After the Snowshoe round in the USA, the KTM Vittoria Team is heading to Canada, to Mont-Saint-Anne for the penultimate round of the 2022 World Cup. A mythical place on which our two pilots Léna Gérault and Mathis Guay made sparks!

The XCO course is a summary of physical and technical portions over nearly 4km and 220m of elevation gain per lap. Several changes have been made since the famous section of “la Béatrice” disappears, in favor of S-école sections, La Perdrix and La Scottish. Challenging for bodies, this round of the “vélo de montagne” World Cup, as Quebecers say, will keep all its promises! Race stories:

Léna Gérault, 8th XCC & 6th XCO

XCC : First line start for Léna Gérault on the Short Track. The desire is great, the sensations are good, ideal for having fun and ensuring that the Snowshoe stage is only a distant memory. Concentrated and determined, Léna, 15th overall XCC attacks from the first climb and takes the lead. She distances the pursuers who are organized at the back. Rebecca McConnell brings the group back, all the strong girls of the moment are there. Léna attacks again and leads the group until the mid-race. It will be necessary to wait for the last lap for the outcome and the victory of Neff. Léna crossed the line in 8th place, paying for the many previous efforts, but this panache race did a lot of good and announced an excellent XCO Sunday!

XCO : Léna’s performance on the short track allows her to start on the front line, on the right. It’s 26 degrees, not too windy, the conditions are ideal. The start is done, Léna finds herself in the middle of the peloton and goes back to the end of the start loop in 10th place, in the leading group. A huge downpour of rain fell and made the course slippery, forcing the competitors to get off the bike several times. You have to stay lucid to avoid pilot errors and slips. Léna succeeds and signs her best result in the World Cup this season with a very good 6th place which says a lot about her shape! These performances announce thrilling World Championships in a few days.

Mathis Guay, on the way !

For Mathis Guay, the North American stages did not necessarily live up to his expectations. It’s hard to find the rhythm and energy needed to be at the front, in often difficult weather conditions. Despite a good start, he couldn’t hang on to the leading group and the comeback race was not possible. He bravely finished in 22nd place. After a few days of rest, Mathis is more motivated than ever to do well in the World Championships at Le Gets.

The gallery

Photos : Kéno Derleyn (@kenoderleyn)

“This weekend has definitely been amazing. The double performance of Léna signing her best results of the season is ideal a few weeks before the worlds! For Mathis, we know that the machine is on the way and that he will quickly return to the top, as we say within the Team: Who dares Win ! ”

Jérôme Dericbourg – Team Manager

Stay tuned !

Kévin Laporte | 07-08-2022