Marco Aurelio Fontana (Cannondale Factory Racing) and Elisabeth Brandau (Central Haibike Pro Cycling) won the 25th edition of Mountain Bike Spring Classic in Münsingen, Germany, on Sunday. In front of a big crowd, Fontana won a close duel with world champion Jose Antonio Hermida (Multivan Merida Biking Team) while Brandau took her first ever win ahead of Annika Langvad (Easton Rockets) and Sabine Spitz (Central Haibike Pro Cycling) in an exciting women's competition.
Hermida put pressure on the initial five-man lead group and Fontana followed the Spaniard off the front. Jochen Käss (Multivan Merida Biking Team) tried to follow but couldn't, and he fell back into the chase group where he joined Swiss riders Martin Fanger (Giant Swiss SR-Suntour) and Martin Gujan (Cannondale Factory Racing).
Hermida and Fontana's escape came in the middle of the race and the two did battle for the remainder of the race. Going into lap seven they were together, but then Hermida's rear tire started to go flat.
Hermida was able to hang on to Fontana's wheel despite the lower air pressure from the slow leak, but didn't have enough to attack him. Fontana went on to take the win.
"I thought I could make it today. It was so close, even with the slowly leaking tire," said Hermida.
Fontana was cheered by the crowds as he crossed the line with a wheelie in spite of Hermida being close behind him.
"I'm lucky to win here. It was a hard but fair fight with José," said Fontana. Two years ago, during his first appearance in Münsingen, Fontana had crashed and then Hermida had crashed into him.
Gujan, a two-time previous winner, earned the third spot on the podium, 21 seconds behind Fontana. He surprised some by beating Fanger. Käss took the final podium spot.
Pre-race favorite Manuel Fumic (Cannondale Factory Racing) had two early incidences of chain suck and lost his chance to finish on the podium.
An awesome day for Brandau
The women's competition turned into a race with four main contenders. Sabine Spitz took the lead in the beginning of the race and her efforts helped build the quartet's lead. Elisabeth Brandau, Annika Langvad and Blaza Klemencic (Felt Oetztal X-Bionic Team) joined Spitz, leaving Lisi Osl (Ghost Factory Racing Team) and Katrin Leumann (Ghost Factory Racing Team) behind.
These four lead women gave an exciting race, attacking at almost every corner, changing positions all the time. At one point, Langvad took too many risks and went over her handlebars. Brandau had to stop, while Spitz and Klemencic were able to pass.
But Brandau and later also Langvad caught back up and at the beginning of the last lap, all four were still in the game. Brandau and Langvad got a small gap, but the lead changed several times.
About 700 meters before the finish, Brandau made the last maneuver, passing Langvad while riding over some wavy terrain. She held onto her lead and celebrated her win in front of a cheering crowd. It was her first ever win in a major cross country race.
"It was awsome today. We were fighting really aggressive and I'm really happy to get the win," said Brandau.
Brandau's Central Haibike teammate Spitz finished third, only 11 seconds behind. "The teamwork was fine. We knew that Lisa was in good shape," said Spitz. "For myself, I tried not to go over the limit six days before Pietermaritzburg World Cup."
Langvad wasn't too disappointed. "Today my plan was not to escape. I wanted to get into the fight with the other girls, and I learned a lot," said Langvad.
