Les Gets, France. While Olympic Champion Nino Schurter had already shown in Andorra the week prior that he is in top shape, his team mate, World Champion Kate Courtney, was back to her winning ways in both the XCC shortrack and the XCO race this past sunday in Les Gets, France. Nino Schurter celebrated his 32nd World Cup win of his career by dominating his competitors from start to finish. He is now one World Cup win away from Julien Absalon’s all time record of 33 wins.
Both extended their lead in the overall standings showing their ambitions to go for the World Cup Champion titles.
The race weekend in the french alps kicked off with a superb solo win by Kate Courtney in the XCC shortrack competition. With a bold move two laps to go, the young American risked a lot and was rewarded with a fine victory, her second this year and in her career in XCC. Nino Schurter finished the XCC in fourth behind Mathieu van der Poel (NEL), Henrique Avancini (BRA) and Victor Koretzky (FRA). After his break from WC racing, MvdP came back unbeatable over the short distance.
In the main race on sunday, Nino looked very focused and was able to control his competitors from the get-go. In 7/8 laps of the race, a bunch of different competitors kept the pace incredibly high on the fast and physically demanding course, trying to get away with several attacks. The lead group stayed together until Nino himself attacked with two laps to go. The only two who could resist were Avancini and Gerhard Kerschbaumer (ITA). It took another huge effort from Nino to get away from the Italian Champion and to successfully secure his 32nd World Cup win.
Nino Schurter: “I can only recall a few times where everything went to plan. The race unfolded perfectly for me from the start to finish. Avancini, Cink, Tempier and Kerschbaumer all had their strong moments during the race but never enough to actually put me trouble. It was to my benefit that the pace stayed high throughout the race. This made the selection easier towards the end. I’m stoked about my 32nd World Cup win and about how things are running lately.”
“It was to my benefit that the pace stayed high throughout the race. This made the selection easier towards the end. I’m stoked about my 32nd World Cup win and about how things are running lately.”
World Champion Kate Courtney Extends World Cup lead
After her Andorra race (finsihed in 8th), Kate travelled to France with a bit of lack in confidence. The XCC race win however turned things around. Having her family and friends on site cheering her on, Kate was back at her best. Wirth an early attack, Kate got away from the rest of the pack in the second lap. The only one to hold against her was the Olympic Champion Jenny Rissveds (SWE), who afterwards dropped back. From then on it was a solo run all the way to the finish for Kate. After a slow start, European Champion Jolanda Neff (CH) came on strong on the last third of the race and closed the gap to Kate from over one minute down to 24 sec. Kate noticed Neff coming closer, which is why she accelerated once more in the last lap to secure the third World Cup win of her career.
After four World Cups so far in 2019, including 8 races (4 XCO / 4XCC) on the highest level, Kate Courtney has won 5 of them (3xXCO / 2xXCC). This sure shows that the American Champion is the woman to beat at the moment. Kate leads the overall ranking ahead of Jolanda Neff
Kate Courtney: “After a bit of a tough ride in Andorra, it was an incredible feeling to come back strong and find my way back to the front in Les Gets this weekend. On Friday, I raced a bold tactic and attacked with two to go in the short track, pushing hard to stay away and take the win. With a bit of positive momentum behind me, I was able to get off the front early in the cross country race. The race came down to a total physical and mental effort for me with pressure behind as I fought to stay focused and go for a win. I felt really comfortable on the SCOTT Scale and was able to push hard on the climbs, ride smooth on the descents and hold my lead until the finish. The weekend was made even more special by a double team victory and more proof that fun is fast.”
Kate Courtney
2018 UCI Elite XC World Champion
SCOTT-SRAM MTB Racing
The Spark RC 900 WC N1NO Frame Kit
Specs:
FRAME: HMX Carbon Frame, 1 by only
FORK: RockShox SID Ultimate RLC3 Air – Custom Charger 3-Modes Damper with low Speed Adj. – 15x110mm Maxle Stealth / Tapered steerer / Lockout / Reb. Adj.
TRAVEL: Lockout – 70 – 100mm
REAR SHOCK: RockShox NUDE RLC3 Trunnion – SCOTT custom w. travel / geo adj. – 3 MODES: Lockout-Traction Control-Descend – low Speed Ad.j / Reb. Adj.
ACCESSORIES:
SRAM XX1 Custom Crankset
SRAM Level Ultimate Custom Brakes
TwinLoc Remote Control Shifter Kit, Syncros
Pro Drop in Headset
Syncros Fraser iC Handlebar
Syncros rear axle
APPROX. FRAME WEIGHT (size M): 1849 g | 4.08 Lbs (incl. shock)
Sizes: S, M, L, XL
Kate Courtney’s Scale RC
E-Dropper, SRAM’s brand new wireless shifting AXS technology and RideLoc. Just some of the trick bits you’ll find on Kate Courtney’s SCOTT Scale!
Find more info on scott-sram.com
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