UCI Mountain Bike Cross-country Short Track World Cup men’s race recap – Luca Schwarzbauer wins in Lenzerheide

17:24 – Top ten

Here’s the final top ten: Schwarzbauer, Sarrou, Fini Carstensen, Braidot, Dubau, Fluckiger, Forster, Valero Serrano, Albin and Guerrini. Schurter recovers for 16th place and gets himself a second row start for Sunday’s Cross-country Olympic race.

17:21 – Luca Schwarzbauer wins in Lenzerheide!

What a thriller of a race we had and it’s the powerful German who comes out on to amidst the carnage of the racing. He managed hi effort supremely throughout the race and once he got to the front on the final lap, he was not going to be past.

17:20 – Schwarzbauer goes!

He crests the highest point of the course first and enters the descent in pole position. He has a chance to recover before the final stages now. Sarrou is still close in second.

17:18 – Final lap incoming

Who will attack first? Will Schwarzbauer light it up and take the win?

17:16 – Sarrou now leading

As we head back up the climb with two laps to go, it’s all kicking off at the front. Can Schurter come back with a miracle?

17:15 – Huge Crash!

Gaze crashes as the field start the eighth lap and takes out Schurter with him. Schurter was able to remount quickly, but the World Champion had to straighten his bars and his race is over.

17:15 – Onto lap eight now

Who will try to attack first as we now hit the business end of the race.

17:12 – Big men at the front

Schwarzbauer and Gaze, two of the most powerful and explosive short track riders, are choosing to occupy the front spot of the group, with Schurter trying to go up the German’s inside, but being denied.

17:10 – Onto lap five now

We’re getting closer to the halfway point now with the same group of leaders settling in at the front.

17:08 – Riders opting for the technical lane

Multiple riders are choosing to ride through the technical zone without requiring any mechanical assistance as the line appears to be slightly better than the normal race line.

17:06 – Crash behind

Coming out of the climb into the root section, the European Champion crashes.

17:05 – Schwarzbauer back on the front

The powerful German is once again at the head of the race and the drone footage is showing how tightly packed this leading group is on the fastest section of the course.

17:03 – First lap done

Schurter is moving closer to the front to avoid any positional issues. Fluckiger, his close Swiss rival, is also in the front group but suffered a finger injury in training , so it is unsure how he will go today.

17:02 – Immediate splits

The big favourites are fighting fiercely for position into the first ascent of the main climb. Dubau is leading for now with Gaze luring close behind in the World Champion’s jersey.

17:00 – We’re away!

The riders have shot off the start line on the first lap under beautiful weather in Lenzerheide. It’s an electric start for Schwarzbauer who leads into the first corner.

Swiss hopes

There will also be a whole host of local Swiss riders hoping to ignite the local crowd with a victory. Among them is the legendary Nino Schurter, (Scott-Sram MTB Racing Team), one of his close rivals Mathias Flückiger, (Thömus Maxon), Lars Forster, (Thömus Maxon) and Vital Albin (Thömus Maxon).

Ones to watch

With Tom Pidcock (INEOS Grenadiers) here to defend either of his wins in the XCC and the XCO from the last round, we’ll definitely be seeing a new winner.

Podium finishers from round one in Nové Město, Samuel Gaze (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Luca Schwarzbauer (Canyon CLLTV), will be hoping to go one or two spots better than last time out respectively, but with a less sprinter friendly course, it could be tough. Gaze is the World Champion in this discipline, however, and for good reason.

Cross-Country Short Track – Explainer

Today’s race is made up of laps around a loop just under 1km in length on a condensed version of the Cross-country Olympic track. The riders will be on the course for around 20 minutes and with a 40-rider field taking the start, it will be hectic all the way to the line.

The results this evening will determine the starting grid for the longer event, the Olympic cross-country race on Sunday, so expect a frantic fight to ensue with those grid positions holding huge value.

The last round in round in Nové Město ended in a bunch sprint, but with the more technical course here that has a tough climb in the middle and a rocky descent towards the end, alongside constant sections with roots to sap the legs, look for someone to go solo or a small group of leaders to emerge.

Hello and Welcome!

Hello and welcome to Eurosport’s LIVE text commentary of the second round of the UCI Mountain Bike Cross-country Short Track World Cup. We’re set for around 20 minutes of non-stop racing in the iconic Lenzerheide, Switzerland, with tonight’s XCC race kicking off a huge weekend of MTB racing.

There are a record 800 riders getting amongst the racing throughout the weekend across Cross-country Short Track, Cross-Country Olympic and Downhill, which makes its highly anticipated return to the calendar here.

Weekend of Champions – where to watch

On June 10 and 11, strap yourself in for a live sport rollercoaster ride. With the finals of Roland-Garros, 24 Hours of Le Mans, Speedway Grand Prix, the UCI Mountain Bike World Series, the Criterium du Dauphine, MotoGP and the Champions League final, it’s the Weekend of Champions live on Eurosport, discovery+ and BT Sport.

From Germany to Switzerland, Canada to the Netherlands and right across France including Paris, Cannes and Le Mans, wall-to-wall live coverage will showcase the breadth, depth and sheer volume of Warner Bros. Discovery Europe’s sports portfolio on the weekend of June 10-11.

Dubbed the Weekend of Champions, owing to the sheer amount of world-class action across multiple sports, over 300 Warner Bros. Discovery staff, including production staff, experts and reporters will be on-site across a host of locations over the weekend – from the UEFA Champions League final to Roland-Garros and Le Mans and more. Delivering over 70 hours of live, premium content to millions of sports fans across the continent across multiple platforms.

‘Hectic, fast, fun’ – What to expect when the UCI Downhill World Cup starts this weekend

Sure, it’s short track action on Friday, but tomorrow the MTB world heads downhill…

…as the UCI Downhill World Cup returns for 2023 with a new format that brings with it greater demands for all the riders taking part.

The addition of a semi-final race will determine which riders make the final, with the top 30 men and top 10 women all progressing.

“I would say downhill racing, there’s a set course, you go from the top to the bottom, you have to beat everybody else. There’s lots of preparation that goes into it but that’s the easiest way to describe it,” Iles said.

“It’s pretty hectic, a lot of crashes. It’s dirty, it’s fast, it’s a lot of fun.

“It’s changed things a little bit, it’s more of a mental prep for me. Being prepared to do two full speed runs in a day has been a big change for me, but I like the changes a lot.

“This is going to allow for a lot of different people to come to the top of the standings, a lot of different riders on the podium.

“The finals is everything. It’s still the most points, but I think being consistent through the whole weekend is a lot more important this year, so you’re getting maximum points in qualifying, semi-finals and then the finals. You have to be switched on the entire time.”

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