DOWN TO THE WIRE

After a long, cold winter, the heat was turned up at the opening round of the Cross- Country World Cup in Stellenbosch. Not only because South Africa is su ering from its worst drought on record and the riders had to battle through blazing temperatures and dust on the highly technical course, but because the race produced some nail- biting action

From the start, all eyes were on Nino Schurter. The world and Olympic champion came into the weekend o the back of a perfect season and, true to form, it was the Swiss rider who led the charge from the gunshot. But as most of the competition fell away, there was one man Nino just couldn’t shake o – Sam Gaze. The young Kiwi only graduated from the U23 category this year, but he found himself jostling for the lead multiple times over the seven laps.

Despite gnarly technical sections filled with rocks and big log drops, neither rider faltered and it all came down to the final 100m. Gaze, in front, was first to sprint. Although Nino responded strongly, he dropped a pedal at a critical moment and punched his thigh in frustration as his rival crossed the line and ended his winning streak.

The women’s racing started out tight, but as the race progressed, so the gap grew between Denmark’s Annika Langvad and her nearest rivals, France’s Pauline Ferrand- Prévot and Anne Tauber, of the Netherlands. British World’s medallist Annie Last finished up in twelfth and we know she’ll be hungry for more in the coming rounds.

XC racing may not be as dramatic as downhill, but we love watching head- to- head racing and the intensity these guys and girls keep up for an hour- and- a- half has to be seen to be believed!