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Another lesson from N1NO to “never give up!”

Jul 20, 2022 | News | 0 comments

For N1NO, not starting at 100% doesn’t mean not giving it his all. In an impressive finale, the World Cup leader secured a well-deserved 3rd place making another small step towards the overall World Cup title.

Vallnord, Andorra, July 17th 2022. The outcome of the Lenzerheide World Cup and the turbulent days thereafter took its toll. N1NO got a bit sick and was traveling to Andorra feeling less than 100%. Once again, he showed that he’s always giving his very best. Not just for a win, but also for when things are not going ideally.

Imagery: Michal Cerveny & Remy Fabrigue
It’s been a very hectic week for the World Champion. It’s no wonder he got sick considering all the negative things he had to deal with after Lenzerheide. On top, the Andorra World Cup is most likely the toughest round of the season. Situated in the heart of the Pyrenees at 2000 meters above sea level, with temperatures at 35° celsius and dusty as hell, this race sure takes every bit out of an athlete. This is why he saved as many coins as possible in Friday’s XCC to hopefully come around for Sunday’s cross-country race.
Starting out of an unusual second row and a relatively slow start placed N1NO in around 10th place on the start lap. Luckily this was not an unexpected scenario for N1NO. Before the race he mentioned his tactic: “I don’t want to kill myself in the first two laps. If I have the legs, I can still ride to a good result in the second half of the race”. This didn’t sound like the confidence going to the start to win. But considering the circumstances, it was the only tactic that is going to work. And so it did. With steady lap times and riders falling apart in front of him, he consistently moved up. At two laps to go, he even got the lead group in sight. That’s when N1NO really started to race. Like a wolf smelling the blood. With an outstanding final lap, he showed another of his famous lessons to “never give up!”. A well-deserved 3rd place was the result of the hard work.
SCOTT-SRAM MTB Racing – Best Team of the WC Lenzerheide
Imagery: Michal Cerveny
Runner-up Vlad Dascalu was very close winning his first ever World Cup race at the age of 24. Unfortunately he had a mechanical on the last lap, allowing the win for Luca Braidot who now has two impressive wins back to back.
As Matthias Flückiger did not start due to illness and Alan Hatherly also was not at 100%, N1NO’s lead in the overall World Cup exceeded. Now it’s Dascalu sitting in second behind N1NO. It’s no secret that the World Champion is shooting for the overall in the 3 races remaining.
“I’m proud of my race today. Things didn’t look very promising at the beginning, but with a smart race and a finale with heart, I made the very best out of it.”

Nino Schurter
9x World Champion, World Cup Leader 2022
SCOTT-SRAM MTB Racing

Vlad Dascalu (4th), Valero Serrano (2nd), Luca Bardot (winner), Nino Schurter (2nd), Jordan Sarrou (5th)

Andri Frischknecht & Lars Forster

Both had a day to forget. In the start lap, the SCOTT-SRAM riders got tangled up losing a lot of positions. This was crucial in the dust and the single tracks where there was no passing. However, riding together they picked up many places until Lars Forster had a puncture. Andri Frischknecht continued making up a lot of ground until a few minutes before the finish line, knocking himself out with a gnarly crash. P36 for Andri and P49 for Lars was the poor harvest of their Andorra trip.

World Cup leading team

The good news to the end. After all, the SCOTT-SRAM MTB Racing Team is holding on to the overall lead of the best team. This means we are in yellow at the next World Cup in Snow Shoe, West Virginia in less than two weeks time.

Kate Courtney

Kate Courtney skipped the Andorra World Cup due to the US national Championships in Winter Park, Colorado next weekend.
Good luck Kate! Go for the Stars and Stripes!