Skarnitzl and Morath win in Amathous

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Jan Skarnitzl (Sram Rubena Specialized) and Adelheid Morath (Sabine Spitz-Haibike) grabbed the victories at final round of the Cyprus Sunshine Cup in Amathous. Czech rider Skarnitzl won in front of two Swedes: Emil Lindgren (Giant Pro XC) and Matthias Wengelin (Specialized), while Morath beat fellow German and Olympic champion Sabine Spitz (Sabine Spitz-Haibike) and Swede Alexandra Engen (Ghost).

Skarnitzl and Katrin Leumann won the Cyprus Sunshine Cup overall.

Men

Pre-race favorite Emil Lindgren started fast, taking the lead and obviously chasing a victory amongst the ruins of Amathous. He gained some seconds, but after the 2.9-kilometer start loop and most of the first lap completed, the Scandinavian pro suffered a flat tire.

The flat cost Lindgren about a minute as he dropped back to seventh position. Meanwhile Jan Skarnitzl and Nicola Rohrbach (Goldwurst Power/Stöckli) escaped off the front. The duo extended their lead over Henk-Jaap Moorlag (Giant Pro XC) and Matthias Wengelin, while Lindgren chased together with Anton Sintsov.

In the penultimate lap, Skarnitzl attacked Rohrbach and left him behind, quickly getting 15 seconds. But the Swiss rider lost much more, because he had to stop and refill a flat front front tire with air. The tire held and he was able to keep 40 seconds on Lindgren, who seemed to be getting stronger and stronger. Moorlag had fallen back.

On the last lap, Rohrbach had another flat tire, this time in the rear. There was nothing he could do upon being caught by Lindgren and Wengelin.

The two Swedes had grown up on the same street and it came down to a sprint between the long-time friends. Wengelin thought he could come around, but the finish straight was too short for his attack, and Lindgren took the second spot on the podium instead, 43 seconds behind winner Skarnitzl.

"The first two laps were too fast for me. After I was in the lead I could ride the singletrack safely," said Skarnitzl. "I am really happy with this three weeks of training and racing. I think I never was so strong at this time of the year, my shape is good."

Lindgren's finish earned him second in the overall Sunshine Cup classification, in front of Wengelin. The orange overall winner's jersey went to Jan Skarnitzl.

"In two years, I had one flat tire and now two in two weeks," said Lindgren. "That's not cool. We were riding for one tire brand for five years, and now we made a change. Probably I am not used to it. But it's not only about the material, it's also about me. I was riding too hard. But second place is still good."

Wengelin said, "It was a good day for me. When I realized that Emil was getting closer, I saved my energy and slowed down. I thought I could beat him at the finish straight, but it was too short to take over. This is the best start I ever had to the season. I am happy about my performance."

Rohrbach said, "It was a pity with the flat tires, because I didn't lose a lot after Jan's attack. I still am missing a bit of the high intensity, but at least I am satisfied with all. Would have been good to be on the podium, but that's how it goes."

In women's race, Adelheid Morath (Sabine Spitz-Haibike) celebrated a solid win. She took the lead on the start loop and was able to leave the rest of the bunch behind for a long, solo day. She finished with a gap of 1:58 over her teammate Sabine Spitz.

At the beginning, Alexandra Engen tried to play team tactics for Katrin Leumann (both Ghost Factory Racing), but Morath was too strong for both.

"I am super happy. Today my goal was the victory and finally I made it," said Morath. "Finally it worked out much easier than last week, because now I am here for more than one week. It was a perfect race for me. After the start, I could control the race. Only when Alex and Katrin used team tactics at the beginning was it difficult for a short moment. I am happy to have the first season win for the team."

The most interesting battle of the race was for the runner-up's spot. The lead among the chasers changed four times. When Engen felt back, it was Leumann in the lead. Then Spitz and young teammate Kathrin Stirnemann closed the gap together with Engen, and the game started again.

Leumann deployed further  team tactics, blocking a bit in a singletrack, so that Engen could escape in the penultimate of the four total laps.

Spitz tried to pass Leumann, but the Swiss rider fought back and prevented the German from overtaking her at first. However, Spitz used her next chance and could pass, closing the gap to Engen and giving her team a one-two finish.

"Unlike the cross country race at Macheras, I found a good rhythm and the intense efforts went better," said Spitz. "When we were four in the chase, Katrin and Alex worked together. But at the second tech zone, I could pass Katrin."

Engen had decided on Friday evening to race at Amathous, since her knee was free of pain in training. She finished 18 seconds after Spitz and took third spot on the podium in front of Leumann, who kept  the Cyprus Sunshine Cup overall winner's jersey on her shoulders.

"It was fun and it hurt," said Engen of her effort. "I wanted to help Katrin as much as possible for the overall. But I am happy, because after two weeks without racing, it was a confirmation for my shape. I like this course at Amathous, because you have to suffer a lot, and I am able to do that."

Leumann said, "I felt very tired today. The race last weekend took a lot of energy and in the rhythm of a training camp, I was not able to recover. I did my best today. Alex was riding a wonderful, tactical race. She was helping me, wherever she could. Now I am happy to secure my first Cyprus Sunshine Cup overall."

Stirnemann had bad luck with chain suck which cost her a possible top three finish.

Corina Gantenbein (Fischer-BMC) was not able to stay with the top women. "After three weeks of training, I felt tired. But all in all I am very satisfied about my racing," she said after finishing eighth.

Full Results