Felt Ötztal X-Bionic signs U23 cross country star Litscher

Fresh off winning the silver medal at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship cross country race, Switzerland's Thomas Litscher signed a two-year contract with the Felt Ötztal X-Bionic World Cup team.

"We already had great interest in him last year, however his commitments with MIG Team continue until the end of 2010 season," said the Felt Ötztal X-Bionic team's director Jörg Scheiderbauer.

Scheiderbauer sees great potential in the 21-year-old Swiss rider. In addition to his accomplishments solo in the cross country at Worlds, Litscher also was a member of Switzerland's winning relay team.

He won the junior world and European titles in 2007, and he's been mixing it up among the elites with a 15th place at this year's World Cup in Champery, Switzerland and 20th at the World Cup in Offenburg, Germany.

"The team and its support are perfect for me," said Litscher. "Considering my past achievements along with hard work, together we can achieve a lot."