The MTB World Championships are back in Les Gets, France. In front of a large audience, the French gave it their all and shone ! A historic Downhill triple, victory in XCC and women’s U23, second place in men’s U23, not forgetting victory in the elite women’s category…, the French Team are celebrating !

The crazy atmosphere brought the French delegation to its peak in all disciplines, from XC relay to DH, XCC and XCO. The Olympic course is almost 4km long, with some terrible climbs, technical sections through the rocks and some challenging descents. The KTM Vittoria Team went through all the emotional states, from the pleasure to seeing Tatiana in the relay to her terrible crash, to seeing Léna at the front and Mathis fighting like a lion, race stories :

Léna Gérault, a bad day…

Léna is skipping the XCC in order to concentrate on the XCO. The fatigue accumulated throughout the World Cup season means that choices have to be made. Sunday, 12:59, start in a few seconds under a warming sun. Superb start from the left side, which puts her in the lead. She climbs the first hill, like a repeat of her great Canadian performances. The world stars of MTB are there and the French are closely watched. Pauline Ferrand-Prévot then takes over and attacks in the meadow. From the very first technical sections, the gap is made. Léna was forced to put her foot down on a technical section and lost a few seconds that would be difficult to play at the front. Then comes a tough race that will end in 34th place. It’s not the expected result, but there are days when the head is there, when the crowd pushes, but the body doesn’t respond to the expected. The freshness starts to be lacking at the end of the season, now it’s time to enjoy the last round of the World Cup in Val di Sole.

Mathis Guay, Black-out !

Mathis Guay sits in 8th position on the start line, in the middle of the favourites for the title, he tells himself that anything can happen. One-day races like championships are great moments where outsiders often play spoilsport. Motivated more than ever, he takes a good start, even if the sensations don’t seem to be up to the task. Without managing to catch the leading group, Mathis lost a few places and found himself in around 15th position. On the second lap, he takes advantage of a new energy and comes back to the top of the first climb in the top 10. But he had to pay for his effort, as there was a black-out, he couldn’t follow, he was tired… Moreover, the great favourite Martin Vidaurre also suffered on this course in Les Gets as it was an Italian who won. Mathis Guay will finish 28th of these World Championships.

Tatiana tournut, on top of the relay before the crash…

Selected for the XC Relay with the French Team on Wednesday, Tatiana Tournut is hoping to repeat last year’s feat of winning the supreme title again. Alongside Adrien Boichis, Alexandre Martins, Loana Lecomte, Line Burquier and Jordan Sarrou, the French relay sounds good.

France was leading the relay when Tatiana fell heavily on the top of the circuit. In her fall, in addition to injuring herself physically, she broke the saddle and it came off the seatpost. Finishing the race « en danseuse » with a sore shoulder is a real ordeal. But Tatiana fights to finish, not only for herself but also for the Team, because the pain is intense. She managed to take 5th place. The doctors then confirmed that is was not safe to ride the junior race. It’s a hard blow…

The gallery

Photos : Ulysse Daessle – Met Helmets & Michele Mondini – Julbo

“The atmosphere in Les Gets throughout the week was incredible and the French Team hit the ground ! It was great to see the enthusiasm around the French delegation and it did good for the riders themselves. As for the Team’s performance, we would have preferred to do even better, of course, but this kind of event is a once-in-a-career experience and the pressure is really high. We have all learned a lot and progressed to try new things, Who dares Win ! ”

Jérôme Dericbourg – Team Manager

RDV next weekend for the last 2022 World cup, Val Di Sole – Italy. Stay tuned !

Kévin Laporte | 28-08-2022