On another day with gorgeous weather in Vallnord we have lived the thrill of the DH competitions. Riders have found a circuit that was quite dry in the more open sections, but still very muddy in wooded areas.
The first of the favorites to make a good time was the 3 times World Champion Greg Minnaar, who has sat in the hot seat with more than 4 seconds margin: “I knew that time was worth a medal, but I was also aware that I had made some small mistakes and that my run could not be sufficient for the victory”.
After him it was the time for the champion of last year’s World Champs, Gee Atherton, who arrived to Vallnord in good form to defend his number 1. However, a crash in one of the fastest areas has wiped out his options. Bryceland, silver medal last year, has made a good run without big mistakes that has placed him second in the absence of 3 riders to go. It was the time for the French Loic Bruni to perform the winning run, that has shattered Minnaar’s time in 2.3 second. The 2012 Junior World Champion had secured a medal, but he clearly did not want to comply with just any metal.
And so we came to the last two riders, Troy Brosnan and the World Cup overall winner Aaron Gwin who, in search of a podium spot, have risked up to the limit where success and failure meet. Both have suffered crashes that have left them with no podium chances.
So Bruni is the new World Champion, with Minnaar and Bryceland taking silver and bronze respectively.
Rachel Atherton reigns again
In the women race Rachel Atherton commented this week that her victory in the World Cup overall was enough to consider this season already a success. Still, she came to Vallnord to recover the World Champion title that her compatriot Manon Carpenter took away from her last year. The race was a battle between the usual favorites, but with the uncertainty created by the course conditions.
Atherton has achieved her goal and returns to wear the rainbow jersey, a milestone that she has already achieved 3 times. With this victory, Atherton’s takes both World Cup and World Champs.
Manon Carpenter exchanged positions and medals from last year with Atherton. Manon has done a good run, but the margin has been big with Rachel: 3.2 seconds. The bronze medal has been for the Australian Tracey Hannah, who posted the fastest time and occupied the hot seat race during some minutes. He was the only rider able to break the British monopole on the podium, but being 9.9 seconds slower than the winner.
In the men’s junior race, the British Laurie Greenland is the new World Champion. His race was perfect, being 2nd in the first split and leading the race in the second. He was joined on the podium by the Belgian Martin Maes and Australian Jackson Frew.
On the women junior category, the difference between these young athletes has been important. The French Marine Cabirou has won the title with more than 7 seconds on her compatriot Viktoria Gimenez. A time almost half a minute slower has been enough to get the bronze medal, which has been won by the Hungarian Lilla Megyaszai.
SEE RESULTS
