UCI MTB World Cup XCO #6 - Mont Sainte-Anne 2018: Elite Men and Women Cross-Country Short Track Results

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Sam Gaze (Specialized Racing) and Anton Cooper (Trek Factory Racing XC) (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Annika Langvad (Specialized Racing) leading (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Emily Batty (Trek Factory Racing XC) (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Kate Courtney (Specialized Racing) rode a very aggressive race (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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US National Champ Erin Huck spent a lap at the front (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Jolanda Neff (Kross Racing Team) still leads the World Cup (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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She may be semi retired but Katerina Nash (Clif Pro Team) finished 4th (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Catharine Pendrel (Clif Pro Team) is returning from injury (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Jolanda Neff and Maja Wloszczowska (Kross Racing Team) at the front at start of women's race (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Annika Langvad (Specialized Racing) at the front (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Annika Langvad (Specialized Racing) wins (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Trek Factory Racing XC's Emily Batty and Ellen Noble warm up (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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o Schurter (Scott-SRAM MTB Racing) (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Henrique Avancini (Cannondale Factory Racing XC) setting the pace for the first half of the race (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Sam Gaze (Specialized Racing) begins to up the pace (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Nino Schurter (Scott-SRAM MTB Racing) is suffering from a cold (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Mathias Flueckiger (Thömus-RN Racing Team) (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Marco Fontana (Bianchi Countervail), Lars Forster (BMC Mountainbike Racing Team) and Nino Schurter (Scott-SRAM MTB Racing) (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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Sam Gaze sprints to his second win of the season (Image credit: Rob Jones)

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L to r: Jolanda Neff, Annika Langvad, Kate Courtney (Image credit: Rob Jones)

The Mont-Sainte-Anne World Cup weekend opened on Friday with the fifth round of the new XCC cross-country event, with Annika Langvad (Specialized) taking her fourth win of the season and Sam Gaze (Specialized) his second.

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Gunn-Rita Dahle takes 30th World Cup XCO win in Vallnord

Kerschbaumer takes Vallnord World Cup XCO win

Mathieu van der Poel to stay with Corendon-Circus until 2020

The 20-minute event used Sunday's XCO one kilometre start loop, with the top 16 finishers out of 40 starters scoring start positions on the first two rows for the XCO, as well as collecting half the points of a World Cup. The short circuit had a long opening climb and two shorter climbs, and was a race of attrition for both the women and the men.

Langvad attacked with approximately two and a half laps to go in the seven-lap race, opening a gap on World Cup leader and world champion Jolanda Neff (Kross Racing), which she held to the line. Kate Courtney (Specialized) took third.

"This course was very different," said Langvad.
"It had one bigger climb and two smaller punch climbs, and I could feel by the second lap that I was going really good today. I had a tough couple of weeks at the last two World Cups with my crash at Val di Sole [Italy], but then I went back home and trained, and started to feel really good again, so I came into this race with confidence. With three laps to go I put the hammer down a bit and with two to go I attacked and tried to keep it going from there."

Langvad closed the overall series points gap slightly on Neff, but not enough to take the World Cup lead.

Schurter slowed by a cold

The men's race began with Henrique Avancini (Cannondale Factory) setting the pace for the first half of the race, followed by Gaze, world champion and World Cup leader Nino Schurter (Scott-SRAM), Anton Cooper (Trek Factory) and Mathias Flueckiger (Thomus-RN Racing).

Gaze hung back until the final couple of laps, when he began to up the pace, coming out of the final corner with 75 metres to go with a couple of bike lengths lead, which he kept to the line.

Avancini took second ahead of Flueckiger. Schurter, who is suffering from a cold, backed off in the final laps, finishing 22nd and will start in the third row on Sunday.

"It was tough," admitted Gaze, "Either you were braking and trying to keep speed, or going full gas on the climbs. It was a demanding course and really took its toll. I'm really happy to be back at what I feel is my speed after a tough three months trying to get back to the level I know I can be at."

Despite finishing well back, Schurter continues to lead the overall standings, with the absent Mathieu van der Poel (Corendon-Circus) also maintaining his second place in the standings.