Full Results
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marco Aurelio Fontana (Ita) Cannondale Factory Racing | 1:26:13 |
| 2 | José Antonio Hermida Ramos (Spa) Multivan Merida Biking Team | 0:00:01 |
| 3 | Martin Gujan (Swi) Cannondale Factory Racing | 0:00:21 |
| 4 | Martin Fanger (Swi) Giant Swiss SR-Suntour | 0:00:22 |
| 5 | Jochen Kass (Ger) Multivan Merida Biking Team | 0:00:38 |
| 6 | Fabian Giger (Swi) Rabobank-Giant Offroad Team | 0:01:46 |
| 7 | Manuel Fumic (Ger) Cannondale Factory Racing | 0:02:23 |
| 8 | Rene Tann (Ger) | 0:03:13 |
| 9 | Lukas Kaufmann (Swi) | 0:03:26 |
| 10 | Emil Lindgren (Swe) Rabobank-Giant Offroad Team | 0:03:29 |
| 11 | Magnus Darvell (Swe) | 0:03:30 |
| 12 | Pierre-Geoffroy Plantet (Fra) Team Newcycling | 0:03:41 |
| 13 | Benjamin Wittrup Justesen | 0:04:09 |
| 14 | Henk Jaap Moorlag (Ned) Rabobank-Giant Offroad Team | 0:04:14 |
| 15 | Robert Mennen (Ger) Topeak Ergon Racing Team | 0:04:18 |
| 16 | Simon Scheiber (Aut) Felt Oetztal X-Bionic Team | 0:05:03 |
| 17 | Torsten Marx (Ger) | 0:05:05 |
| 18 | Ralph Naef (Swi) Multivan Merida Biking Team | 0:05:17 |
| 19 | Jelmer Jubbega (Ned) Rabobank-Giant Offroad Team | 0:05:27 |
| 20 | Simon Gegenheimer (Ger) | 0:05:37 |
| 21 | Heiko Gutmann (Ger) | 0:05:46 |
| 22 | Niels Wubben (Ned) Rabobank-Giant Offroad Team | 0:06:18 |
| 23 | Pascal Hossay (Bel) G-Skin-Deforche MTB Racing Team | 0:06:40 |
| 24 | Robert Gehbauer (Aut) | 0:06:42 |
| 25 | Michael Hutter (Swi) | 0:07:12 |
| 26 | Matthias Pfrommer (Ger) | 0:07:40 |
| 27 | Christopher Maletz (Ger) | 0:08:04 |
| 28 | Mathias Frohn (Ger) | 0:08:10 |
| 29 | Sebastian Mordmuller (Ger) | 0:09:02 |
| 30 | Steffen Greger (Ger) | 0:09:09 |
| 31 | Casper Saltoft (Den) | 0:09:16 |
| 32 | Pascal Ketterer (Ger) | 0:09:47 |
| 33 | Davy Huygens (Bel) | 0:10:09 |
| 34 | Thomas Pfrommer (Ger) | 0:10:21 |
| 35 | Marco Schätzing (Ger) Team Firebike-Droessiger | 0:10:27 |
| 36 | Cristobal Silva Ibaceta (Chi) | 0:10:34 |
| 37 | Brice Scholtes (Bel) G-Skin-Deforche MTB Racing Team | 0:10:58 |
| 38 | Rumen Voigt (Ger) | 0:11:27 |
| 39 | Uwe Hardter (Ger) | 0:11:34 |
| 40 | Gerrit Rosenkranz (Ger) | 0:11:38 |
| 41 | Sebastian Szraucner (Ger) | 0:11:52 |
| 42 | Sebastian Gründel (Ger) | 0:11:59 |
| 43 | Stefan Schairer (Ger) | 0:12:24 |
| 44 | Marcel Reiser (Ger) | 0:12:43 |
| 45 | Michael Rieder (Ger) | 0:12:47 |
| 46 | Andi Weinhold (Ger) | 0:12:55 |
| 47 | Sascha Schwindling (Ger) | 0:13:11 |
| 48 | Carlo Maschek (Ger) | 0:13:58 |
| 49 | Sebastian Bergmann (Ger) | |
| 50 | Johnni Nielsen (Den) | |
| 51 | Jochen Coconcelli (Ger) | |
