We are moving towards the end of this 2022 season. An important year for national Cross Country which has seen many athletes position themselves in the top parts of the results, an excellent sign for our movement.
The present
The present seems rosy, in fact, after the striking results of Luke Braidot, we can hope for 2023 as protagonists. To this we can add the iris conquered by Avondetto in the under 23 category, as well as some excellent results always in the under di category Philip Fontana, with the third place of Leogang and of Vittone Andreas that, before the injury, had managed to conquer a fifth place in Petropolis, Analyzing these results we can say that we have a patrol with excellent potential, both for next season and for those to follow.
A similar argument can also be made in the female field; indeed Martina Bertha this season he has had excellent growth, despite all of this the injury suffered in the spring that could have limited its potential. But behind him also the South Tyrolean had a good season Greta Seiwald, with several placings in the top 20.
Even in the women's field the future seems to be bright, in fact looking at the under category we find Sara Cortinovis e Giada Specia, respectively third and fourth in the overall of the World Cup, with the latter having also managed to conquer a fourth place at the World Championships.
The youngest
It is difficult to be able to analyze the youth categories, there are many factors that come into play, the psychophysical maturation of the boys has yet to be formed, the approach to training and knowledge of the body is in the training phase, so it is not said that whoever wins today will also win in the future. It goes without saying, however, that the first news on the health of a movement can be obtained from the comparison with the same age and the Italian one can hope well in this case as well.
In the women's field Valentina Crows, current Italian champion, she has shown to have the pace of the best even at the world championships, where she finished with an excellent sixth place. In the men's field we can say that there are some athletes to observe, who have achieved good placings during the season but who have not had the sharpness in the most important showcase event, namely the World Championship. We had the opportunity to follow the current Italian champion of the category, Marcus Betheus, whose world championship performance was probably conditioned by some inexperience error during the approach to the appointment. However, the man from Ossola has shown that he has the right pace and above all the right attitude to grow; factors that, if well addressed, can guarantee him a future as a protagonist
The importance of the team
This is an element that often sees us a little penalized, because our riders often struggle to find a place in international teams; those that for means and structure could put them in the best conditions to get maximum. It is a factor we have already talked about in the case of Dh; in xc he feels a little less, especially because there are well-structured Italian teams, but which could still slow down the growth of the riders. Two examples above all can be Avondetto and Giada Specia, the two bikers did not participate in the overseas tests of the Cup, with which they would probably have improved their position in the absolute, a gap that if it remained in the elite category would penalize them a lot.
We do not know why, but we hope that the growth of this movement will help to cancel this element.
The young talent
But analyzing a sector also means verifying its health among students and beginners and then in the category of children. In this case, rather than looking at the results, it is important to analyze the numbers, because the health of a movement can be seen from this. The situation seems comforting in this case too.
More than 300 starters among beginners and students among boys and more than 100 girls at Italian championship of Bielmonte these are good numbers, to which we must add the growth of the participants also among the G categories. A positive sign for the competitive spirit that is evidently the result of programming and in part of a sporting culture of cycling that sees a very tradition in endurance sport. strong on the road, which has now also moved into the xc and marathon world which we will talk about later.
