MTB World Cup Cross Country #1 & Downhill #1 - Pietermaritzburg 2014: Elite men cross country Results

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Julien Absalon (BMC Mountainbike Racing Team) wins the Pietermaritzburg World Cup(Image credit: Tour of Japan)

Julien Absalon (BMC) took the 27th victory in his storied career in the elite men's race on Sunday, at the opening round of the cross country UCI Mountain Bike World Cup, in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.

The 5.7-kilometre course is completely new from the one riders saw last fall at the world championships, and most riders considered it to be harder. It challenged riders with technical rock gardens and jumps, and gave them no chance to rest with multiple climbs per lap. The heat also took its toll, although the late start to the men's race meant that they missed the fierce heat that the women faced.

While Schurter had to ride slowly on his flat to the technical zone for a replacement wheel, Absalon continued to push hard, aware that Fumic was still less than 30 seconds back. The two-time Olympic champion was successful in holding on to the finish, taking his first win at Pietermaritzburg. Fumic held on for second, with Maxime Marotte (BH-Suntour-KMC) taking third. Schurter managed to improve to finish sixth after his flat.

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Elite men
#	Rider Name (Country) Team	Result
1	Julien Absalon (Fra) BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	1:38:05
2	Manuel Fumic (Ger) Cannondale Factory Racing	0:00:34
3	Maxime Marotte (Fra) BH-Suntour-KMC	0:00:54
4	Ondrej Cink (Cze) Multivan Merida Biking Team	0:01:32
5	José Antonio Hermida Ramos (Spa) Multivan Merida Biking Team	0:01:39
6	Nino Schurter (Swi) Scott-Odlo MTB Racing Team	0:02:16
7	Thomas Litscher (Swi) Multivan Merida Biking Team	0:02:19
8	Mathias Flückiger (Swi) Stöckli Pro Team	0:02:24
9	Daniel Mcconnell (Aus) Trek Factory Racing	0:02:37
10	Sergio Mantecon Gutierrez (Spa) Trek Factory Racing	0:02:51
11	Florian Vogel (Swi) Scott-Odlo MTB Racing Team	0:03:16
12	Ralph Naef (Swi) BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	0:03:32
13	Lukas Flückiger (Swi) BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	0:03:55
14	Raphael Gagne (Can)	0:03:58
15	Nicola Rohrbach (Swi)	0:04:02
16	Gerhard Kerschbaumer (Ita) I.Idro Drain Bianchi	0:04:22
17	Emil Lindgren (Swe) Giant Pro XC Team	0:04:26
18	Rudi Van Houts (Ned) Multivan Merida Biking Team	0:04:48
19	Kohei Yamamoto (Jpn) Specialized Racing XC	0:05:05
20	Stéphane Tempier (Fra) BH-Suntour-KMC	0:05:32
21	Alexander Gehbauer (Aut) I.Idro Drain Bianchi	0:05:46
22	Fabian Giger (Swi) Giant Pro XC Team	0:05:51
23	Martin Gujan (Swi) Orange Monkey Pro Team	0:06:09
24	Martin Fanger (Swi) BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	0:06:18
25	Anton Sintsov (Rus) Titici LGL International Team	0:06:43
26	Marco Aurelio Fontana (Ita) Cannondale Factory Racing	0:07:16
27	Michal Lami (Svk)	Row 26 - Cell 2
28	Matiss Preimanis (Lat) DPA	0:07:17
29	Karl Markt (Aut) Ötztal Scott Racing Team	Row 28 - Cell 2
30	Marcel Wildhaber (Swi) Scott-Odlo MTB Racing Team	0:08:11
31	Marc Stutzmann (Swi) Giant-Swiss-Team	0:08:12
32	Paolo Cesar Montoya Cantillo (CRc)	0:08:20
33	Markus Schulte-Luenzum (Ger) Focus XC Team	0:08:31
34	Wolfram Kurschat (Ger) Topeak Ergon Racing Team	0:08:53
35	Daniele Braidot (Ita)	0:09:18
36	Sepp Freiburghaus (Swi)	0:09:36
37	Carlos Coloma Nicolas (Spa) MMR Bikes Pro Team	0:09:42
38	Matthias Stirnemann (Swi) Stöckli Pro Team	0:09:51
39	Shlomi Haimy (Isr) Focus XC Team	0:10:05
40	Matthias Wengelin (Swe)	0:10:12
41	Paul Oldham (GBr)	0:10:21
42	Ruben Scheire (Bel) Feenstra Felt Pb Kenda Bike Team	0:10:39
43	Simon Stiebjahn (Ger) Team Bulls	0:10:46
44	Sebastien Carabin (Bel) Team Merida Wallonie MTB	0:10:47
45	Kevin Van Hoovels (Bel) Versluys Team	0:11:19
46	Martin Gluth (Ger)	0:11:24
47	Markus Bauer (Ger)	0:11:27
48	Luca Braidot (Ita)	0:12:13
49	Sergji Rysenko (Ukr) Cycling Club Roma MTB Team	Row 48 - Cell 2
50	Matthys Beukes (RSA)	0:12:22
51	Mark Tupalski (Aus)	0:12:25
52	Ola Kjören (Nor)	0:12:26
53	David Fletcher (GBr) Orange Monkey Pro Team	0:13:30
54	Andrew Blair (Aus)	0:13:45
55	Hugo Drechou (Fra) Calvisson VTT	0:13:56
56	Uwe Hochenwarter (Aut) Focus XC Team	0:14:19
57	Daniel Eymann (Swi) Giant-Swiss-Team	0:15:13
58	Renay Groustra (RSA)	0:16:02
-1lap	Hamish Batchelor (GBr) Fluid Fin Race Team	Row 58 - Cell 2
-1lap	Brendan Johnston (Aus)	Row 59 - Cell 2
-1lap	Lucien Besancon (Swi) Wheeler - Ixs Team	Row 60 - Cell 2
-1lap	Jan Withaar (RSA)	Row 61 - Cell 2
-1lap	Rourke Croeser (RSA) Kargo Pro MTB Team	Row 62 - Cell 2
-2laps	Reinis Andrijanovs (Lat) DPA	Row 63 - Cell 2
-2laps	Stuart Marais (RSA) Kargo Pro MTB Team	Row 64 - Cell 2
-2laps	Louis-Bresler Knipe (RSA)	Row 65 - Cell 2
-3laps	Heiko Redecker (Nam)	Row 66 - Cell 2
-3laps	Teboho Khantsi LES19910101 Ace - The Sufferfest - Lesotho MTB Team	Row 67 - Cell 2
-4laps	Henrique Avancini (Bra) Caloi Team	Row 68 - Cell 2
DNF	Phetetso Monese LES19840922 Ace - The Sufferfest - Lesotho MTB Team	Row 69 - Cell 2
DNF	Moritz Milatz (Ger) BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	Row 70 - Cell 2
DNF	Simon Scheiber (Aut) Ötztal Scott Racing Team	Row 71 - Cell 2
DNF	Sebastian Batchelor (GBr) Fluid Fin Race Team	Row 72 - Cell 2
DNF	Martinus Esmeyer (RSA)	Row 73 - Cell 2
DNF	Tyron Bird (RSA)	Row 74 - Cell 2
DNS	Jan Skarnitzl (Cze) Sram Rubena Trek	Row 75 - Cell 2
DNS	Cameron Jette (Can) Scott-3Rox Racing	Row 76 - Cell 2

