A long first day of racing at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships presented by Mercedes-Benz in Saalfelden Leogang came to an end today with the E-MTB Cross Country competitions. The men's race was won by young Briton Tom Pidcock, who seems to have mastered all disciplines of biking: mountain bike, cyclo-cross, road bike, track and now also e-bike.
This is the second world championship gold on the mountain bike for the man from Great Britain, who is used to success, after he secured the world championship title in the U23 category last year.
In 2020, Pidcock already competed at the Cyclo-Cross World Championships, where he was only beaten by Dutch rider Mathieu Van der Poel. The strong Briton also competed at the Road World Championships in Imola, only to prevail a few weeks later in Saalfelden Leogang at his third World Championships this year, 35 seconds ahead of Frenchman Jerome Gilloux and Dane Simon Andreassen on the e-bike: ‘This victory definitely gives me a lot of confidence for the next race here,’ said Pidcock, who is once again the favourite in the U23 category of the cyclo-cross race on Friday.
In the women's race, Melanie Pugin secured the second French World Championship gold of the day. ‘I felt very comfortable today, especially on the technical parts of the course. This World Championship title is a bonus, the rainbow jersey feels wonderful. I'm very proud of it.’ Pugin prevailed against the two strong Swiss riders Kathrin Stirnemann and last year's world champion Nathalie Schneitter. From an Austrian perspective, Jacqueline Mariacher claimed another top ten place in the E-MTB Cross Country race on the first day of the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Saalfeden Leogang for the red-white-red contingent. The East Tyrolean finished in tenth place.
Tomorrow, Thursday, the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships presented by Mercedes-Benz in Saalfelden Leogang will continue with the junior cross country events. The women will start at 1.30 pm, with Austria's medal hope Mona Mitterwallner, and the men at 3.30 pm.
The elite decisions of the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships presented by Mercedes Benz in Saalfelden Leogang will be shown on Saturday and Sunday on ORF Sport+, on ZDF Livestream and on Red Bull TV.
