Luke Shaw (Canyon DH Racing) took his first win in the Men's Elite category of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Loudenvielle-Peyragudes, presented by FACOM . Meantime, Valentina Hell (Commencal Schwalbe by Les Orres) made history becoming the first Elite athlete to win the UCI Road World Cup twice Downhill in the same place.
Source: press release
Shaw took the win with an outstanding performance, outlasting his hometown hero Benoît Coulanges (Scott Downhill Factory), while the fastest in qualifying, jordan williams (Specialized Gravity), completed the podium in third place. The victory ends a 14-year wait for Shaw , which he achieved speeds of up to 81 km/h in a fearless descent along the fast and dry path of the Pyrenees French.
Höll dominated from start to finish, leading Gracey Hemstreet (Norco X adidas Race Division), second place, and Lisa Baumann (Commencal Schwalbe by Les Orres), third. The dusty conditions and sandy turns put the bikes' handling to the test, catching the riders off guard all weekend.
Shaw takes his first UCI Elite World Cup victory
Luke Shaw He demonstrated his power right from the start, maintaining speed and form throughout the race. the difficult Loudenvielle-Peyragudes route and taking a narrow victory in the Men's Elite category.
The lower sections of the course, fast and bumpy, caused problems all weekend. The winner of the previous stage, Loïc Bruni (Specialized Gravity), was absent due to a fall during the tests, while the reigning champion Jackson Goldstone (Santa Cruz Syndicate) missed the final, failing to qualify due to mistakes in both heats.
Asa Vermette (Frameworks Racing/TRP) has conquered his first UCI Elite World Cup victory Downhill at MONA YongPyong (South Korea) earlier this month. However, in Loudenvielle, the young athlete, in his first year in the Elite category, had to pass the Q2 qualifications to reach the final, which resulted in an early start. The young man demonstrated great courage on the technical lower slopes, but a fall cost him precious time.
Slippery conditions made life difficult for all the runners. Lori's vergier (COMMENCAL/MUC-OFF by Riding Addiction) looked set to take the lead before crashing out, while his teammate Till Alran he suffered the same fate, slipping on the uneven ground.
TylerWait (Yeti / Fox Factory Race Team), however, managed to avoid problems and showed off his power on the more exposed sections, building up a lead. The New Zealander maintained the advantage on the lower slopes, establishing a benchmark time of 3:28.505 for the drivers who started later, and then finished the race in fifth place.
The Australian Troy Brosnan (Canyon DH Racing) was matching the fastest time with a steady descent, before losing control on the final corner and finding himself seven hundredths of a second behind. Benoît Coulanges (Scott Downhill Factory) sent the home fans into a frenzy by taking the corners to perfection and taking the lead of the race with an impressive time of 3:27.764 .
Eager to avenge the puncture suffered in the previous stage, Finn Iles (Specialized Gravity) rode with confidence, riding a smooth descent before faltering in the final sector and finishing in fourth place, just five tenths of a second behind the leader.
In the opening section, Shaw surged forward with great momentum, hitting 81 km/h at the speed mark and maintaining the pace through the lower section of the track to take victory by a tenth of a second.
For Amaury Pierron (COMMENCAL/MUC-OFF by Riding Addiction), second to last at the start, was another nightmare for Loudenvielle-Peyragudes, where a further fall on the French track proved fatal.
jordan williams (Specialized Gravity), the fastest in qualifying, lost over a second in the most technical opening section and continued to lose time, finding himself over two seconds behind entering the most challenging section of the course. The Briton gave it his all in the final sector, but ultimately fell just six tenths behind the winner, finishing third.
Luca Shaw also leads the Elite Men overall standings after two rounds . After the victory, Shaw said: ” It means so much to me. I've been trying to reach this goal for 14 years. I've come so close, so many times. I've done everything but win, so this was the last thing I needed." .
" It's a fantastic victory, without a doubt. Many people told me it was only a matter of time, and I really wanted to believe it... but you never know, the races are incredibly tough and the level has never been higher. I'm so happy I did it. I simply pedaled, pushed, and got into the aerodynamic position. I gave it everything I had. "
DOMINANT HÖLL EXTENDS WINNING RACE
Valentina Hell (Commencal Schwalbe by Les Orres) capped off a perfect weekend with a dominant performance in the women's elite race. Last year's overall winner and UCI World Champion downhill he tackled the dusty slopes of the French Pyrenees , confirming his best time in qualifying.
