UCI Cycling World Championships: Switzerland’s mountain bike demonstration in Glentress

Swiss clean sweep of golds

Swiss clean sweep of golds in mixed team relay, and men’s and women’s E-mountain bike cross-country.

The most decorated man in mountain biking, Nino Schurter, brought home a solid Swiss team performance to win the day’s first rainbow bands in Glentress before the Swiss pair of Nathalie Schneitter and Joris Ryf won the E-Mountain bike cross-country titles.

Here’s how the day of mountain bike cross-country competition – part of the UCI Cycling World Championships taking place across Scotland – played out…

Mixed Team Relay: Swiss Gold

Fourteen nations were at the start of the mountain bike cross-country mixed team relay, race in dry, moderate conditions. With tactics at play throughout, many nations started with Men Under 23 riders. Great Britain’s Charlie Aldridge led into the first section, onto the first climb and throughout lap 1, with France’s Adrien Boichis and Switzerland’s Dario Lillo in attendance, then a growing gap to a group including Austria, Germany, Canada and Denmark.

Great Britain and France were first to hand over to their second riders. With teams choosing to set off riders from different categories in the second leg, the lead changed several times, creating nail-biting suspense.

At half distance, Austria had moved up the field, and had a 42-sec gap from France and 1:20 from Canada. With Switzerland 1:25 behind, the crowd wondered just what Nino Schurter might need to do on the final circuit…

But the Swiss team were not going to leave it up to Schurter to do all the work. Women Under 23 rider Ronja Blöchlinger and Anina Hutter (Women Junior) rode superb legs, enabling Schurter - the oldest man in the event – to set off in first position with a 7-sec advantage over Frenchman Jordan Sarrou (Men Elite).

The two men finished in that position, with Schurter crossing the line for Switzerland in a time of 1:05:42, nine seconds ahead of Sarrou. Denmark finished third.

“It’s always nice to start the week with a win, great for morale for the whole team, I just had to finish what the team started,” said Nino Schurter.

Women E-MTB cross-country: Schneitter reclaims her rainbow

In the Women Elite E-MTB cross-country, Switzerland’s Nathalie Schneitter set the early pace as her countrywoman Kathrin Stirnemann (2020 silver medalist) baulked at the first descent of the tricky salmon run, allowing Germany’s Sofia Wiedenroth and France’s Justine Tonso to move into 2nd and 3rd positions respectively.

Stirnemann held 4th place after two of five 4.11km laps with Great Britain’s Tracy Moseley (2010 downhill UCI World Champion) rolling back the years in 5th and Austria’s Anna Spielmann 6th.

2019 UCI World Champion Schneitter was desperate to regain her title – having finished third in both 2020 and 2022 – and on the penultimate lap, the Swiss extended her lead to over 30 seconds, gaining the psychological advantage of being out of her chasers’ sight.

Then the experienced 37-year-old squeezed more seconds out of herself and her bike, hitting the lines right on every tricky section. Leading from start to finish, Schneitter’s time of 52:23 gave her a 1:08 gap over Wiedenroth, who upgrades her 2021 bronze medal to silver, and 1:34 over 2022 silver medalist Tonso who adds a bronze to her collection.

“It’s pretty amazing! I was UCI World Champion four years ago, and I wanted to retire one year ago… I’m glad I didn’t, it looks like I’ve still got it!” said Schneitter.

Men E-MTB cross-country: Ryf’s strategic masterstroke

Having seen his Swiss compatriots win earlier Joris Ryf went off fast, with only Hugo Pigeon of France ahead of him. Jeroen van Eck (NED), using the explosive power from his Eliminator racing background, followed in 3rd with the French pair of reigning UCI World Champion Jérôme Gilloux and Emeric Ienzer (who won his first UCI World Cup race at Monaco this year) close behind.

As the leading pair pulled away, Gilloux (winner of 3 of the 6 UCI E-MTB Cross-country World Cup races in 2023) moved into 3rd, and his French compatriots Ienzer and Remy Gena passed Dutchman Van Eck. By half distance, Gilloux’s hopes for a third successive rainbow jersey faded as he faced a 36-sec deficit. Ryf attacked as Pigeon went through the tech zone to take an energy gel, taking the lead for the first time.

Winner of the most recent UCI World Cup race at Bergamo, Italy, Ryf steadily eked out a lead, amounting to 21-sec at the finish. A glorious gold for 26-year-old Ryf in 58:29, a third successive silver for Pigeon, and bronze for Gilloux.