Sabine Spitz (Sabine Spitz Haibike) made a strong return to competition, after missing the first half of the season due to injury, by winning the fourth round of the UCI Cross Country Mountain Bike World Cup in Vallnord, Andorra. Altitude, heat and strong winds all played a factor in making this one of the hardest races of the season. Tanja Zakelj (Unior Tools) held onto the women's overall lead with a fifth place result.
Katerina Nash (Luna) set an aggressive pace in the first lap of the women's race, quickly shattering the field. Five riders joined Nash at the front of the race by lap two: Spitz, Eva Lechner (Colnago Sudtirol), Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa (Multivan Merida), Maja Wloszczowska (Giant Pro XC) and Jolanda Neff (Giant Pro XC). Zakelj was just behind, but losing ground.
A lap later, both Neff and Wloszczowska were gone, unable to hold the pace. The front four stayed together through most of lap four until Nash attacked, opening a five-second gap as she began the final lap. The Luna rider extended her lead to 10 seconds by the halfway mark of the lap, as the chase began to fall apart.
Spitz, who is just back from shoulder surgery that took her out of action just before the start of the World Cup season, began to surge in the final two kilometres, catching Nash in the final 600 metres as the pair entered the last section of singletrack before a short climb to the finish.
Spitz, the 2008 Olympic champion, put in a last effort over the final 200 metres to take her first World Cup win since 2002, finishing just one second in front of Nash, with Lechner at four seconds and Dahle Flesjaa at nine seconds - one of the closest finishes in recent history.
"With the headwind, nobody wanted to go into the lead," said Spitz. "Eight weeks ago I crashed on my home course in Albstadt [before the World Cup], and, yeah, it's amazing to win. I never expected to come back like this."
"I had hoped for a top ten place...but this win is unbelievable. It [the win] means so much because when you have an accident and have to go out of competition, then you are not sure how your fitness is when you get back to the World Cup circuit. It means so much to me."
Zakelj now leads the women's World Cup standings with 790 points, with two races remaining. Lechner moves up from third to second, 160 points back, and Nash moves up a spot to third, a further 15 points in arrears.
Full Results
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result | |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Sabine Spitz (Ger) Sabine Spitz Haibike Pro Team | 1:26:54 | |
2 | Katerina Nash (Cze) Luna Pro Team | 0:00:01 | |
3 | Eva Lechner (Ita) Team Colnago Sudtirol | 0:00:04 | |
4 | Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa (Nor) Multivan Merida Biking Team | 0:00:09 | |
5 | Tanja Zakelj (Slo) Unior Tools Team | 0:01:24 | |
6 | Katrin Leumann (Swi) Ghost Factory Racing Team | 0:01:35 | |
7 | Jolanda * Neff (Swi) Giant Pro XC Team | 0:01:49 | |
8 | Alexandra Engen (Swe) Ghost Factory Racing Team | 0:02:20 | |
9 | Blaza Klemencic (Slo) Calcit Bike Team | 0:02:32 | |
10 | Julie Bresset (Fra) BH - SR Suntour - KMC | 0:02:43 | |
11 | Maja Wloszczowska (Pol) Giant Pro XC Team | 0:02:54 | |
12 | Esther Süss (Swi) Wheeler - Ixs Team | 0:03:05 | |
13 | Adelheid Morath (Ger) Sabine Spitz Haibike Pro Team | 0:03:09 | |
14 | Irina Kalentieva (Rus) Topeak Ergon Racing Team | 0:03:20 | |
15 | Hanna Klein (Ger) | 0:03:23 | |