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Teams
#	Rider Name (Country) Team	Result	Header Cell - Column 3
1	Multivan Merida Biking Team	82	pts
2	BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	77	Row 1 - Cell 3
3	Scott-Odlo MTB Racing Team	47	Row 2 - Cell 3
4	BH-Suntour-KMC	43	Row 3 - Cell 3
5	Trek Factory Racing	43	Row 4 - Cell 3
6	Cannondale Factory Racing	40	Row 5 - Cell 3
7	I.Idro Drain Bianchi	25	Row 6 - Cell 3
8	Stöckli Pro Team	23	Row 7 - Cell 3
9	Giant Pro XC Team	23	Row 8 - Cell 3
10	Specialized Racing XC	12	Row 9 - Cell 3
11	Orange Monkey Pro Team	8	Row 10 - Cell 3
12	Titici Lgl International Team	6	Row 11 - Cell 3
13	DPA	3	Row 12 - Cell 3
14	Ötztal Scott Racing Team	2	Row 13 - Cell 3

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Elite men World Cup standings after round 1
#	Rider Name (Country) Team	Result	Header Cell - Column 3
1	Julien Absalon (Fra) BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	250	pts
2	Manuel Fumic (Ger) Cannondale Factory Racing	200	Row 1 - Cell 3
3	Maxime Marotte (Fra) BH-Suntour-KMC	160	Row 2 - Cell 3
4	Ondrej Cink (Cze) Multivan Merida Biking Team	150	Row 3 - Cell 3
5	José Antonio Hermida Ramos (Spa) Multivan Merida Biking Team	140	Row 4 - Cell 3
6	Nino Schurter (Swi) Scott-Odlo MTB Racing Team	130	Row 5 - Cell 3
7	Thomas Litscher (Swi) Multivan Merida Biking Team	120	Row 6 - Cell 3
8	Mathias Flückiger (Swi) Stöckli Pro Team	110	Row 7 - Cell 3
9	Daniel Mcconnell (Aus) Trek Factory Racing	100	Row 8 - Cell 3
10	Sergio Mantecon Gutierrez (Spa) Trek Factory Racing	95	Row 9 - Cell 3
11	Florian Vogel (Swi) Scott-Odlo MTB Racing Team	90	Row 10 - Cell 3
12	Ralph Naef (Swi) BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	85	Row 11 - Cell 3
13	Lukas Flückiger (Swi) BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	80	Row 12 - Cell 3
14	Raphael Gagne (Can)	78	Row 13 - Cell 3
15	Nicola Rohrbach (Swi)	76	Row 14 - Cell 3
16	Gerhard Kerschbaumer (Ita) I.Idro Drain Bianchi	74	Row 15 - Cell 3
17	Emil Lindgren (Swe) Giant Pro XC Team	72	Row 16 - Cell 3
18	Rudi Van Houts (Ned) Multivan Merida Biking Team	70	Row 17 - Cell 3
19	Kohei Yamamoto (Jpn) Specialized Racing XC	68	Row 18 - Cell 3
20	Stéphane Tempier (Fra) BH-Suntour-KMC	66	Row 19 - Cell 3
21	Alexander Gehbauer (Aut) I.Idro Drain Bianchi	64	Row 20 - Cell 3
22	Fabian Giger (Swi) Giant Pro XC Team	62	Row 21 - Cell 3
23	Martin Gujan (Swi) Orange Monkey Pro Team	60	Row 22 - Cell 3
24	Martin Fanger (Swi) BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	58	Row 23 - Cell 3
25	Anton Sintsov (Rus) Titici LGL International Team	56	Row 24 - Cell 3
26	Marco Aurelio Fontana (Ita) Cannondale Factory Racing	54	Row 25 - Cell 3
