STEVE SMITH POSTS FASTEST TIME ON THE EVE OF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS FINALS
Batty, Kabush posts best Canadian results in the Elite cross country races
(Pietermaritzburg, RSA, – August 31, 2013) Canadian downhiller and two-time World Championships medallist Steve Smith posted the fastest time of the downhill timed session at the 2013 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa on Saturday.
Smith is enjoying a dream season, finishing in the Top 4 of each races he entered, and posting three Top3 results, including a victory on Canadian soil at Mont-Sainte-Anne. Smith has previously won silver and bronze medals at Mountain Bike World Championships.
Casey Brown posted the best time in the women timed session, with the seventh fastest time of the group, with Micayla Gatto posted the eighth fastest time.
In the Elite Women cross country race, the reigning Canadian Champion Emily Batty posted the best Canadian results finishing in 17thplace, despite battling sickness, a chest infection. “I’m still battling illness and a chest infection,” explained Batty in a conversation with CanadianCyclist.com. “I had great legs but was really held back by my lungs. You would think I’d be used to racing sick by now, as it’s been a constant uphill battle all year long. I’m not happy with today, but I just made the most of it.”
“We definitely had a challenging day out there. Our Elite women’s team had a tough lead up to Worlds with some injuries and sickness that hampered preparation, so we weren’t quite sure how it would go. On the men’s side it was simply a tough day where big time gaps formed early and there was simply no way to come back,” said Dan Proulx, Head coach of the Canadian Mountain Bike Team.
“On the positive side, I know all of our riders maintained their composure and did the best they could with what they had on the day. We’ll take the lessons learned here and continue to build our program toward 2016. The important thing is to keep everyone moving forward. We definitely have lots of talent and fire-power in our team.”
The 2011 World Champion Catharine Pendrel was among the leading group in the first lap, and crashed, which forced her to lose her momentum, out of contention. She would end her race soon after Batty, in 20th position.
Mikaela Kofman posted an excellent result in 23rd position for her rookie appearance in the elite group at World Championships, while Amanda Sin crossed the finish line just after Kofman, in 24th place. Both Sin and teammate Sandra Walter were involved in a crash early in the race.
“In the Women’s race, Mikaela Kofman had a breakthrough, finishing 23rd. That’s a great ride from one of our youngest elite riders. We expect to see Mikaela get closer to the front as she gains more World Cup experience,” commented Proulx.
Geoff Kabush finished his race in 25th place of the elite men category, the best result among the Canadian group in South Africa. Kabush was involved in a crash at the start of the race, and couldn’t close the large gap that resulted in the race.
“It was a battle out there the whole day,” said Kabush to CanadianCyclist.com. “A really high speed course, really physical. I came into it feeling I had a chance, fought as hard as I could, but 25th … not exactly excited about it. I had a near death experience at the start, when a guy laid himself out flat in front of me, and I had to ride over a couple of other bodies and bikes. Slotted in around 20th, but the speed was high just wasn’t able to move up.”
Derek Zandstra, which has had a stellar season winning the Canadian championships race, finished 33rd, followed by Raphael Gagné. Max Plaxton suffrered from flat in the first lap, and finished 39th.
Proulx added: “At these Worlds we’re definitely seeing some depth and a higher level of performance in our Junior and U23 riders. It’s really encouraging to see the program continue to develop and improve. We’re confident that we have a strong team of young guns that will insure Canada’s future success at the international level for many years to come. In a post-Olympic year, you really want to focus on these riders and take the pressure off the Olympians from last year. It’s nice to see the younger riders take advantage of this opportunity.”
Tomorrow will feature the cross-country eliminator, as well as the downhill finals.
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RESULTS – 2013 UCI MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – SOUTH AFRICA
Cross-country – Elite Women
1. BRESSET Julie (FRANCE) 1:42:54
2. WLOSZCZOWSKA Maja (POLAND) +00:05
3. SÜSS Esther (SWITZERLAND) +01:06
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17. BATTY, Emily (CANADA) +06:16
20. PENDREL, Catharine (CANADA) +08:15
23. KOFMAN, Mikaela (CANADA) +08:56
24. SIN, Amanda (CANADA) +09:22
38. PICHETTE, Andréanne (CANADA) -1LAP
40. WALTER, Sandra (CANADA) -3LAP
Cross-country – Elite Men
1. SCHURTER, Nino (SWITZERLAND) 1:40:17
2. FUMIC, Manuel (GERMANY) +00:07
3. HERMIDA RAMOS, José Antonio (SPAIN) +00:21
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25. KABUSH, Geoff (CANADA) +05:17
33. ZANDSTRA, Derek (CANADA) +06:25
34. GAGNE, Raphael (CANADA) +06:32
39. PLAXTON, Max (CANADA) +08:24
Downhill – Men, Timed Session
1. SMITH, Steve (CANADA) 4:03.021
2. ROPELATO, Mitch (USA) 4:05.229 +02.208
3. ATHERTON, Gee (GREAT BRITAIN) 4:05.534 +02.513
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46. RIESCO, Forrest (CANADA) 4:27.897 +24.876
60. SLOTEGRAAF, Sidney (CANADA) 4:38.048 +35.027
Downhill – Women, Timed Session
1. ATHERTON, Rachel (GREAT BRITAIN) 4:35.013
2. HANNAH, Tracey (AUSTRALIA) 4:51.815 +16.802
3. CHARRE, Morgane (FRANCE) 4:53.549 +18.536
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7. BROWN, Casey (CANADA) 4:58.796 +23.783
8. GATTO, Micayla (CANADA) 5:02.421 +27.408
11. ROSSER, Lauren (CANADA) 5:12.523 +37.510
