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Colombo Defends Swiss National Champion Title

Jul 16, 2025 | News | 0 comments

Filippo Colombo will proudly wear the Swiss Cross jersey for another year. At the upcoming World Cup in Pal Arinsal, Andorra, he finished 4th in the XCC, narrowly missing the podium. Here’s a quick recap of how things went down in Pal Arinsal.

Pal Arinsal, Andorra. Another action-packed weekend at altitude, and the team delivered strong efforts on a demanding course in Andorra. After an impressive 4th position from Filippo in the XCC, we saw Nino Schurter back in the game as he battled for fifth place until the very end, ultimately crossing the line in 7th in Sunday’s XCO. Meanwhile, Emilly Johnston secured her best Elite World Cup result to date, finishing in 18th place.

In the XCC, Filippo Colombo and Nino Schurter were both chasing the leading group together until lap 10, when French rider Victor Koretzky suddenly suffered a chain failure and crashed, unfortunately bringing Schurter down with him. Colombo managed to navigate through the chaos and went on to secure a strong 4th place.
Once again in Pal Arinsal, the riders faced the challenges of a physically demanding course. With the steep climbs and technical descents of Andorra, every pedal stroke counted. After a promising showing in Friday’s XCC, the team lined up for Sunday’s XCO with strong motivation and delivered a weekend full of grit, progress, and promising performances.
A solid race from Nino. He spent the race in the group fighting for 5th as the leading trio, driven by Tom Pidcock’s relentless pace, pulled away early. With recent breathing issues affecting past performances, Nino played it smart, pacing himself throughout and staying in contention. He gave everything in the final lap, narrowly missing out on 5th and crossing the line in 7th, just a few seconds behind.
Most importantly, he faced no breathing issues this time. A very positive sign that Nino is heading in the right direction as the season goes on.
Filippo showed great form early in the weekend with a strong 4th place in the XCC, but Sunday proved tough. He struggled to recover after the first interval and just didn’t have the legs he hoped for, finishing 27th. A tough result, but motivation remains high heading into the next challenges.

“After a successful Swiss Championship and my fourth place in Friday’s XCC, this was definitely my worst performance of the season. I’m not exactly sure what went wrong – I was well prepared for the altitude, and I had a great feeling with both the gear and the course. I just hope I can bounce back soon at the European Championships in two weeks.”

Filippo Colombo
2x Swiss National Champion
SCOTT-SRAM MTB Racing

Best WC position ever for Canadian Emilly Johnston who secured an impressive 18th-place finish
What a ride from Emilly! Her best-ever World Cup finish with an impressive 18th place. She kept a steady pace throughout, gaining ground lap after lap. Strong on the descents, and even more confident on the climbs, which suit her style. Emilly showed that consistency and form are building at the right time. A big confidence boost heading into Canadian nationals next week-end.
Andri Frischknecht delivered a solid and consistent race, crossing the line in 42nd position after a hard-fought race in the high Andorran altitude, while the US Champion Bjorn Riley unfortunately had to pull out of the race due to back issues, the same problem that forced him to withdraw in Val di Sole. Focus now shifts to recovery and his national championship next weekend to defend his title.

Emily and Bjorn now head back home to race their respective national championships next weekend, almost a home race for Emilly on Vancouver Island.

Meanwhile, the rest of the team will take a short break before Nino and Filippo line up at the European Championships in Portugal in two weeks.