At the European cross country mountain bike championships in Moscow, Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjå (Norway) won her sixth European championship title.
No presents were being handed out to the riders at the European championships. Due to the pouring rain, the races turned into true mudbaths. Dahle Flesjå was not deterred by the miserable conditions, however. Despite having been plagued by a sickness at the beginning of the week, the Norwegian beat her strongest competitors Esther Süss (Switzerland)and Sabine Spitz (Germany).
"Today's conditions reminded me of the world championships in Kaprun in 2002, where I got crowned as world champion for the first time. I like these kind of conditions and managed to ride fluidly throughout the race," Dahle Flesjå said.
"Now I am very happy to have defended the European title." Dahle Flesjå won the most recent World Cup in La Bresse, France.
Behind the winner, the battle was for second place with Süss taking it by just one second over Spitz.
"The bronze medal is a huge success for me, but I lost silver due to a technical problem in the final meters," said Spitz, who had issues with her brakes in the mud. The pads wore out in the muddy conditions.
Full Results
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa (Norway) | 1:37:26 |
| 2 | Esther Süss (Switzerland) | 0:01:11 |
| 3 | Sabine Spitz (Germany) | 0:01:12 |
| 4 | Tereza Hurikova (Czech Republic) | 0:02:32 |
| 5 | Katrin Leumann (Switzerland) | 0:04:24 |
| 6 | Aleksandra Dawidowicz (Poland) | 0:04:30 |
| 7 | Maja Wloszczowska (Poland) | 0:04:31 |
| 8 | Elisabeth Osl (Austria) | 0:05:07 |
| 9 | Irina Kalentieva (Russian Federation) | 0:05:46 |
| 10 | Blaza Klemencic (Slovenia) | 0:06:41 |
| 11 | Anna Szafraniec (Poland) | 0:06:59 |
| 12 | Eva Lechner (Italy) | 0:07:19 |
| 13 | Adelheid Morath (Germany) | 0:07:39 |
| 14 | Tanja Zakelj (Slovenia) | 0:07:58 |
| 15 | Kathrin Stirnemann (Switzerland) | 0:08:40 |
| 16 | Janka Stevkova (Slovakia) | 0:09:52 |
| 17 | Alexandra Engen (Sweden) | 0:10:15 |
| 18 | Marielle Saner-Guinchard (Switzerland) | 0:10:33 |
| 19 | Vera Andreeva (Russian Federation) | 0:15:50 |
| 20 | Sarah Koba (Switzerland) | 0:16:23 |
| 21 | Irina Slobodyan (Ukraine) | Row 20 - Cell 2 |
| 22 | Anna Villar Argente (Spain) | Row 21 - Cell 2 |
| 23 | Elena Gogoleva (Russian Federation) | Row 22 - Cell 2 |
| 24 | Lene Byberg (Norway) | Row 23 - Cell 2 |
| 25 | Maaris Meier (Estonia) | Row 24 - Cell 2 |
| 26 | Sandra Santanyes Murillo (Spain) | Row 25 - Cell 2 |
| 27 | Nadezhda Kachuschkina (Russian Federation) | Row 26 - Cell 2 |
| 28 | Elvira Khayrullina (Russian Federation) | Row 27 - Cell 2 |
| 29 | Ekaterina Malomoura (Russian Federation) | Row 28 - Cell 2 |
| 30 | Tatsiana Skurat (Belarus) | Row 29 - Cell 2 |
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