In stark contrast to the dry conditions that made for two thrilling downhill races yesterday, rain transformed The Epic Bike Park in a mud hole and Pieterse and Cink were the proverbial pigs who took advantage of it.
Source: press release
These treacherous conditions meant that the advantage of the slipstream, resulting from staying in the group, was outweighed by the advantage of an individual rider being able to choose his own trajectory, while the packed list of Gravity riders also present in Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburg – meant that the group of cross-country enjoyed a rare day of rest between races cross-country short track (XCC) and XCO.
This helped Pieterse to a first career one-two, having attacked very early and never being seen again by the chasing group; Cink also seemingly disappeared with six laps to go, but never had the same margin, instead triumphing in a heart-stopping chase.
FEMALE ELITE
Pieterse missed the opening double race from Araxa, Minas Gerais (Brazil), but has since looked set to make up for lost time, as only a puncture in last week's XCO race has prevented her from winning all four races since her return to the series.
After the bad start of Samara Maxwell for The Ford Racing Team Decathlon , who immediately slipped to twentieth position, Pieterse let go as he was alone Loana lecomte (BMC Factory Racing) managed to follow the initial acceleration.
But even the French national champion couldn't follow those iridescent bands, as she was forced to watch her rival's rear wheel slip out of her grasp, which would become the theme of Lecomte's afternoon.
Pieterse's attack characterised the peloton, while Maxwell produced a carbon copy of her performance on the second-lap climb, distancing her rivals in the overall World Cup, although the gap to the leaders continued to widen.
Maxwell held on and even gained time on the downhills compared to Pieterse, but was unable to keep up with the Dutchman on the uphills, although by lap six he was showing signs of slowing down.
At times, on the final circuit, the whole team seemed to be proceeding in slow motion, while Lecomte continued to slide, overtaken by Tamara Wiedmann (Mondraker Factory Racing XC) and the mud specialist Yolanda Neff (Cannondale Factory Racing Team).
Despite being outclassed in Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburg, there were still plenty of reasons to be happy for Maxwell who overcame that crash and the chain drop to finish second – without saying “no words” as she crossed the finish line – and further increased her lead in the overall standings to 290 points, while Nicole Koller (Ghost Factory Racing) managed to finish only eighth.
FEMALE ELITE RANKING
| 1. |  | PIETERSE Puck (ALPECIN-DECEUNINCK) | 1:26:39 |
| 2. |  | MAXWELL Samara (DECATHLON FORD RACING TEAM) | 1:27:29 +50 |
| 3. |  | FORKS Ramona (BIXS PERFORMANCE RACE TEAM) | 1:28:05 + 1: 26 |
| 4. | | NEFF Jolanda (CANNONDALE FACTORY RACING) | 1:28:20 + 1: 41 |
| 5. |  | WIEDMANN Tamara (MONDRAKER FACTORY RACING XC) | 1:28:20 + 1: 41 |
| 6. |  | LECOMTE Loana (BMC FACTORY RACING) | 1:28:43 + 2: 04 |
| 7. |  | SHORT Island | 1:29:05 + 2: 26 |
| 8. | | KOLLER Nicole (GHOST FACTORY RACING) | 1:29:25 + 2: 46 |
| 9. | | MITTERWALLNER Mona (MONDRAKER FACTORY RACING XC) | 1:29:45 + 3: 06 |
| 10. |  | Risveds Jenny (CANYON CLLCTV XCO) | 1:29:47 + 3: 08 |
GENERAL WORLD CUP
MALE ELITE
The elite men did not have the same decisive moves as the women, but they delivered even more exciting final laps, with Ondrey Cink which seemed destined to be recaptured before finding a second lifeblood and achieving a historic victory.
Martin Vidaurre Kossman was initially in the lead for Specialized Factory Racing , but the day turned into a nightmare for the team that until Sunday morning had won every single race of the UCI World Cup Cross-country men's elite 2025.
Vidaurre was unable to keep up the pace and finished 24th, while Victor Koretzky he got off his bike at the end of the second lap, after having fallen into the reserve positions due to illness and the consequences of a fall during training.
Christopher Blevins too (Specialized Factory Racing) didn't have the same brilliance, despite not being able to benefit from the same extenuating circumstances, and managed to limit the damage, finishing in 17th place.
Vidaurre was part of a leading quartet formed by Julian Schelb (KMC Ridley MTB Racing Team), Mathias Fluckiger (Thömus Maxon) and Cink, although only the latter pair managed to stay in the lead.
Joel Bertolini e Loan Cheneval were lucky not to get hurt when the Italian fell in the same section as Maxwell (and later Alan Hatherley of the Giant Factory Off-Road Team – XC) and then immediately found himself in the path of the Frenchman, with the Norwegian national champion Knut Rhome (Origine Racing Division) and Vito Albin (Thömus Maxon) also delayed.
Cink never had a lead of more than 24 seconds, and the gap dropped to as little as 11 seconds at one point, when the Czech's energy seemed to be flagging.
Cink is the second oldest XCO rider to achieve his first UCI World Cup victory after Ned Overend in 1994, as well as the first Czech cyclist to win in the category in 10 years . This is simply the eleventh Elite victory in the cross-country or in the downhill for the Czech Republic in the history of the UCI World Cup and Cink could not explain the miracle afterwards:
Meanwhile, Specialized still leads the overall standings with a hat-trick despite missing Sunday, with Blevins extending his lead over Koretzky to 341 points.
MEN'S ELITE RANKING
| 1. |  | CINK Ondrej (CUBE FACTORY RACING) | 1:25:05 |
| 2. | | FLÜCKIGER Mathias (THOMUS MAXON) | 1:25:23 +18 |
| 3. | | PUNTENER Fabio | 1:25:32 +27 |
| 4. | | AZZARO Mathis (ORIGINE RACING DIVISION) | 1:25:48 +43 |
| 5. | | FORSTER Lars (THOMUS MAXON) | 1:26:18 + 1: 13 |
| 6. | | COLUMBUS Philip (SCOTT-SRAM MTB RACING TEAM) | 1:26:20 + 1: 15 |
| 7. | | MARTIN Luke (CANNONDALE FACTORY RACING) | 1:26:25 + 1: 20 |
| 8. |  | SCHWARZBAUER Luke (CANYON CLLCTV XCO) | 1:26:49 + 1: 44 |
| 9. | | ALBIN Vital (THOMUS MAXON) | 1:26:51 + 1: 46 |
| 10. |  | HATHERLY Alan (GIANT FACTORY OFF-ROAD TEAM – XC) | 1:26:58 + 1: 53 |
GENERAL WORLD CUP
MacPhee, Blevins, Koretzky and the rest of those who left Saaldelden Leogang – Salzburg disappointed won’t have to wait long for a chance to make amends, as the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series returns in just two weeks. The athletes of cross-country e downhill will once again be the protagonists in Val di Sole – Trentino, Italy, for the halfway point of the UCI XCO and XCC World Cups.