Tahnee Seagrave (Orbea FMD Racing) was a notable absence at Loudenvielle-Peyragudes , as it continues to recover from a elbow injury .
The European champion Lisa Baumann (Commencal Schwalbe by Les Orres) had a flawless race, stopping the timed at 3:56.222 , enough time for third place.
There was time to be gained in the upper part of the course, but Nina Hoffman (Santa Cruz Syndicate) lost ground in the more technical central sector, while Sacha Earnest (Trek – Unbroken DH) fell.
Valentina Roa Sánchez (MS-Racing) confirmed his qualifying performance and challenged Baumann's advantage throughout the race, before stopping the clock nine tenths of a second slower to take fifth place. Gracey Hemstreet (Norco X adidas Race Division) got off to an impressive start, over a second ahead of the fastest rider before hitting a pothole and losing momentum. The Canadian stayed focused and, thanks to aggressive riding, managed to gain a second on Baumann's time, finishing in second place.
The second to last to leave, Myriam Nicole (COMMENCAL/MUC-OFF by Riding Addiction), was aiming for a home victory for France. The experienced rider led at the halfway point before losing time on the first ramps and slipping to fourth place.
Höll was aiming for his second victory at Loudenvielle-Peyragudes and imposed herself from the start. The Austrian took the lead in the upper part of the course, then launched herself down the steep descents and left her opponents three seconds behind. She crossed the finish line with the time of 3:51.920 , a full 3,2 seconds faster than Hemstreet.
After winning the first two rounds, Höll also has a clear lead in the overall standings .
" I'm glad it's over " Höll said . “I learned a lot from last year, when I pushed too hard at the top and had no energy at the bottom. This time I tried to manage my energy better. The bike helped me a lot on the steep climbs, I'm happy with the setup and the team.”
" With Lisa [Baumann] She's on the podium too, it's fantastic. I have a big race coming up at home, but I'll enjoy this one, to recover mentally and physically for Saalfelden-Leogang. "
MEN'S ELITE RANKING
| 1. |  | SHAW Luke CANYON DH RACING | 3:27.637 |
| 2. |  | COULANGES Benoit SCOTT DOWNHILL FACTORY | 3:27.764 + 0.127 |
| 3. |  | WILLIAMS Jordan SPECIALIZED GRAVITY | 3:28.248 + 0.611 |
| 4. |  | ILES Finn SPECIALIZED GRAVITY | 3:28.343 + 0.706 |
| 5. |  | WAITE Tyler YETI / FOX FACTORY RACE TEAM | 3:28.505 + 0.868 |
| 6. |  | BROSNAN Troy CANYON DH RACING | 3:28.581 + 0.944 |
| 7. |  | KOLB Andreas SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE | 3:28.882 + 1.245 |
| 8. | | ALRAN Max COMMENCAL/MUC-OFF BY RIDING ADDICTION | 3:29.195 + 1.558 |
| 9. |  | MAES Martin ORBEA FMD RACING | 3:29.687 + 2.050 |
| 10. | | PINKERTON Ryan MONDRAKER FACTORY RACING DH | 3:30.043 + 2.406 |
FEMALE ELITE RANKING
| 1. | | HÖLL Valentina COMMENCAL SCHWALBE BY LES ORRES | 3:51.920 |
| 2. | | HEMSTREET Gracey NORCO X ADIDAS RACE DIVISION | 3:55.177 + 3.257 |
| 3. |  | BAUMANN Lisa COMMENCAL SCHWALBE BY LES ORRES | 3:56.222 + 4.302 |
| 4. | | NICOLE Myriam COMMENCAL/MUC-OFF BY RIDING ADDICTION | 3:56.437 + 4.517 |
| 5. |  | ROA SANCHEZ Valentina MS-RACING | 3:57.217 + 5.297 |
| 6. | | HARNDEN Harriet AON RACING | 3:57.787 + 5.867 |
| 7. | | BOULADOU Lisa SANTA CRUZ BURGTEC BY GOODMAN | 3:58.341 + 6.421 |
| 8. | | CABIROU Marine CANYON DH RACING | 3:58.832 + 6.912 |
| 9. | | NEWKIRK Anne FRAMEWORKS RACING / TRP | 3:59.501 + 7.581 |
| 10. |  | HOFFMANN Nina SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE | 4:00.287 + 8.367 |