| 52 | Oliver Vonhausen (Ger) | |
| 53 | Ulrich Theobald (Ger) | |
| 54 | Patrick Hediger (Swi) | |
| 55 | Sascha Nething (Ger) | |
| 56 | Achim Beckendahl (Ger) | |
| 57 | Martin Haugo (Nor) Team Merida Smart Safety | |
| 58 | Konstantin Jung (Ger) | |
| 59 | Severin Schweisguth (Ger) | |
| 60 | Phillipp Rothe (Ger) | |
| 61 | Mathias Veit (Ger) | |
| 62 | Benjamin Oesterle (Ger) | |
| 63 | Luca Formoso (Swi) | |
| 64 | Niklas Tober (Ger) | |
| 65 | Tom Ettlich (Ger) | |
| 66 | Tobias Loest (Ger) | |
| 67 | Christian Pötzsch (Ger) | |
| DNF | Steffen Thum (Ger) | |
| DNF | Wolfgang Krenn (Aut) | |
| DNF | Mario Waibel (Ger) | |
| DNS | Fabian Brzezinski (Ger) |
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elisabeth Brandau (Ger) Central Haibike Pro Cycling | 1:26:00 |
| 2 | Annika Langvad (Den) | |
| 3 | Sabine Spitz (Ger) Central Haibike Pro Cycling | |
| 4 | Blaza Klemencic (Slo) Felt Oetztal X-Bionic Team | |
| 5 | Sabrina Enaux (Fra) Felt Oetztal X-Bionic Team | 0:01:00 |
| 6 | Katrin Leumann (Swi) Ghost Factory Racing Team | |
| 7 | Elisabeth Osl (Aut) Ghost Factory Racing Team | |
| 8 | Rosara Joseph (NZl) Rabobank-Giant Offroad Team | 0:02:00 |
| 9 | Nathalie Schneitter (Swi) Colnago Arreghini Sudtirol | 0:03:00 |
| 10 | Tereza Hurikova (Cze) Central Haibike Pro Cycling | |
| 11 | Hanna Klein (Ger) | |
| 12 | Alexandra Engen (Swe) | 0:04:00 |
| 13 | Kathrin Stirnemann (Swi) Central Haibike Pro Cycling | 0:05:00 |
| 14 | Elisabeth Sveum (Nor) Team Merida Smart Safety | |
| 15 | Silke Schmidt (Ger) | 0:06:00 |
| 16 | Sabrina Schweizer (Ger) | |
| 17 | Katrin Schwing (Ger) | |
| 18 | Barbara Benko (Hun) Focus MIG Team | 0:07:00 |
| 19 | Tatjana Dold (Ger) | |
| 20 | Helen Grobert (Ger) | 0:08:00 |
| 21 | Michelle Hediger (Swi) Fischer-BMC | |
| 22 | Vivienne Meyer (Swi) Colnago Arreghini Sudtirol | |
| 23 | Githa Michiels (Bel) Trek - KMC Trade Team VZW | 0:09:00 |
| 24 | Kristine Noergaard (Den) | |
| 25 | Jane Nussli (GBr) Fischer-BMC | |
| 26 | Virginie Pointet (Swi) | 0:10:00 |
| 27 | Sabrina Maurer (Swi) | |
| 28 | Yana Belomoyna (Ukr) Infotre - Bi&Esse- Leecougan | 0:11:00 |
| 29 | Mona Eiberweiser (Ger) Ghost Factory Racing Team | 0:12:00 |
| 30 | Maria Osl (Aut) Fischer-BMC | |
| 31 | Elise Marchal (Bel) Trek - KMC Trade Team VZW | 0:13:00 |
| 32 | Mette Marie Kronborg (Den) | |
| 33 | Mailin Franke (Ger) | 0:14:00 |
| 34 | Nadine Rieder (Ger) | |
| 35 | Regina Genser (Ger) | 0:15:00 |
| 36 | Marta Tereshchuk (Ukr) Infotre - Bi&Esse- Leecougan | 0:17:00 |
| 37 | Ingrid Sofie Jacobsen (Nor) | |
| 38 | Vanessa Tempcke (Ger) | |