16 | Elisabeth Osl (Aut) Ghost Factory Racing Team | 0:04:01 | |
17 | Nathalie Schneitter (Swi) Team Colnago Sudtirol | 0:04:43 | |
18 | Jacquelina Alvarez (Arg) | 0:05:17 | |
19 | Corina Gantenbein (Swi) Fischer-BMC | 0:05:38 | |
20 | Georgia Gould (USA) Luna Pro Team | 0:05:47 | |
21 | Elisabeth Brandau (Ger) | 0:05:52 | |
22 | Kathrin Stirnemann (Swi) Sabine Spitz Haibike Pro Team | 0:06:13 | |
23 | Marianne Vos (Ned) | 0:06:18 | |
24 | Annika Langvad (Den) Team Davinci - Specialized | 0:06:26 | |
25 | Agustina Maria Apaza (Arg) | 0:08:17 | |
26 | Elisabeth Sveum (Nor) | 0:08:37 | |
27 | Lucie Chainel-Lefevre (Fra) BH - SR Suntour - KMC | 0:08:57 | |
28 | Sabrina Enaux (Fra) | 0:09:20 | |
29 | Githa Michiels (Bel) Toka Print MTB Team | 0:09:40 | |
30 | Nadine Rieder (Ger) Topeak Ergon Racing Team | 0:09:58 | |
31 | Fanny Bourdon (Fra) Look - Beaumes De Venise | 0:10:20 | |
32 | Tereza Hurikova (Cze) Specialized Racing XC | 0:10:25 | |
33 | Jitka Skarnitzlova (Cze) | 0:10:44 | |
34 | Anna Villar Argente (Spa) | 0:10:51 | |
35 | Judy Freeman (USA) | 0:11:06 | |
36 | Sandra Santanyes Murillo (Spa) | 0:11:11 | |
37 | Lee Craigie (GBr) | 0:11:16 | |
38 | Ann Berglund (Swe) | 0:11:39 | |
39 | Barbara Benko (Hun) Focus XC Team | 0:12:26 | |
40 | Oksana Rybakova (Rus) | 0:13:15 | |
41 | Lucia Vazquez Crespo (Spa) | 0:15:38 | |
42 | Joana Barbosa (Por) | 0:15:55 | |
-2laps | Elvira Khayrullina (Rus) | ||
DNF | Kate Fluker (NZl) | ||
DNF | Samara Sheppard (NZl) Toka Print MTB Team | ||
DNS | Emily Batty (Can) Trek Factory Racing |
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result | |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Sabine Spitz Haibike Pro Team | 67 | pts |
2 | Ghost Factory Racing Team | 64 | |
3 | Luna Pro Team | 46 | |
4 | Team Colnago Sudtirol | 46 | |
5 | Giant Pro XC Team | 44 | |
6 | Multivan Merida Biking Team | 30 | |
7 | Unior Tools Team | 28 | |
8 | BH - SR Suntour - KMC | 25 | |
9 | Calcit Bike Team | 22 | |
10 | Wheeler - Ixs Team | 19 | |
11 | Topeak Ergon Racing Team | 18 | |
12 | Fischer-BMC | 12 | |
13 | Team Davinci - Specialized | 7 | |
14 | Toka Print MTB Team | 2 |
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result | |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Tanja Zakelj (Slo) Unior Tools Team | 790 | pts |
2 | Eva Lechner (Ita) Team Colnago Sudtirol | 630 | |
3 | Katerina Nash (Cze) Luna Pro Team | 615 | |
4 | Maja Wloszczowska (Pol) Giant Pro XC Team | 580 | |
5 | Alexandra Engen (Swe) Ghost Factory Racing Team | 495 | |
6 | Katrin Leumann (Swi) Ghost Factory Racing Team | 456 | |
7 | Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa (Nor) Multivan Merida Biking Team | 449 | |
8 | Adelheid Morath (Ger) Sabine Spitz Haibike Pro Team | 406 | |
9 | Emily Batty (Can) Trek Factory Racing | 390 | |
10 | Jolanda * Neff (Swi) Giant Pro XC Team | 386 | |
11 | Catharine Pendrel (Can) Luna Pro Team | 375 | |
12 | Esther Süss (Swi) Wheeler - Ixs Team | 365 | |
13 | Irina Kalentieva (Rus) Topeak Ergon Racing Team | 328 | |
14 | Blaza Klemencic (Slo) Calcit Bike Team | 298 | |
15 | Lea Davison (USA) Specialized Racing XC | 292 | |
16 | Kathrin Stirnemann (Swi) Sabine Spitz Haibike Pro Team | 267 | |
17 | Sabine Spitz (Ger) Sabine Spitz Haibike Pro Team | 250 | |
18 | Annika Langvad (Den) Team Davinci - Specialized | 250 | |
19 | Tereza Hurikova (Cze) Specialized Racing XC | 244 | |
20 | Georgia Gould (USA) Luna Pro Team | 244 | |
21 | Nathalie Schneitter (Swi) Team Colnago Sudtirol | 242 | |
