The French rider topped the rest on the iconic track for the second straight year, beating Germany’s Hoffman and Austria’s Höll. Fifth place was enough for Camille Balanche to celebrate her first overall World Cup
It didn’t take so long for Myriam Nicole to make up for Les Gets’ World Championships disappointment. In Val di Sole, the French rider found the perfect rhythm on her favorite track once again, and after conquering the 2021 World title on the Black Snake, she managed to repeat in the 2022 World Cup finals.
The rider of the Commencal/MucOff Team was clearly above the rest in the first half of the track, taming the most treacherous and technical stints, and managed to hold her own in the finale in spite of unclipping a pedal and losing some pace in the process. Behind her, German Nina Hoffman (Santa Cruz Syndicate, +4.069) confirmed her progression through the season, notably in the most technical and selective tracks like the Val di Sole’s one, and Austrian World Champion Valentina Höll (Rockshox Trek, +6.235) came in third. Fifth position on the day was enough for Swiss Camille Balanche (Dorval Am Commencal +10.637) to secure the overall World Cup title – an even more remarkable fit when recalling that she had suffered a broken collarbone exactly one month ago.
“This season was a bit of a struggle, with lots of ups and downs, but I see that when I come into an event with little pressure it’s where I perform at my best, so I know what to work on,” said Myriam Nicole. “The track was sketchy, naughty today. I didn’t feel that well coming into this one, I was really demoralized after last week’s World Champs, but to see the teamwork and their effort put me on fire, so I had to do it. I wasn’t sure my performance would be enough as my pedal unclipped in the lower part and couldn’t quite ride the way I wanted, but it panned out well, and I am very happy for Camille as well.”
“I am over the moon, winning the World Cup is a dream come true. I am so tired and excited I can barely speak,” said new World Cup champion Balanche. “It was a perfect season, in spite of the injury and the surgery. Returning to racing so early was painful, but ultimately worth it. Now I feel empty and happy, it will take a while to realize what happened. I knew I was able to get down the slope, but clearly I was a passenger on the bike today, didn’t have the strength to hold the bike. To even have managed to finish on the day’s podium is special.”
