Gallagher takes the World Cup win after battle of attrition in Nove Mesto

In round 2 of the men's eliminator World Cup competition in Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic, a number of the favourites exited early or suffered mechanical problems, opening the door for some relatively unknown riders to shine. Raphaël Gagne (Canadian National), fourth in round one, did not qualify for the final 32 riders. World champion Ralph Näf (BMC) crashed in his first heat and did not finish. Thomas Litscher (Multivan Merida) false started in the quarter-final round and was relegated. Round 1 winner and World Cup leader Daniel Federspiel (Otztal Scott) while sprinting in his semi-final round, had a mechanical with his rear derailleur and had to settle for fifth.

The Nove Mesto course was very different from the first round, in Albstadt, Germany, last week. Where the opening round was very technical, running through city streets, this week incorporated parts of the cross country circuit, with a rock garden and long climb, requiring power and endurance.

The men's final had only one rider from the previous round's final - Slovenia's Miha Halzer, who qualified first and looked to be the favourite in the final. Halzer was joined by Gallagher, and two German riders, Christian Pfäffle and Simon Gegenheimer. Halzer went out early with a broken chain, followed by Gegenheimer with a flat tire. This left Gallagher and Pfäffle to sprint, and the British rider Gallagher played it smart, staying behind his rival until the final 150 metres, before coming around to win by a bike length.

"Going into the final race I knew I would be on the podium," said Gallagher. "But after Halzer and Gegenheimer had mechanicals, I knew first was possible. So when Christian went to the front, I got on his wheel and then came around at the end. I think maybe he went out to early. I always knew I had a good sprint; I used to do downhill."

Federspiel leads the men's standings after two rounds with 80 points, followed by Gallagher and Pfäffle, both with 60 points.

Elite men eliminator full results

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Big Final
#Rider Name (Country) Team
1Kenta Gallagher (GBr) Superior Brentjens Mountainbike Racing Team
2Christian Pfäffle (Ger)
3Simon Gegenheimer (Ger)
4Miha Halzer (Slo)
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Small Final
#Rider Name (Country) Team
5Daniel Federspiel (Aut) Ötztal Scott Racing Team
6Stefan Peter (Swi) Strubi MTB Kader
7Sepp Freiburghaus (Swi)
8Fabien Canal (Fra) Asptt Definitive Tec
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1/4 Finals
#Rider Name (Country) Team
9Thibault Geneste (Fra) Newcycling
10Andy Eyring (Ger)
11Martin Gluth (Ger)
12Jan Nesvadba (Cze)
13Philip Buys (RSA)
14Simon Stiebjahn (Ger) Team Bulls
15Erik Groen (Ned) Feenstra Felt Powered By Kenda
16Thomas Litscher (Swi) Multivan Merida Biking Team
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1/8 Finals
#Rider Name (Country) Team
17Fabrice Mels (Bel) Salcano Alanya
18Matthias Wengelin (Swe)
19Rens De Bruijn (Ned) SBJ Bike Team
20Jan Fojtik (Cze)
21Jeroen van Eck* (Ned) MPL Specialized MTB Team
22Adria Noguera Soldevila (Spa)
23Urban Ferencak (Slo) Calcit Bike Team
24Lubomir Vojka (Cze)
25Patrick Luthi (Swi)
26Martino Fruet (Ita)
27Leandre Bouchard (Can) Canadian National Team
28Heiko Gutmann (Ger)
29Milan Spesny (Cze)
30Kevin van Hoovels (Bel) Versluys Team
31Nicola Rohrbach (Swi) Goldwurst-Power / Stöckli
DNFRalph Näf (Swi) BMC Mountainbike Racing Team

Elite men eliminator World Cup standings after round 2

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#Rider Name (Country) TeamResultHeader Cell - Column 3
1Daniel Federspiel (Aut) Ötztal Scott Racing Team80pts
2Kenta Gallagher* (GBr) Superior Brentjens Mountainbike Racing Team60Row 1 - Cell 3
3Christian Pfäffle* (Ger)60Row 2 - Cell 3
4Miha Halzer (Slo)55Row 3 - Cell 3
5Simon Gegenheimer (Ger)44Row 4 - Cell 3
6Thomas Litscher (Swi) Multivan Merida Biking Team41Row 5 - Cell 3
7Raphael Gagne (Can)25Row 6 - Cell 3
8Stefan Peter* (Swi) Strübi MTB Kader20Row 7 - Cell 3
9Thibault Geneste* (Fra) Newcycling20Row 8 - Cell 3
10Andy Eyring (Ger)20Row 9 - Cell 3
11Marcel Wildhaber (Swi) Scott Swisspower MTB Racing Team18Row 10 - Cell 3
12Sepp Freiburghaus (Swi)16Row 11 - Cell 3
13Mirco Widmer (Swi) Giant Dealerteams16Row 12 - Cell 3
14Fabien Canal (Fra) ASPTT Definitive Tec15Row 13 - Cell 3
15Lehvi° Braam (Ned) Netherlands12Row 14 - Cell 3
16Martin Gluth* (Ger)8Row 15 - Cell 3
17Jan Nesvadba* (Cze)6Row 16 - Cell 3
18Titouan Perrin Ganier* (Fra) Focus/Rotor/Coaching-System.Fr6Row 17 - Cell 3
19Philip Buys (RSA)4Row 18 - Cell 3
20Heiko Gutmann (Ger)4Row 19 - Cell 3
21Simon Stiebjahn (Ger) Team Bulls3Row 20 - Cell 3
22Fabrice Mels* (Bel) Salcano Alanya3Row 21 - Cell 3
23Erik Groen (Ned) Feenstra Felt Powered By Kenda2Row 22 - Cell 3

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