22 | Corina Gantenbein (Swi) Fischer-BMC | 242 | |
23 | Elisabeth Osl (Aut) Ghost Factory Racing Team | 236 | |
24 | Hanna Klein (Ger) | 218 | |
25 | Aleksandra Dawidowicz (Pol) Bi&Esse Carrera | 194 | |
26 | Sabrina Enaux (Fra) | 194 | |
27 | Vera Andreeva (Rus) Team Protek | 182 | |
28 | Githa Michiels (Bel) Toka Print MTB Team | 180 | |
29 | Mary Mcconneloug (USA) | 168 | |
30 | Pauline * Ferrand Prevot (Fra) Giant Pro XC Team | 164 | |
31 | Daniela Campuzano (Mex) | 154 | |
32 | Marianne Vos (Ned) | 150 | |
33 | Annie Last (GBr) Trek Factory Racing | 141 | |
34 | Julie Bresset (Fra) BH - SR Suntour - KMC | 124 | |
35 | Anna Villar Argente (Spa) | 123 | |
36 | Jacquelina Alvarez (Arg) | 117 | |
37 | Fanny Bourdon (Fra) Look - Beaumes De Venise | 104 | |
38 | Nina Wrobel (Ger) | 99 | |
39 | Nadine Rieder (Ger) Topeak Ergon Racing Team | 95 | |
40 | Mikaela Kofman (Can) Scott-3Roxracing | 90 | |
41 | Agustina Maria Apaza (Arg) | 88 | |
42 | Katarzyna Solus-Miskowicz (Pol) | 88 | |
43 | Lene Byberg (Nor) | 84 | |
44 | Judy Freeman (USA) | 81 | |
45 | Nataliya Krompets (Ukr) ISD MTB Team | 79 | |
46 | Jitka Skarnitzlova (Cze) | 79 | |
47 | Lee Craigie (GBr) | 79 | |
48 | Anja Gradl (Ger) Team Bulls | 79 | |
49 | Barbara Benko (Hun) Focus XC Team | 79 | |
50 | Kate Fluker (NZl) | 78 | |
51 | Elisabeth Brandau (Ger) | 77 | |
52 | Paula Gorycka (Pol) 4F Racing Team | 75 | |
53 | Chengyuan Ren (Chn) | 74 | |
54 | Elisabeth Sveum (Nor) | 74 | |
55 | Anna Szafraniec (Pol) | 70 | |
56 | Serena Calvetti (Ita) Torpado Surfing Shop | 70 | |
57 | Lucie Chainel-Lefevre (Fra) BH - SR Suntour - KMC | 68 | |
58 | Amanda Sin (Can) Scott-3Roxracing | 66 | |
59 | Samara Sheppard (NZl) Toka Print MTB Team | 64 | |
60 | Elvira Khayrullina (Rus) | 57 | |
61 | Kateryna Naberezhna (Ukr) ISD MTB Team | 49 | |
62 | Judith Pollinger (Ita) | 48 | |
63 | Franziska Brun (Swi) | 45 | |
64 | Katherine O'neill (NZl) | 44 | |
65 | Lucia Vazquez Crespo (Spa) | 41 | |
66 | Lucie Vesela (Cze) | 39 | |
67 | Sandra Santanyes Murillo (Spa) | 34 | |
68 | Erin Huck (USA) | 34 | |
69 | Nikki Harris (GBr) | 32 | |
70 | Ann Berglund (Swe) | 30 | |
71 | Sarah Koba (Swi) JB Felt Team | 29 | |
72 | Oksana Rybakova (Rus) | 28 | |
73 | Irina Slobodyan (Ukr) | 28 | |
74 | Joana Barbosa (Por) | 26 | |
75 | Anna Oberparleiter (Ita) | 23 | |
76 | Andréanne Pichette (Can) | 18 | |
77 | Laura Metzler (Fra) BH - SR Suntour - KMC | 18 | |
78 | Helle Qvortrup Bachmann (Den) | 17 | |
79 | Hielke Elferink (Ned) | 14 | |
80 | Lenka Bulisova (Cze) | 13 | |
81 | Ruth Owen-Evans (GBr) | 12 | |
82 | Asuman Bura Balci (Tur) | 11 | |
83 | Laura Turpijn (Ned) SBJ Bike Team | 8 |
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result | |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Giant Pro XC Team | 226 | pts |
2 | Luna Pro Team | 226 | |
3 | Ghost Factory Racing Team | 226 | |
4 | Sabine Spitz Haibike Pro Team | 170 | |
5 | Team Colnago Sudtirol | 151 | |
6 | Unior Tools Team | 138 | |
7 | Trek Factory Racing | 105 | |
8 | Specialized Racing XC | 95 | |
9 | Multivan Merida Biking Team | 89 | |
10 | Wheeler - Ixs Team | 79 | |
11 | Topeak Ergon Racing Team | 68 | |
12 | Calcit Bike Team | 55 | |
13 | Team Davinci - Specialized | 37 | |
14 | Fischer-BMC | 33 | |
15 | Bi&Esse Carrera | 31 | |
16 | BH - SR Suntour - KMC | 25 | |
17 | Team Protek | 25 | |
18 | Toka Print MTB Team | 14 | |
19 | ISD MTB Team | 8 | |
20 | Scott-3Roxracing | 5 | |
21 | 4F Racing Team | 1 |