| 39 | Ann Kathrin Scheläschus (Ger) | |
| 40 | Kristina Weber (Ger) | |
| 41 | Kim-Julia Gerlach (Ger) | |
| 42 | Theresa Wolfrum (Ger) | |
| 43 | Torunn Stake Laengen (Nor) | |
| 44 | Franziska Rödel (Ger) | |
| DNF | Sarah Bosch (Ger) | |
| DNF | Nathalie Zeferer (Ger) |
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Markus Bauer (Ger) | 1:16:42 |
| 2 | Markus Schulte-Luenzum (Ger) Focus MIG Team | 0:00:05 |
| 3 | Alexander Gehbauer (Aut) | 0:00:06 |
| 4 | Julian Schelb (Ger) | 0:00:07 |
| 5 | Matthias Stirnemann (Swi) Thoemus Racing Team | 0:00:54 |
| 6 | Marco Minnaard (Ned) Rabobank-Giant Offroad Team | 0:01:13 |
| 7 | Olof Jonsson (Swe) Rocky Roads-Orbea | 0:01:15 |
| 8 | Tim Lemmers (Ned) | 0:01:41 |
| 9 | Michiel Van Der Heijden (Ned) Rabobank-Giant Offroad Team | 0:01:42 |
| 10 | Emilien Barben (Swi) | |
| 11 | Jonas Pedersen (Den) | 0:01:44 |
| 12 | Shlomi Haimy (Isr) Focus MIG Team | 0:01:53 |
| 13 | Rens De Bruin (Ned) | 0:01:55 |
| 14 | Bart De Vocht (Bel) | 0:02:00 |
| 15 | Matthias Rupp (Swi) Team Firebike-Droessiger | 0:02:06 |
| 16 | Jonas De Backer (Bel) Rocky Roads-Orbea | 0:02:28 |
| 17 | Kevin Krieg (Swi) | 0:02:38 |
| 18 | Martin Gluth (Ger) | 0:02:57 |
| 19 | Maximilian Holz (Ger) | 0:03:17 |
| 20 | Ludwig Döhl (Ger) | 0:03:29 |
| 21 | Benjamin Buchi (Swi) | 0:03:36 |
| 22 | Yannick Burkhardt (Ger) | 0:03:39 |
| 23 | Kenneth Hansen (Den) | 0:03:43 |
| 24 | Wenzel Böhm-Gräber (Ger) | 0:03:47 |
| 25 | Marcus Nicolai (Ger) | 0:03:48 |
| 26 | Matthias Hoi (Aut) | 0:04:11 |
| 27 | Rick Reimann (Swi) | 0:04:13 |
| 28 | Tobias Saether (Nor) Team United Bakeries | 0:04:54 |
| 29 | Daniel Kaufmann (Swi) | 0:05:00 |
| 30 | David Simon (Ger) Team Firebike-Droessiger | 0:05:02 |
| 31 | Olivier Bruwiere (Bel) | 0:05:03 |
| 32 | Johannes Közle (Ger) | |
| 33 | Frank Demuth (Ger) | 0:05:08 |
| 34 | Lysander Kiesel (Ger) | 0:05:09 |
| 35 | Henrik Hoffmann (Ger) | 0:05:17 |
| 36 | Fabian Rabensteiner (Ita) | 0:05:20 |
| 37 | Ole Hem (Nor) Team United Bakeries | 0:05:26 |
| 38 | Adrian Sauer (Ger) | 0:05:40 |
| 39 | Alexander Blomqvist (Swe) | 0:05:49 |
| 40 | Valentin Fiderer (Ger) | 0:05:57 |
| 41 | Dany Lacroix (Bel) | 0:05:59 |
| 42 | Marcel Braun (Ger) | 0:06:01 |
| 43 | Anton Liyubuy (Ukr) | 0:06:21 |
| 44 | Zdenek Vobecky (Cze) | 0:06:26 |
| 45 | Michael Stünzi (Swi) | 0:06:36 |
| 46 | Tobias Reiser (Ger) | 0:06:37 |
| 47 | Anselm Wüllner (Ger) | 0:06:54 |
| 48 | Marco Tippmann (Ger) | 0:07:14 |
| 49 | Kristoffer Wormsen (Nor) Team United Bakeries | 0:07:17 |
| 50 | Matthias Zink (Ger) | 0:07:32 |
| 51 | Marian Pablo Burkhardt (Ger) | 0:07:47 |
