The ten-time world champion says that the Covid years of 2020 and 2021 deprived him of motivation and he lacked the public (and, we add, these years deprived him of many other victories).
Source: UCI MTB World Series
But after clinching his eighth overall World Cup title and yet another world title last season, he says he's got his mood back.
The 2022 season was almost like a comeback for me. During those Covid years, I didn't have my best years, I wasn't so motivated anymore. I was missing the spectators and had already thought about retiring. And then 2022 went really well again. I won the first World Cup in Brazil, I had really consistent results in the World Cup: I won the all-around and I won my XNUMXth world title. So, for me it was a perfect season again. I felt strong again - Nino Schurter
Schurter finished fifth in the Short Track Cross-country in Nove Mesto yesterday and will be one of the favorites for Sunday's race. We remind you that Nino still has a record to beat: i.e. the total victories in the World Cup, currently tied with Julien Absalon.
Nino Schurter, which today 13 May celebrates its 37th birthday together with Loic Bruni, has won 33 World Cups so far and is now starting his 23rd World Cup season at the Czech venue in Nove Mesto Na Morave.
Speaking about XC bike development ahead of the first World Cup of 2023, the Swiss rider said that the idea of riding a 26-inch hardtail with V-brakes and no dropper post through some stretches of Nove Mesto is very risky and as far as feasible.
If you look back at the bikes we had early in my career, they were totally different. Wheel size is one thing, 26″, but so are tire sizes: I was riding on 1.9 tyres, narrow handlebars, no rear suspension. Now I'm racing a 120mm Spark, with a dropper post, that you can even take to a bike park if you want. Furthermore, the entire kinematics have changed completely. Ah, and there are disc brakes! Bikes, and consequently the routes, have changed a lot - Nino Schurter
