Pidcock and Stigger Battle to XCO Victories in Nové Město Na Moravě

Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Premier Tech) sprinted to UCI Cross-country Short Track (XCC) World Cup victory on her return to the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series in Nové Město Na Moravě, while fellow multi-discipline superstar Tom Pidcock was denied by a late kick from Mathis Azzaro (Origine Racing Division).Both XCC races came down the final straight of the final lap and Pieterse and Azzaro each kept their cool to round the leader and take victory on the tactical course in Czechia.Pidcock had gone from last to first in the men’s race but was overhauled late on by Azzaro, who managed to hold onto his brutal attack on the final lap. The Frenchman retains the Elite Men UCI XCC World Cup overall lead while fifth-placed Sina Frei (Specialized Factory Racing) stays atop the women’s leaderboard.RELENTLESS PIETERSE CAPS GLORIOUS RETURNPuck Pieterse emerged victorious from an intensely brutal women’s race packed with drama, fighting through from close to the back of the pack to win the sprint. The Dutch superstar hit the front at the start of lap three and attacked up the climb every lap in the second half of the race, putting her competition in the red each time even if she couldn’t shake them off.Instead, the key selection in the race came on the start/finish straight rather than the steep uphill section when Alessandra Keller (Thömus maxon) and Frei’s handlebars tangled, sending the UCI XCC World Champion into the barriers alongside Jolanda Neff (Cannondale Factory Racing).Neff cut a slightly ominous figure, opting for skinny gravel tyres in conditions a world apart from the apocalyptic weather last time out in MONA YongPyong. However, she ended the day with little more than a sore hand to show for it, later saying: “I wouldn’t do anything differently”.There threatened to be even more carnage when Trek - Unbroken XC’s Evie Richards - who was brought to a standing stop by that crash - engaged Pieterse in an all-out battle to the first corner of the final lap before the Dutchwoman once again attacked on the climb.Yet it was Jenny Rissveds (Canyon XC Racing) who led over the summit, with Pieterse allowing herself to be led out. Nicole Koller (Lapierre PXR Racing) was the first to jump but was passed by Pieterse and Laura Stigger (Specialized Factory Racing), with Richards finishing an impressive fourth after getting caught up in the crash.“I’ve missed it,” Pieterse said. “Here it always gets quite bunchy on the road and slows down a bit, however this year Jenny [Rissveds] was setting such a high pace that it took me a bit to get to the front. When I was there, I just decided to stay there, and tried to keep in control for the final sprint.“I saw Nicole [Koller] coming from the left and she was starting to step on the pedals. I thought ‘now I have to kick’, so I did. It’s super cool, flashbacks to last year’s Short Track here. The goal for tomorrow is just to keep the material [equipment] good and see from there how a one and a half-hour effort compares to the four-hour road sessions.”AZZARO OUTDUELS PATIENT PIDCOCK It was a much cagier men’s race without a presence like Pieterse or Rissveds to push the pace, and Pidcock spent the first four laps dead last to avoid the potential pitfalls of a much bigger bunch at the front.However, first Luca Schwarzbauer (Canyon XC Racing) then the returning Jordan Sarrou (BMC Factory Racing) belated kicked the race into gear and Pidcock himself finally stirred on the fifth lap, reaching the front by the sixth.Another stalemate ensued, only broken by the bell that sparked a drag race into the bottom of the final ascent, won by Charlie Aldridge (Cannondale Factory Racing) before Pidcock lit the touchpaper on the climb, shooting into the lead.Yet Azzaro spotted the move early enough to cling to the Brit’s wheel and Pidcock couldn’t shake the pack on the following jump line so was forced to jump early on the final straight, setting up Azzaro to outsprint him for victory while Dario Lillo (Giant Factory Off-Road Team XC) finished third.“Unreal, I felt the whole day I had the legs, but I was super nervous. You have to stay on the bike. That was the position I wanted in the finish,” Azzaro said.“I knew that Tom [Pidcock] was coming from the back, I just waited, he came the last lap like a Formula 1 car, and I just jumped into the wheel. It’s a name that everyone knows and I’m super proud to beat him, it’s great to race with a champion like this.”Meanwhile Pidcock admitted he waited too long to move up from last place in the field but added: “I knew when he was straight on my wheel. It’s hard coming back to mountain bike from some time away. I feel like I’ve no idea what I’m doing when I come back, so it’s just nice to get that first race out the way, know that I’ve still got the legs. It’s always a doubt when I come back.“I’m here to try and win, I’ve done it every other time. I’m here so need to keep that streak going [tomorrow].”SCHEHL AND KELLERMAN CELEBRATE U23 WINSPaul Schehl (Lexware Mountainbike Team) and Makena Kellerman claimed victory in the men’s and women’s U23 UCI XCC World Cup on Friday but did so in contrasting styles.Kellerman did it the traditional “patient” way, dropping the hammer on the final lap and winning the sprint while Schehl was the only XCC rider to drop the field, opening a seven-second lead on the penultimate lap and holding his advantage until the finish.“Normally it’s a very tactical race where it comes down to the last lap and a crazy sprint, but I don’t have the best sprint, so I said ‘I need to make it super hard, I need to go super early and long” Schehl said.The riders are done for the XCC, but the action is far from over. The Nové Město na Moravě weekend wraps up in style on Sunday with the elite men’s and women’s Cross-country Olympic races. Find out how to watch here.