| 52 | Timo Modosch (Ger) | 0:08:03 |
| 53 | Philipp Ziegler (Ger) | 0:08:25 |
| 54 | Jeffrey Andris (Ger) | 0:08:31 |
| 55 | Tommy Galle (Ger) | 0:08:42 |
| 56 | Oliver Laundenberg (Ger) | |
| 57 | Barry Hayes (Ger) | 0:08:51 |
| 58 | Martin Knöpfle (Ger) | |
| 59 | Markus Siebert (Ger) | 0:09:03 |
| 60 | Mike Bölts (Ger) | 0:09:04 |
| 61 | Mirco Zürcher (Swi) | 0:09:06 |
| 62 | Henrik Kippernes (Nor) Team Fokus-Danica | 0:09:44 |
| 63 | Patrick Titus (Ger) | 0:10:15 |
| 64 | Thomas Rasmussen (Den) | 0:10:19 |
| 65 | Mykhaylo Batsutsa (Ukr) Infotre - Bi&Esse- Leecougan | 0:10:21 |
| 66 | Steffen Weisenseel (Ger) | 0:10:26 |
| 67 | Steve Scheffel (Ger) | 0:10:29 |
| 68 | Ragnar Wirths (Ger) | 0:10:30 |
| 69 | Danny Neumann (Ger) | 0:10:31 |
| 70 | Sturla Aune (Nor) Team Fokus-Danica | 0:10:39 |
| 71 | Felix Euteneuer (Ger) | 0:10:51 |
| 72 | Lukas Hollrigl (Aut) | 0:10:53 |
| 73 | Alexander Fischer (Ger) | 0:10:54 |
| 74 | Thilo Glaser (Ger) | 0:10:57 |
| 75 | Marvin Schmidt (Ger) | 0:11:00 |
| 76 | Michael Wanski (Ger) | 0:11:06 |
| 77 | Jago Fechtmann (Ger) | 0:11:32 |
| 78 | Matthias Reichart (Ger) | 0:11:51 |
| 79 | Maxi Maier (Ger) | 0:11:57 |
| 80 | Jonathan Roth (Ger) | 0:11:59 |
| 81 | Fabian Obrist (Swi) | 0:12:34 |
| 82 | Jan Preus (Ger) | 0:12:39 |
| 83 | Vitus Wagenbauer (Ger) | |
| 84 | Timo Häfner (Ger) | 0:13:06 |
| 85 | David Schiel (Ger) | 0:13:42 |
| 86 | Simon Staufner (Ger) | 0:13:43 |
| 87 | Benno Heussi (Swi) | 0:13:53 |
| 88 | Felix Günter (Ger) | 0:14:07 |
| 89 | Roland Gantner (Aut) | |
| 90 | Ahmed-Ridvan Reichling (Ger) | 0:18:33 |
| 91 | Daniel Waibel (Ger) | |
| 92 | Benjamin Merkel (Ger) | |
| 93 | Dominik Ziegler (Ger) | |
| 94 | Sebastian Miller (Ger) | |
| 95 | Victor Nissle (Ger) | |
| 96 | Ralf Maier (Ger) | |
| 97 | Johannes Müller (Ger) | |
| 98 | Max Weber (Ger) | |
| 99 | Lukas Holtkamp (Ger) | |
| 100 | Christopher Kragl (Ger) | |
| 101 | Johannes Schulte (Ger) | |
| 102 | Michael Feinauer (Ger) | |
| 103 | Markus Schrempp (Ger) | |
| 104 | Tobias Rotermund (Ger) | |
| 105 | Julian Witt (Ger) | |
| DNF | Mattias Nilsson (Swe) | |
| DNF | Laurent Evrard (Bel) | |
| DNF | Lukas Kuch (Ger) | |
| DNF | Jan Pfitzner (Ger) | |
| DNF | Oscar Byhlinder (Swe) | |
| DNF | Florian Eitel (Ger) | |
| DNF | Marius Kottal (Ger) | |
| DNF | Joseph Kuhn (Ger) | |
| DNF | Marko Haas (Ger) | |
| DNF | Jan Eric Müller (Ger) | |
| DNF | Christopher Goergen (Ger) | |
| DNF | Patrick Müller (Ger) | |
| DNF | David Büschler (Ger) | |
| DNF | Marcel Pöter (Ger) | |
| DNF | Stefan Braun (Ger) |
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