April 22/24 18:42 pm - Emilly Johnston Has Another Strong Weekend at World Cup #2

Posted by Editoress on 04/22/24
 

Emilly Johnston (Trek Future Racing) was again the top Canadian at Round 2 the Mountain Bike World Cup, finishing second in both the U23 women's XCC and XCO races, in Araxá, Brazil, this past weekend. Jennifer Jackson (Liv Factory) was fifth in the Elite women's XCC, and riding in the top-5 of the XCO before suffering a crash and mechanical issues.

XCC
Both Kira Böhm (Cube Factory Racing) and Riley Amos (Trek Factory Racing-Pirelli) took their second wins in as many weeks, as both continue to dominate the U23 ranks. Haley Batten (Specialized Factory) took the Elite women's race, with her Specialized teammate Victor Koretzky taking the men's.

Germany's Böhm launched an early attack and took Canadian Emilly Johnston (Trek Factory Racing) and another German, Carla Hahn (Lexware Mountainbike Team), clear with her. Böhm and Johnston dropped Hahn, but Johnston couldn't respond to the final attack by Böhm. Ella MacPhee (Pivot Cycles-OTE) was 17th.

In the men's U23 race, Amos beat his compatriot Bjorn Riley (Trek Future Racing), making it a one-two for Trek teams on the podium. Like Böhm, Amos put on yet another superior display after victory in both UCI XCC and XCO World Cups in Mairiporã last weekend. Switzerland's Luke Wiedmann (Thömus Maxon) finished third. Cole Punchard (Pivot Cycles-OTE) was the top Canadian in seventh, only seven seconds off the podium. Zorak Paille (Pivot Cycles-OTE) was 20th.

In the Elite women's XCC, Jackson was near the front for the entire race, behind the leading quartet of Batten, Evie Richards (Trek Factory-Pirelli), Linda Indergand (Liv Factory) and Savilia Blunk (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) on the final lap. Richards crashed close to the finish line, with Blunk moving up to finish third. Jackson was the only Canadian woman in the XCC.

"I had another great short track on Saturday," said Jackson, "struggled for position a little bit, it was pretty hectic from the start straightaway to the steep climb, but on the final lap was able to move through from 11th to 5th which was super cool. I didn't expect to quite have the legs for it after a bit of a slow week but am really happy with how I showed up for the weekend."

Speaking after the race, Batten said: "That course was really tricky. Positioning was so key, but it was really hard to execute because the swarm was just constant throughout the race, so sometimes I took the front maybe a bit more than I should have. I felt really strong and I just tried to be smart about my effort. That last lap I knew was crucial and that's what I train for. I train to win, and I think it's just about executing when it gets to the races."

The Elite men's XCC saw a large group of contenders battling for the podium. Luca Schwarzbauer (Canyon CLLCTV XCO), second in Round 1, took control at the front for much of the middle part of the race, before Koretzky and his teammate Chris Blevins - winner of the Round 1 XCO - rode everyone off their wheels. Koretzky outsprinted Blevins for the win, with Alan Hatherly (Cannondale Factory Racing) taking third. Carter Woods (Giant Factory Off-Road Team - XC) was the only Canadian finisher, with Gunnar Holmgren (KMC Ridley MTB Racing Team) not finishing.

"It was full gas until the finish line" explained Koretzky. "Chris [Blevins] was super strong, and he did an amazing job for the final, but because it was super-fast at the end, for me it was easy on the wheel compared to him. We are happy to both be on the podium, it's amazing for Specialized team again. Haley [Batten] won for the girls, I won for the men, Chris finished second, so it's super nice, and the atmosphere here in Brazil is amazing."

World Cup Araxa, Brazil XCC results

XCO
After finishing third in Round 1 of the U23 women's XCO series a week earlier, Emilly Johnston moved up one spot for the second XCO, after a race-long battle with Böhm. The German rider proved to be too strong on the final lap, taking her fourth win in four races. Valentina Corvi (Santa Cruz Rockshox Pro Team) rode with Böhm and Johnston until the final lap, when she fell off the pace. Ella MacPhee had another strong ride to finish tenth.

