Zakelj wins Slovenian cross country championships

Image 1 of 5

The Slovenian crowd expected a big battle beetwen former world cross country U23 champion Tanja Zakelj and former European marathon champion Blaza Klemencic. Both riders managed to come in the top 10 in the last two World Cup races, so the expectations for the win were big on both sides.

Soon after the start on the technical track in Domzale, Zakelj took the lead and attacked immediately, so Lemencic couldn't take the pace. The lead was increasing during the seven lap race and Zakelj crossed the finish line 1:34 ahead of Klemencic, who was followed by Nina Homovec in third and Ana Zupan in fourth.

Matej Lovse once again proved that he is a specialist in the national championships. Even though his results this season were not very promising, he managed to pull himself together and win his third cross country national champion's jersey.

After the first lap, a group of five elite riders managed to stay together and begin a battle for the win, but by middle of the race, only Lenart Noc and Matej Lovse were left. Noc couldn't withstand the attack in the last kilometers of the race, so Lovse finished with a 52-second margin of victory. Nejc Cernilogar took third place.

Full Results