The penultimate day of the 2020 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Leogang, Austria, saw the final day of racing for the cross-country events. The U23 Women, Elite Women, and Elite Men would all take to the technical and muddy course to contest the rainbow jersey. For the U.S., Haley Batten (Park City, Utah; Specialized Factory Racing) came closest, earning fourth place in the U23 Women’s event.
The day started with the U23 Women’s event kicking off at 10:00 am local time. The 39-rider field did 4 laps of the 3.6-kilometer course with a one lap of the start loop. For Team USA, Batten was on the front row of the start. After the initial start loop, Batten came through in second behind Loana Lecomte of France, who won both of the most recent Elite Women’s Cross-Country World Cup events in Nove Mesto. Over the course of the next lap and a half, Batten dropped back to fourth and maintained that position through the finish. Batten finished in a time of 1:17:12.
In the elite women’s race, Kate Courtney (Kentfield, Calif.; SCOTT/ SRAM Racing) and Erin Huck (Boulder, Colo.; Stages Cycling-Scott) took the start in the red, white, and blue jerseys. Courtney, the 2018 World Champion, started on the front row. After the initial start loop, Courtney sat seventh, and Huck was close behind in 16th. After a mechanical in the first full lap, and then a crash, Courtney withdrew from the race. Huck persevered and pushed through at a steady tempo. She raced into 16th place, in a time of 1:36:25.
Keegan Swenson (Park City, Utah; Stan's-Pivot Pro Team p/b Maxxis) took the start for Team USA in the Elite Men’s race. Swenson started mid-way through the 87-rider field and worked hard to move up into the top 30 in the first lap. Race winner, Jordan Sarrou of France, attacked early in the first lap and stayed at the front for the entire race. Swenson finished six minutes back from Sarrou in 29th place.
1. Loana Locomte FRA 1:13:34
2. Kata Blanka Vas HUN +1:11
3. Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado NED +2:42
4. Haley Batten USA +3:38
1. Pauline Ferrand-Prevot FRA 1:27:33
2. Eva Lechner ITA +3:01
3. Rebecca McConnell AUS +3:01
17. Erin Huck USA +8:52
DNF. Kate Courtney USA
1. Jordan Sarrou FRA 1:25:37
2. Mathias Flueckiger SUI +0:45
3.Titiouan Carod FRA +0:55
29. Keegan Swenson USA +6:00
The 2020 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships conclude tomorrow with the Downhill Finals for Elite and Juniors.
Junior Women's Downhill
Who to Watch (All times local):
9:37:00 am Ella Erickson (Hayden, Idaho; Commencal)
Junior Men's Downhill
Who to Watch (All times local):
10:34:00 am Christopher Grice (Brevard, N.C.; Specialized Factory Racing)
10:36:00 am Austin Dooley (Yucaipa, Calif.; Commencal)
10:43:00 am Dante Silva (Chula Vista, Calif.)
10:58:00 am Matthew Sterling (San Jose, Calif.; Giant Factory Off-Road Team)
Elite Women's Downhill
Who to Watch (All times local):
12:58:00 pm Mazie Hayden (Pittsfield, Vt.; Defiant Racing)
1:02:00 pm Anna Newkirk (Riehen, Switzerland; SRAM Young Guns Racing)
Elite Men's Downhill
Who to Watch (All times local):
3:22:00 pm Aaron Gwin (Murietta, Calif.; Intense Factory Racing)
3:24:00 pm Neko Mullaly (Pisgah Forest, N.C.; Intense Factory Racing)
3:41:00 pm Luca Shaw (Hendersonville, N.C.; Santa Cruz Syndicate)
3:53:00 pm Dakotah Norton (Knoxville, Tenn.; Unior Devinci Factory Racing)
4:08:30 pm Charlie Harrison (Trabuco Canyon, Calif.; Trek Factory Racing)
To cheer for Team USA and get up to date info regarding your favorite riders, follow @USACyclingLIVE on Twitter and @USACycling on all other platforms. The Elite races will be live-streamed as part of the NBC Sports Gold Package, with replays later in the day on the Olympic Channel.
Visit USACycling.org for more information on the athletes, events, and membership programs, and follow @USACycling across all channels for the latest on Team USA.
