 |
66 | Wiktor Wisniewski (Poland) | Row 65 - Cell 2 |
67 | Tomáš Dudek (Czech Republic) | Row 66 - Cell 2 |
68 | Kilian Folguera Diaz (Andorra) | Row 67 - Cell 2 |
69 | Thomas Creighton (Ireland) | Row 68 - Cell 2 |
70 | Nolan Jenkins (United States Of America) | Row 69 - Cell 2 |
71 | Max Taylor (New Zealand) | Row 70 - Cell 2 |
72 | Maxwell Wickens (New Zealand) | Row 71 - Cell 2 |
73 | Julian Agustin Molina (Argentina) | Row 72 - Cell 2 |
74 | Emanuel Zangerle (Austria) | Row 73 - Cell 2 |
75 | Caleb Bottcher (New Zealand) | Row 74 - Cell 2 |
76 | Jamie Penfold (South Africa) | Row 75 - Cell 2 |
77 | Corey Smith (Australia) | Row 76 - Cell 2 |
78 | Agustin Dominguez (Argentina) | Row 77 - Cell 2 |
79 | Andre Alonso Vega Cordova (Chile) | Row 78 - Cell 2 |
80 | Genadiy Moiseev (Ukraine) | Row 79 - Cell 2 |
81 | Pawel Garczyk (Poland) | Row 80 - Cell 2 |
82 | Dominik Dankowski (Poland) | Row 81 - Cell 2 |
83 | Connor Johnston (New Zealand) | Row 82 - Cell 2 |
84 | Phunsiri Sirimongkhon (Thailand) | Row 83 - Cell 2 |
85 | Niko Heikkilä (Finland) | Row 84 - Cell 2 |
86 | Daniel Van Der Walt (South Africa) | Row 85 - Cell 2 |
87 | August Höglund (Sweden) | Row 86 - Cell 2 |
88 | David Juarez (Venezuela) | Row 87 - Cell 2 |
89 | Tomáš Meriac (Slovakia) | Row 88 - Cell 2 |
90 | Rodzers Petaks (Latvia) | Row 89 - Cell 2 |
91 | Lee Harvey (Ireland) | Row 90 - Cell 2 |
92 | Keagan Bontekoning (South Africa) | Row 91 - Cell 2 |
93 | Vasile-Gabriel Silaghi (Romania) | Row 92 - Cell 2 |
94 | Sebastian Brenes Mata (Costa Rica) | Row 93 - Cell 2 |
95 | Yudai Fujiki (Japan) | Row 94 - Cell 2 |
96 | Rangsiman Hangquart (Thailand) | Row 95 - Cell 2 |
97 | Stjepan Hunjak (Croatia) | Row 96 - Cell 2 |
98 | Koutarou Murakami (Japan) | Row 97 - Cell 2 |
99 | Silviu-Narcis Buzan (Romania) | Row 98 - Cell 2 |
100 | Josh Burnett (New Zealand) | Row 99 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Filippo Fontana (Italy) | Row 100 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Erik Fetter (Hungary) | Row 101 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Adair Zabdiel Gutierrez Prieto (Mexico) | Row 102 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Matevž Govekar (Slovenia) | Row 103 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Jake Yackle (United States Of America) | Row 104 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Ádám István Fülöp (Hungary) | Row 105 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Miha Klemencic (Slovenia) | Row 106 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Harry Birchill (Great Britain) | Row 107 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Alex Juan Pablo Zapata Unas (Colombia) | Row 108 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Mirco Näf (Switzerland) | Row 109 - Cell 2 |
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Latest on Cyclingnews
-
Zoe Bäckstedt carries road racing form into cyclocross season with an eye on Worlds
Geert Wellens joins Canyon-SRAM as new cyclocross director -
Baloise Trek say SRAM chain failures cost European cyclocross championship medals
Manager Sven Nys points to ongoing issues with components -
Rigoberto Urán closes out professional cycling career with farewell event at Medellín stadium among 8000 fans
'I was able to fight and inspire an entire country' -
'The contract was ready' - Remco Evenepoel was reportedly offered multi-million euro contract by Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe
HLN analyst Michel Wuyts reveals details of bid to try and lure Evenepoel away from Soudal-QuickStep