News

MTB European Championships: the Azzurri members and squad

The 2023 edition of the European Games will start on Wednesday 21 June. After Bakou 2015 and Minsk 2019, the multidisciplinary continental event organized by the European Olympic Committee (EOC) will be held in Krakow-Małopolska (Poland).

Written by

David Finetto

June 19 2023

Tom Pidcock, European XCO 2022 champion: he will not be present in this edition to defend his jersey

This great event, which will end on July 2nd, will involve a total of 29 sports such as MTB Cross-Country and BMX Freestyle Park, competitions which will also award the respective continental titles and which will be even more exciting as they are part of the qualifying criteria for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Source: press release

Luke Braidot Internationals — Continental jersey hopes for Luca Braidot – ©Michele Mondini

On June 21st and 22nd in the brand new skate park in Krzeszowice competitions will take place BMX Freestyle Park. The June 25 at Hill Park in Krynica-Zdroj competitions will take place MTB Cross-Country.

COMPETITION TIMES

11:15 XCO elite women
14.15 XCO elite men

Giada Specia is bronze at the European Championships — Giada Specia he was bronze at the 2022 U23 European Championships: this year he will compete among the Elites

Marco Betteo Europeans — Giada Specia he was bronze at the 2022 U23 European Championships: this year he will compete among the Elites

In the women's field, the current European champion, the French Loana Lecomte, will have as main opponents the three best of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, the Swiss Jolanda Neff, Sina Frei and Linda Indergand, in addition to the young Austrian Mona Mitterwallner and the Dutch Anne Terpstra, Celyn Del Carmen Alvarado, Puck Pieterse, winner of the European Championships in 2022, Under 23 MTB and Cyclocross champion and Fem Van Empel, current World and European Cyclocross Champion. Others to watch out for will be multiple French champion Pauline Ferrand-Prevot.

Simone Avondetto European Champion — Simone Avondetto 2022 U23 XCO European Champion: this year he will be in contention among the Elites

In the men's race, prominent contenders will be the Dane Sebastian Fini, Ondrej Cink (Czech Republic), the Spaniard David Valero, the Italian Luca Braidot and the former European champion Lars Foster, one of the bearers of the Swiss team which will also include Alexandre Balmer and Andri Frischknecht.

MTB 2023 EUROPEAN ENTRY LIST

BLUE NATIONAL EUROPEAN MTB 2023

Elite men
AVONDETTO SIMONE | WILIER-PIRELLI FACTORY TEAM XCO
BRAIDOT DANIELE | CS CARABINIERI OLYMPIA VICTORY
BRAIDOT LUCA | SANTA CRUZ ROCKSHOX PRO TEAM
COLLEDANI NADIR | SANTA CRUZ ROCKSHOX PRO TEAM

Elite women
BERTA MARTINA | ARMY SPORTS CENTER
JADE SPECIES | WILIER-PIRELLI FACTORY TEAM XCO
CLEAR TEOCCHI | ARMY SPORTS CENTER

At the event there will be only the Elite races: U23 and Junior will play the jerseys in July in Portugal (Anadia) like last year.

In this article:European Championships, World Cross Country Racing

Written by David Finetto

famac@famac.ind.br I am passionate about everything that has 2 wheels: in my youth I practiced competitive cycling on the road and on the track with good results. At the age of 18 I moved to cross country competing at national/international level as U23. Once I passed Elite, I made the choice to take things easier from the training point of view, and that's how my love for gravity disciplines was born, training as an FCI MTB instructor and guide. Now I have made my passion my profession by managing 3 MTB centers on the island of Elba (Elba MTB), creating the FANTAmtb and telling in an ironic but professional way, everything that revolves around MTB thanks to 365mountainbike and 365TV (YouTube 'PULITI dentro BIKER fuori').