Embacher broke away from the pack early on lap two and was never seen again, even having time to soak up the crowd’s adoration. Behind, reigning champion Valentina Corvi (Canyon XC Racing) was edged out in the sprint for second by Anina Hutter, though the Italian continues to lead the UCI U23 Women’s XCO World Cup standings.François Baudry went clear with three laps to go but never built up the monster buffer that Embacher managed, so endured a nervier finish as the gap yo-yoed to Alix Andre-Gallis (Decathlon Ford Racing Team), with the Spaniard eventually prevailing and taking the overall lead.EMBACHER ANNOUNCES ARRIVAL IN STYLEEmbacher’s fourth-place finish in the UCI Cross-country Short Track (XCC) World Cup at Nové Město Na Moravě already looked like a breakthrough result as the Austrian’s first top-five finish in the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, but she proved she was far from ready to settle for that in Czechia.Corvi was the only rider within a minute of Embacher at the start of lap three, but even the UCI World Cup leader and reigning champion had slipped to nearly 90 seconds back by the next time they crossed the start-finish line.Embacher led chasers Corvi, Hutter, Maruša Tereza Šerkezi (Cube Factory Racing) and Ella MacPhee (Wilier-Vittoria Factory Team) by two whole minutes as she took the bell, but the Austrian would begin to fade, and that pack fractured chasing a podium place.Šerkezi and MacPhee were shaken by Hutter and Corvi, and the Swiss clinched second in the sprint to the line, having cut 34 seconds from Embacher’s lead in an effort that was just too little, much too late.“I don’t know what to say, the whole race was crazy for me,” Embacher said. “I just stuck to my pace, got a little gap and tried to ride my rhythm. I’m just really thankful and proud.“Every lap [the gap] got more and more, I was hearing it from the side because there were so many spectators, I was just trying to ride and it ended really well for me.“It’s just a lot of self confidence and I look forward to the rest of the season to see what comes.”FRANÇOIS BAUDRY LANDS DREAM NOVÉ MĚSTO TRIUMPHFrançois Baudry never enjoyed the same cushion to second place in Czechia, but his attack on the fifth lap was enough to keep Andre-Gallis behind him despite the Frenchman’s late charge.Marius Aune was the only rider to build any sliver of a gap in the first half of the race, but François Baudry quickly wiped out his four-second advantage when he kicked clear with only Andre-Gallis and Naël Rouffiac (Origine Racing Division) able to stay in touch at 18 seconds back.However, François Baudry backed it up with another fastest lap to nearly double his lead, continuing to pull away from Rouffiac, while Andre-Gallis dropped his compatriot but could only claw back six seconds on the leader.After winning his first WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series race last time out in South Korea, François Baudry now has a maiden UCI XCO World Cup triumph under his belt, and was on cloud nine in his victory interview.“I’m living a dream right now, winning here in Nové Město is crazy, it’s the most mythical one, so happy,” François Baudry said.“I was feeling good before coming here. Yesterday I was a bit too confident, was not a real good short track, but today I was feeling super good from the start and finally I won.“I have no words, I was in another zone, another world. I was enjoying it a lot, that’s why you’re working every day, training and sometimes you cry on the bike because you’re going through the pain, that’s why I do it. I have my parents here almost crying, all the team is super happy, it’s so nice.”Embacher, François Baudry and their U23 brethren are next in action at Saalfelden Leogang - Salzburgerland in June, but the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series thrills and spills in Czechia are still far from over.Sunday brings the elite men’s and women’s UCI XCO World Cup races, as Puck Pieterse (Alpecin - Premier Tech) and Tom Pidcock headline the grand finale in Nové Město Na Moravě. Find out how to watch here.