27	Michal Lami (Svk)	52	Row 26 - Cell 3
28	Matiss Preimanis (Lat) DPA	50	Row 27 - Cell 3
29	Karl Markt (Aut) Ötztal Scott Racing Team	48	Row 28 - Cell 3
30	Marcel Wildhaber (Swi) Scott-Odlo MTB Racing Team	46	Row 29 - Cell 3
31	Marc Stutzmann (Swi) Giant-Swiss-Team	44	Row 30 - Cell 3
32	Paolo Cesar Montoya Cantillo (CRc)	42	Row 31 - Cell 3
33	Markus Schulte-Luenzum (Ger) Focus XC Team	40	Row 32 - Cell 3
34	Wolfram Kurschat (Ger) Topeak Ergon Racing Team	38	Row 33 - Cell 3
35	Daniele Braidot (Ita)	36	Row 34 - Cell 3
36	Sepp Freiburghaus (Swi)	34	Row 35 - Cell 3
37	Carlos Coloma Nicolas (Spa) MMR Bikes Pro Team	32	Row 36 - Cell 3
38	Matthias Stirnemann (Swi) Stöckli Pro Team	30	Row 37 - Cell 3
39	Shlomi Haimy (Isr) Focus XC Team	29	Row 38 - Cell 3
40	Matthias Wengelin (Swe)	28	Row 39 - Cell 3
41	Paul Oldham (GBr)	27	Row 40 - Cell 3
42	Ruben Scheire (Bel) Feenstra Felt Pb Kenda Bike Team	26	Row 41 - Cell 3
43	Simon Stiebjahn (Ger) Team Bulls	25	Row 42 - Cell 3
44	Sebastien Carabin (Bel) Team Merida Wallonie MTB	24	Row 43 - Cell 3
45	Kevin Van Hoovels (Bel) Versluys Team	23	Row 44 - Cell 3
46	Martin Gluth (Ger)	22	Row 45 - Cell 3
47	Markus Bauer (Ger)	21	Row 46 - Cell 3
48	Luca Braidot (Ita)	20	Row 47 - Cell 3
49	Sergji Rysenko (Ukr) Cycling Club Roma MTB Team	19	Row 48 - Cell 3
50	Matthys Beukes (RSA)	18	Row 49 - Cell 3
51	Mark Tupalski (Aus)	17	Row 50 - Cell 3
52	Ola Kjören (Nor)	16	Row 51 - Cell 3
53	David Fletcher (GBr) Orange Monkey Pro Team	15	Row 52 - Cell 3
54	Andrew Blair (Aus)	14	Row 53 - Cell 3
55	Hugo Drechou (Fra) Calvisson VTT	13	Row 54 - Cell 3
56	Uwe Hochenwarter (Aut) Focus XC Team	12	Row 55 - Cell 3
57	Daniel Eymann (Swi) Giant-Swiss-Team	11	Row 56 - Cell 3
58	Renay Groustra (RSA)	10	Row 57 - Cell 3
59	Hamish Batchelor (GBr) Fluid Fin Race Team	9	Row 58 - Cell 3
60	Brendan Johnston (Aus)	8	Row 59 - Cell 3

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Team World Cup standings
#	Rider Name (Country) Team	Result	Header Cell - Column 3
1	Multivan Merida Biking Team	82	pts
2	BMC Mountainbike Racing Team	77	Row 1 - Cell 3
3	Scott-Odlo MTB Racing Team	47	Row 2 - Cell 3
4	BH-Suntour-KMC	43	Row 3 - Cell 3
5	Trek Factory Racing	43	Row 4 - Cell 3
6	Cannondale Factory Racing	40	Row 5 - Cell 3
7	I.Idro Drain Bianchi	25	Row 6 - Cell 3
8	Stöckli Pro Team	23	Row 7 - Cell 3
9	Giant Pro XC Team	23	Row 8 - Cell 3
10	Specialized Racing XC	12	Row 9 - Cell 3
11	Orange Monkey Pro Team	8	Row 10 - Cell 3
12	Titici Lgl International Team	6	Row 11 - Cell 3
13	DPA	3	Row 12 - Cell 3
14	Ötztal Scott Racing Team	2	Row 13 - Cell 3

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