Nick Beer wins the iXS European Downhill Cup's final round and overall

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The 2010 iXS European Downhill Cup ended with the sixth race in Châtel/France this weekend. 227 riders from 13 countries were on the start list of the European series' finals. Switzerland's Nick Beer won both the day's race and the overall classification for the series.

After races in well-known venues such as Leogang or Pila during this season, the finals took place in the Portes du Soleil region for the first time, in Châtel to be precise. It was the third time a race of the European racing series was being held here, so most of the riders knew the course and the perfect conditions. The weather also contributed to the finals, as the sun was shining, and the race was organized on the professional level the venue has become known for on a perfectly groomed track.

In theory, five riders were still in the running for the overall win in the elite men's category, but Thomas Braithwaite (Hope Technology) and Shaun O'Connor (Kenda Playbike) were both not competing, so the remaining three were left to battle it out. After the seeding run where co-favorite Nick Beer (Scott 11) had posted the fastest time, it was clear that the points won in the series' final race would be decisive for the overall.

The battle for the day's race was quite thrilling as well. As he had crashed in his seeding run, Andreas Sieber (Radon/iXS) was the first rider on the course, and he posted a time that was good for a top 10-finish right away. Just as at the series' fourth race in Spicák, he could make himself comfortable in the hot seat for a long time.

The first rider to best his time was Charly Di Pasquale (VTT Plate Au Du Lizon), whose time was good enough to finish third. Second-to-last on the course was Marcus Klausmann (Ghost ATG). He pushed Di Pasquale off the hot seat by just two tenths of a second, but right after that Nick Beer delivered another proof of his consistency, winning the race with a time of 2:38, which also made him the overall winner. His brother Marcel Beer (GT/iXS) completed the double, finishing in fourth at the day and in second in the series' overall. The third place in 2010's overall ranking went to the twelve-fold German national champion Klausmann.

The elite women's category was won by Floriane Pugin (Scott 11), with Morgane Charre (Team Banshee) in second and Harriet Rücknagel (OneTheEdge) in third. The series' overall leader Miriam Ruchti finished in fourth which was good enough to seal the overall victory ahead of Rücknagel, no less than the 11th-ranked rider in the world ranking, and Martina Brühlmann (iXS/Yeti).

The fastest under 17 women's rider was Tahnee Seagrave (Intense Cycles). Just like in Pila, the time of this extraordinarily talented young rider would have been good enough for second place in the elite women's race.

The men's under 17 race was won by Guillaume Cauvin (MC Auto), with Ville Ormo (Mad-Croc) and Antoine Bagnoud (Crans-Mountain Racing) completing the podium. Despite crashing in his run, Riku Länsiö (McDonalds) managed to win the overall.

After having faced some problems in his seeding run, Wilfred van de Haterd (NOX Cycles) rode to another win in the masters category, extending his dominating lead in the overall even further. Marcel Waldmann (DT Swiss) finished in second ahead of Henrik Karppinen. In the overall, Heinz Hostettler (BanditBike.ch) took the runner-up spot, with Karppinen in third.

This season's cup was a complete success. In total, 1241 riders from 27 nations participated in the six races. On one hand, the demanding courses were a perfect platform for the downhill racing community; on the other hand the stiff international competition is strongly contributing to the sport's further development. For next year, the series will again consist of six races.

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