The second UCI Enduro World Cup round of this year’s WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series brought riders to the iconic slopes of the Epic Bike Park in Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburgerland (Austria).
Riders completed 73.37 kilometres of racing across six demanding stages, including 2,000 metres of descending. The conditions were also a challenge with heavy rain showers throughout the day resulting in slippery conditions on the slopes.
After finishing third at the venue last year, 19-year-old Winnifred Goldsbury showed her talent by winning the Elite Women’s race by an impressive margin of 24 seconds from defending overall champion Ella Conolly and Mélanie Pugin (Speed Project) in third.
Defending Elite Men’s overall champion Sławomir Łukasik (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) took his first win of this season’s campaign by just four seconds ahead of Lief Rodgers in second, while Marius Tenet Berrat took third in a close finish.
Speed Project won the mixed team competition and extended their lead in the overall team standings, ahead of Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team. In the Men’s Junior category Hugo Marti Montessinos recorded his second win of the season, while Nežka Libnik took the Women’s Junior honours.
GOLDSBURY SHOWS TALENT IN MAIDEN ELITE UCI WORLD CUP WIN
In just her second year as a Women’s Elite rider Winnifred Goldsbury conquered the slippery Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburgerland slopes to make her own history. However, it was rival Ella Conolly who came into the race full of confidence after dominating the previous round at Loudenvielle-Peyragudes (France).
The 2.4-kilometre opening stage provided a rocky feel of what would follow. Goldsbury showed her talent and took an early 16-second lead, ahead of Mélanie Pugin (Speed Project) and Conolly was at 22.3 seconds. The battle continued into the longer 3.6-kilometre X Line section and Goldsbury again led the way, despite riding the stage with a puncture. Conolly used her previous experience of the stage to remain just seven tenths of a second behind, while Nadine Ellecosta placed a close third.
The 1.7-kilometre long Matzalm Trail provided a test of bike handling with the course littered by chunky roots. Goldsbury had further issues after a small crash resulted in her losing four seconds. Elly Hoskins set her first best time on the stage of 4:53, with Conolly just two seconds behind the leading time. Pugin was another casualty of the difficult third stage as a crash saw her lose 16 seconds.
Talented Slovakian rider Simona Kuchyňková (Cube Action Team) had a nightmare opening round in Loudenvielle-Peyragudes when a mechanical off the starting ramp ended her day. After losing time on the early stages Kuchyňková came charging back on the iconic Hangman test, finishing the 1.78-kilometre stage in 4:13.
Goldsbury remained in overall control, despite seeing her early lead reduced slightly by Conolly. A short transition followed to the short but difficult 820-metre long Back to the Roots.
Goldsbury showed her fearlessness nature as her time of 3:00 was 5.5 seconds faster than Pugin and 13.6 seconds better than Conolly. Despite finishing eighth on the short final stage Goldsbury had done enough to secure her maiden Elite UCI World Cup victory.
Conolly finished runner-up and leads the overall standings after two rounds, while Pugin settled for third after suffering several crashes during the day.
“To win my first Elite World Cup here means so much to me,” said Goldsbury. “This is where I won my first Junior World Cup. Coming back here and doing that well is crazy for me.”
ŁUKASIK BATTLES BACK IN OVERALL TITLE DEFENCE
Defending overall champion Sławomir Łukasik (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) was pushed all the way for victory on the slippery slopes of Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburgerland. The Polish rider came into the round looking for redemption after crashing in Loudenvielle-Peyragudes and losing vital points.
Frenchman Marius Tenet Berrat finished a career-best eighth position two weeks earlier on home soil. The 20-year-old looked to go even better on the Austrian slopes and posted a best time of 5:55 on the 2.4-kilometre opening section.
Łukasik was determined to have an improved performance in Austria and was three seconds back after the opening stage, along with Lief Rodgers. Meanwhile, Jt Fisher (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) was an early withdrawal after crashing on the first stage and was left frustrated following a promising practice session on Friday. Round 1 winner Alex Rudeau also had issues in the opening stage and lost 23 seconds to his title rivals.
The second stage provided a mixture of terrain in 3.67 kilometres, including rocky and wooded sections, alongside a section of bike park with a good surface to help speed. Łukasik used his power and experience to post a fastest time of 7:23, some five seconds faster than Rudeau, while Tenet Berrat lost a further two seconds.
Rudeau responded to the pressure and showed his bike handling ability again on stage 3 to post a quickest time of 3:54 over the 1.78-kilometre stage. Meanwhile, Łukasik only managed eighth on the stage some 10 seconds back and saw his overall lead cut to two seconds by Tenet Berrat, while Rodgers also remained in contention.
The defending overall champion was tested again on the difficult 1.87-kilometre-long Hangman section. Łukasik rose to the occasion winning the stage by just one tenth of a second from Rodgers, while Tenet Berrat lost four seconds in the overall tussle. With little to separate the top three riders overall the fearsome Back to the Roots test the concentration of all the challengers. Rudeau was quickest clocking 2:24 over the 820-metre test, with Rodgers a close second and Łukasik losing three seconds and seeing his overall lead cut to four seconds.
In the final stage Łukasik completed his performance by going fastest, while Rodgers secured a career-best runner-up spot overall. Tenet Berrat was also celebrating after clinching a first UCI Enduro World Cup podium with third. Rudeau recovered from a first stage crash to place sixth and keeps his lead in the overall heading into the third round.
Race winner Łukasik said: “I’m so happy. I was so stressed after the last round. I felt pretty good in Loudenvielle-Peyragudes and I don’t know what happened. I knew Leogang is pretty good for me as I’ve known this place for many years from downhill and enduro. It’s finally getting number one after finishing twice in third place.”
MONTESSINOS AND LIBNIK HOLD NERVES AND TAKE COMMANDING WINS
Hugo Marti Montessinos continued his domination of the Men’s Junior category by taking his second win from as many rounds. The Frenchman carried his confidence into the first stage and set the quickest time by five seconds. However, Italian Lorenzo Noferini responded on the 3.67-kilometre long X Line, with Montessinos losing 10 seconds and the overall lead to Czech rider Šimon Lehký. Montessinos responded and held his nerve on the iconic Hangman stage, posting the quickest time and finishing 10 seconds faster than Lehký. The Frenchman did not look back also winning the fifth and placing second on the last stage to secure the overall honours. Meanwhile, a battle behind saw German rider Quirin Bach place consistently to edge second place, finishing five tenths of a second quicker than Lehký in third.
The Women’s Junior category was blown open after previous round winner Romy Williams failed to finish the opening stage and was out of the event. Nežka Libnik took control winning every stage and winning overall by 3:31. Swedish competitor Ella Mårtensson placed second and Emily Malin Hoyle was third.
“The race was super fun,” said Libnik. “It was sketchy at moments, but it was very nice. I fell two times, but I got up and continued with the race. The views are so nice, I’ll definitely come back here.”
The WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series will provide another weekend of packed action when it continues at Bike Kingdom – Lenzerheide in Switzerland between 19 and 21 June. UCI Downhill World Cup competitors will be joined by Endurance riders, who will compete in the UCI XCC and XCO World Cup. Meanwhile, Enduro riders will return to action at Val di Fassa – Trentino (Italy) on 26 to 28 June.