Ahead of the opening round of the 2026 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series in MONA YongPyong, South Korea on 1-3 May, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Sports has finalised a standout roster of broadcast partners and agreements to ensure comprehensive coverage of the series to fans worldwide.Every UCI Cross-country and UCI Downhill World Cup round will be broadcast live and on demand through WBD’s channels and platforms, including Eurosport (across Europe) and TNT Sports (in the UK and Ireland) with streaming also on HBO Max as well as around the world through WBD’s broadcast partners.Fans can follow the UCI Enduro World Cup through a range of dedicated content, including course previews featuring the route and its key sections, practice day and race day video highlights on the official YouTube channel, key race moments on social media and live timings on the official WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series website.WHERE TO WATCHMountain bike fans across Europe can enjoy live coverage of the Elite UCI Cross-country Olympic (XCO), Cross-country Short Track (XCC) and UCI Downhill World Cups in the following territories:Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Baltics, Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Türkiye, Ukraine – HBO Max / EurosportIreland – TNT SportsUnited Kingdom – HBO Max, TNT SportsFans in Indonesia, Macao, Malaysia, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Chinese Taipei and Thailand can watch live coverage of every round on Eurosport World, while fans in the USA will be able to stream coverage on HBO Max.Live coverage of every round will also be available throughout the season in Australia on Stan Sport, in Canada on FloSports and in LATAM on DirecTV and MTBWS TV.Additional sub‑licence agreements may apply on a round‑by‑round basis, with full details published ahead of each event.In markets without WBD platforms or sub‑licence partners, such as the African continent or New Zealand,, coverage will be available on MTBWS TV, the evolution of WBD Sports’ distribution partnership with streaming service Staylive. For more information, visit the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series official website to check availability in your location.In addition to coverage of Elite racing at UCI Cross-country and Downhill World Cups, the racing at the Junior UCI Downhill World Cup will be available to watch throughout the season on HBO Max (in all available territories) and MTBWS TV via subscription.WHERE TO WATCH: MONA YONGPYONG, SOUTH KOREAThe 2026 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series season kicks off this weekend in MONA YongPyong (South Korea).  In addition to the above, cross-country and downhill coverage of this round will also be available in the following territories on the following channels and platforms:Czechia – CT Sports (Only Elite XCC, Elite Downhill and Women Elite XCO races live)Switzerland, Liechtenstein – SRG/RSI (Only Elite XCC and XCO races live)South Korea – KBSN (Only Elite Downhill races live)ENHANCED BROADCASTLast season saw the introduction of a range of new broadcast features designed to help fans better understand the racing and connect more closely with teams, with these innovations set to continue in 2026.Broadcast graphics will continue to maximise on-screen visibility and increase media value for teams, athletes and brands, by incorporating elements such as headshots, race bike images, team logos, colours, career numbers and national flags. Together, these elements create a cohesive and instantly recognisable visual identity across events and media platforms.WBD will also continue to provide deeper context for fans at home, with accessible, data-driven insights such as heart-rate zones and athlete strain metrics during races, all powered by WHOOP. FPV drones will continue to be integrated into the live broadcast, providing dynamic aerial angles and immersive perspectives that enhance the viewing experience and bring fans closer to the action.Supporting the storytelling of the series and its athletes, Ashleigh Wilmot, Josh Carlson, Oli Beckingsale and Ric McLaughlin will return to screens for live coverage, with former Enduro rider Elliott Heap joining as a presenter across all Enduro video content.In addition to live coverage, the round up show The B Line will deliver a more entertaining, exclusive take on each downhill and cross-country race weekend, featuring athlete perspectives, behind‑the‑scenes insights and untold anecdotes that bring the characters, chaos and personality of the sport to life. Following each race weekend, The B Line will be published every Monday on the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series YouTube channel.In 2025, the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series saw record-breaking worldwide TV viewership, generating over 87 million cumulative views across the season. The majority of the audience was driven via WBD’s channels and platforms (HBO Max, Eurosport, discovery+ and TNT Sports), with growth was fuelled by thousands of hours of racing broadcast on over 25 partner TV and streaming channels, reaching fans in over 150 countries and territories worldwide.Following the start of the UCI Cross-country and UCI Downhill World Cup, the UCI Enduro World Cup launches in Loudenvielle-Peyragudes (France) on 28 May.