Friday in Daolasa di Commezzadura was dominated by Alpecin-Deceuninck's athletes: the World Champion from New Zealand and the Dutchwoman, who outsprinted France’s Ferrand-Prevot in anticipation of another probable duel on Sunday. Tomorrow, the legendary Black Snake awaits the World’s top performers for the Downhill finals
Being on the race field in Daolasa di Commezzadura (Trentino, Italy), it just takes a few moments to fully grasp why the best mountain biking athletes in the world love this place so much: the relaxing sound of the Noce stream, the surrounding landscape, and the warmth of the Italian fans are just the prelude to an always great competition. And it’s when races begin that smiles turn into masks of concentration and the quietness gives room to the excitement. In cycling, the great classics are those races where winning is worth something more, and Val di Sole can boast its “classic” status with pride.
On Friday, June 14, there was a different and more intense atmosphere around the paddock and along the tracks and courses of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series. Already with the Semi-finals, the Black Snake provided emotions that promised great challenges in Saturday’s final round, and the Short Track races offered high-speed and high-adrenaline duels, as perhaps never before in this season’s Short Track races.
The winners were New Zealand’s Sam Gaze, World Champion in this discipline, and the Netherlands’ Puck Pieterse, who in Val di Sole had already managed to win the Cross Country race, as well as the snowy Cyclocross round in Vermiglio. It was a sweep by the Alpecin-Deceuninck team, enjoying plenty of success even without Mathieu Van der Poel, who’s preparing for the Olympics on the road.
Both Gaze and Pieterse had to earn their crowns right down to the last meters, in two races where the heavy calibers responded, from Ferrand-Prevot, second and narrowly beaten, to the great Nino Schurter, fourth in the Cross Country format he least likes. On Sunday there will be fun, and the Val di Sole public will be part and parcel of that fun.
SAM GAZE CLAIMS FULL THROTTLE XCC
The Short Track in Val di Sole has changed its face, with a much faster and more streamlined course, designed entirely in the lower part of the Daolasa race field, for the maximum enjoyment of the many spectators already present on Friday. But the finale is always an exciting one, because after a race with a less significant difference in altitude, but with many changes of pace, Val di Sole has once again provided the hardest Short Track race of the season, at least so far.
In the men's Elite field, the race lived according to a constant theme: full throttle and selection from behind. The variation, after four laps, was offered by Italian Luca Braidot, and perhaps not many were expecting it. The Italian twin hasn’t had the best season so far, and was expected to give some signals before the Paris Olympics. Braidot went ahead by taking advantage of the sharp curves of the Val di Sole track, relaunching and taking advantage of the uncertainty of the bunch behind him.
To get him back, it took a change of pace by Filippo Colombo with Nino Schurter in his wake, someone who in Val di Sole feels like he's in his own living room, with eight victories in his personal hall of fame. Nine laps out of eleven were gone, and it all had to be done again from scratch.
At the decisive moment, six athletes emerged from the head of the peloton: Gaze (Alpecin), Koretzky (Specialized), Schuermans (Giant), Fini (Lapierre), Colombo, and Schurter (Scott SRAM). The sextet went down to a Short Track sprint, one that had a clear favorite: arms raised and rainbow on the chest, Sam Gaze had time to savor Daolasa's public cheering for him. Place of honor for the leader of the specialty ranking Victor Koretzky, ahead of Belgium’s Jens Schuermans, and Nino Schurter.
“The race came out harder than we expected” said Gaze: “I am really happy to have pulled it off and have good feelings. It was a great start to the weekend for our team. I think the last couple of rounds the attention was focused a little bit more on the final race, the Cross Country, rather than pushing so hard in the Short Track. Today the goal was just to race and give it all. It’s great to be racing here in Val di Sole, looking forward to the Cross Country on Sunday on this new course, and the fans are always great here”.
PIETERSE TAKES FIRST ROUND OVER FERRAND-PREVOT
It was the most anticipated clash, both in Short Track and in Cross Country, and so far it has lived up to expectations. Puck Pieterse and Pauline Ferrand-Prèvot’s duel on Val di Sole’s new XCC course was faster than in previous years.
The Dutch rider from Alpecin-Deceuninck, winner of the Cross Country event in 2023, left the World Champion from INEOS-Grenadiers behind her thanks to a powerful sprint that earned her the win in today’s Val di Sole Short Track race.
After a rocket start by Italian Chiara Teocchi, Puck Pieterse took command of the situation in the fourth round, but could not open a gap to the rest. The tactical standstill resisted until the last round, when Pieterse and Ferrand-Prèvot managed to make the difference in the final uphill section. The World Champion approached the final sprint in the lead, but Pieterse overtook her a few meters before the finish line.
USA athlete Savilia Blunk (Decathlon) ranked third ahead of South African Candice Lill and Switzerland’s Alessandra Keller (Thomus Maxon).
“I had a tactical plan: to compete head-on and I succeeded in my aim,” said
Pieterse. “I'm happy for this success, it wasn't an easy one. The final with Pauline was very difficult but I think I was good in my final sprint."
The U23 Short Track races rewarded two of the most promising young people on the scene: Bjorn Riley and Kira Böhm. The American from Team Trek Future Racing managed to shake himself off all his opponents, starting from his compatriot Riley Amos (Trek Factory Racing), who finished in second place ahead of Ukrainian Oleksandr Hudyma (KMC Riley). Germany’s Kira Böhm (Cube Factory Racing), true ruler of this discipline, won in front of a Canadian due composed by Isabella Holmgren and Emilly Johnson.