"I'm really stoked on how these first couple of races went," said Johnston. "I've just been looking at getting back into the World Cup season; the first couple are always the most nerve-wracking - to see where you stack up when everyone is on their top form. So I was really happy with how I rode. There were really some close battles out there on course. Brazil, with all the spectators, is the most amazing venue to open the season, so I was really happy to put forward my strongest rides ever and have some great battles with the girls. I think it's going to be a really fun and exciting season. I'm looking forward to the rest of it and really proud of my first two rides."

In the men's U23 race, Riley Amos also completed a clean sweep of the XCC and XCO events for the first two rounds. Amos won despite an aggressive race from Finn Treudler (Cube Factory Racing), who finished in second place. Brazilian rider Alex Malacarne (Trinity Racing MTB) secured third place to send the home crowd wild. Cole Punchard was the top Canadian in 11th, with Zorak Paille 21st and Simon Ruelland (Pivot Cycles - OTE) 49th.

Jenn Jackson had a very strong start in the Elite women's race, and was a member of the lead group of six until a crash and broken wheel forced her to limp into the tech zone, dropping her back to the mid-teens, where she eventually finished 17th. Laurie Arseneault (Pittstop Racing Team) was the only other Canadian to race, finishing 28th.

"Can't pretend I'm not heartbroken about how Sunday went though," admitted Jackson. "I had a great start and was all in for a top 5, had great legs, but the girls at the front are so strong on the climbs so I was still relying pretty heavily on descending back on to the lead group from the top of the course. And, yah, Lap 2 and 3 [I] started yo-yo-ing a bit more and honestly just going faster than I realized through the tech descent to try and get back. [I] landed deep into rocks I didn't even consider a risk in pre-ride and cracked a rim, everything held for about half a lap before I was sure it was done though."

"Fortunately, I had an insert and was able to ride the better part of a lap (all the way up...) from when I realized to the pits for a new wheel, but the wind was out of my sails; I felt like I was overheating physically and crumbling mentally from losing the leaders, and that's probably the most disappointing thing about today; that I couldn't get it back together."

"All that said, I was still 17th, it's still one of my best World Cup results ever, and off the back of last season I've had the best string of results for Canadian women since 2019 and feel like I still have more to show... Looking forward to heading home now and working on the next [rounds]."

Batten and Round 1 XCO winner Jenny Rissveds (Team 31 Ibis Cycles Continental) battled at the front for the rest of the race, but the Batten was able to drop the 2016 Olympic champion for the win, with Savilia Blunk (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) taking third.

"It's crazy. I have no words," commented Batten. "You train so hard all winter but to put it all together on race day when it's so tactical like that, I just had no idea what was happening, so to pull it off feels insane. For both Savilia and me this is a huge year, for the Olympic Games, so yeah, a pretty good day. That second last lap was weird, it was hard to read, I know Jenny [Rissveds] pulled a good attack on me with one lap to go last weekend, so when I was leading that second last lap, I was like, 'oh no, she's going to do it to me again'. I tried to settle in and just wait until it's time; I tried to read it right, went a little bit early, but luckily I was able to hold out on Jenny's attack, because that was a big one. I was barely able to hang onto that."

The Elite men's race was hit with a crash early on, completely scrambling the field and knocking Round 1 XCO winner Chris Blevins out of contention. After six laps there was still a group of ten riders at the front, including XCC podium members Koretzky and Hatherly, 2023 World Cup champion Nino Schurter (Scott-SRAM), Simon Andreassen (Cannondale Factory Racing) and Round 1 XCC winner Sam Gaze (Alpecin-Deceuninck). The finish became a sprint, with Andreassen holding off Koretzky and Hatherly. Carter Woods was the top Canadian, in 15th, followed by Holmgren in 27th, Leandre Bouchard (Foresco Holding Proco Rl Pro Team) in 38th, Victor Verreault (Foresco Holding Proco Rl Pro Team) 58th and Raphael Auclair (Pivot Cycles - OTE) 69th.

"That was nice to win a World Cup again," admitted Andreassen. "To be honest I haven't thought too much about it yet. It been a few years since I won and I will take a moment to soak it in."

World Cup Araxa, Brazil XCO results